Abstract
Pollinator decline is prevalent around the globe threatening food production, yields and the economic income of farmers. With reducing yields, land cultivation increases compromising natural habitats. Aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals of no poverty and zero hunger, the creation of artificial bumblebee nests enables a means to address habitat shortfalls. Considerations around preventing predator attacks, withstanding external environmental elements and creating a stable internal habitat were critical for success. Utilization of polymers with opacity and strength characteristics were important, whilst allowing for low volume prototype manufacturing methods (vacuum forming using additive manufactured formers). Subsequent design iterations utilised additive manufacturing as the primary production process, focusing on redistributed manufacture to enable rapid deployment in areas of crisis. Initial results from simulations and physical testing evidence the feasibility of the design in terms of strength, durability and environmental suitability. Deployment of six prototype units, with three artificially introduced bumblebee colonies, demonstrated a sustained natural reproduction cycle for a season. Subsequent deployment of empty units observed a successful wild queen habitation and sustained colony production over a season. Further field testing will ascertain how bumblebees utilise their nests long-term to drive future decisions on design and materials for environmental sustainability.
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Acknowledgements
The authors acknowledge the support of the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) Impact Acceleration Account (IAA) (Grant Reference: ESRC-IAA 2019), awarded through Lancaster University.
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Roberts, J., Donkersley, P., Ashmore, L., Rennie, A. (2023). Additive Manufacturing as an Enabler of Environmental Solutions to Address Food Security. In: Zarbane, K., Beidouri, Z. (eds) Proceedings of CASICAM 2022. CASICAM 2022. Springer Tracts in Additive Manufacturing. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-32927-2_26
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