Plastic back plate

Combat engines have traditional been made from aluminum and steel.
Maybe it is time to try new solutions.
Some parts, as the back plate, can be made from plastic.

The new 3D-printing technology has made it easy and cheap to make plastic parts from CAD-files.
To test the technology on a combat engine a copy of the Fora back plate was printed in plastic by Shapeways in Holland.

The back plate was made in polyamide (nylon) in a process called Selective Laser Sintering, SLS.