Terms of Reference - Evaluation: 3D Printing for All

• Evaluation Commissioner: MSF East Africa
• Evaluation Focal Point: Silvestr Tkac, 3D Printing Advisor
• Evaluation window: October - December 2026
• Expected report date: December 2026

Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) is an international humanitarian medical organisation providing emergency care in contexts of armed conflict, epidemic disease, and natural disaster. Its Transformational Investment Capacity (TIC) funds and supports time-limited innovation projects that aim to improve MSF's operational effectiveness.

The 3D Printing for All project is a TIC-funded initiative aiming to standardise and scale the use of Fused Deposition Modelling (FDM) 3D printing technology across MSF Operational Centres (OCs) and technical departments, including logistics, biomedical engineering, and energy. Its core ambition is to make 3D printing a practical, governed, and self-sustaining capability within MSF, reducing dependency on external supply chains for a defined category of items.

The evaluation has been initiated to understand where 3D printing delivers clear operational value for MSF, under what conditions, and how the project's support model should adapt to maximise relevance, cost efficiency, and impact.

The evaluation will directly inform:

• The next phase of TIC support, including decisions on guidance, governance, product design, standardisation, training, and deployment models.

• The sustainability and transition strategy, specifically design of a permanent 3D Printing Advisor position funded by MSF sections on behalf of the movement.

• The TIC Selection Committee's expectations regarding Champions, Communities of Practice, and Tembo integration.

• MSF-wide evidence on which 3D printing applications offer the strongest value, and when 3D printing is not the appropriate solution.

The evaluation will cover the full period of Phase 1 (June 2023 - December 2024) and the Phase 2 activities up to the point of evaluation fieldwork (August 2025 - approximately October 2026).

Themes covered:

• Operational relevance and use-case appropriateness

• Effectiveness of project support

• Cost and time efficiency

• Staff acceptance, perceived value, and barriers

• Implementation models

• Community and champion model

• Sustainability and transition

• Governance, compliance, and risk management

1. To what extent does FDM 3D printing respond to documented operational needs across MSF's field and HQ contexts, and which categories of use case offer the clearest value proposition versus those better served through conventional procurement or logistics channels?
2. How well has the 3D Printing for All project aligned its support activities with the actual priority needs of MSF OCs and technical departments?
3. To what extent has the project achieved its Phase 1 and Phase 2 targets, and what factors have driven or constrained delivery?
4. How effective has the project been in building and sustaining local 3D printing champions?
5. In which use cases and contexts does 3D printing demonstrably save time or reduce cost compared to conventional alternatives?
6. How efficient have the project's own management and coordination arrangements been in delivering impact relative to the resources invested?
7. What documented operational outcomes have resulted from 3D printing deployment?
8. How have field staff's behaviours and approaches to repairs, ordering, and low-scale innovation changed because of the project?
9. What is the projected impact of the 3D printing within MSF on large scale given current traction and strategy?
10. To what extent are the conditions for responsible and effective scale-up currently in place?
11. What cost-sharing model or institutional arrangement offers the most viable pathway for sustaining 3D printing expertise within MSF post-TIC funding?

Required Competencies:

• Demonstrated experience evaluating technology, innovation, or operational improvement projects in humanitarian or development settings.

• Working knowledge of FDM 3D printing technology, sufficient to assess use-case implications, quality and safety limitations, and governance requirements without requiring basic orientation from the project team.

• Proven capability in mixed-methods evaluation design, including structured use-case analysis or comparative case assessment.

• Understanding of MSF's structure, Operational Directorates, and mission coordination model, or equivalent experience with large, federated humanitarian organizations.

• Full independence from MSF and from any commercial interest in 3D printing equipment, materials, or services.

• English (Written and spoken).

Desirable Competencies:

• Connections to or familiarity with FabLab networks, the Internet of Production Alliance, or the Open-Source Hardware Association and other stakeholders in 3D printing in humanitarian and low resource contexts.

• Experience with supply-chain, biomedical engineering, or logistics assessments in humanitarian settings.

• French (Spoken).

• Experience designing or assessing Communities of Practice or knowledge-management systems in decentralized organizations.

• Prior evaluation experience with MSF or comparable medical humanitarian organizations.

Interested consultants or teams should submit the following by 15 August 2026:

• A technical proposal (maximum 8 pages) covering: understanding of the evaluation scope and context; proposed methodology and use-case analysis approach; work plan and team roles.

• CVs of all proposed team members (maximum 4 pages each), explicitly addressing the requirements above.

• A financial proposal (separate document) itemising all costs in Euros.

• Two examples of previous evaluation reports of comparable scope, including at least one technology or innovation evaluation.

• A signed statement of independence confirming no conflicts of interest with MSF, with Prusa Research, or with any 3D printing equipment manufacturer, materials supplier, or service provider.

Proposals should be submitted to [email protected] with the subject line:

"Evaluation Proposal - 3D Printing for All Phase 2 - [Organisation/Consultant Name]"