Both Beginner- and Professional-Friendly, the Mankati E180 3D Printer is Now Available for Pre-Order

It’s always exciting to hear about the release of a new 3D printer, but it’s even more intriguing to learn more about a printer company that’s either new to the market or is just beginning to develop into a more global business. One growing company that we’re interested in at the moment is Mankati, a Shanghai-based manufacturer that has been working on the development of their latest model, the E180, for the past two years.

The Chinese 3D printer market, which was quiet for a long time, has been experiencing a lot of growth lately and has delivered some high-quality 3D printers, as well as developing some groundbreaking new technology. There’s a lot of research and innovation taking place in the country’s 3D printing industry right now, and according to Mankati, a lot of work went into the development of the E180, which is now available for pre-order.

There are 3D printers for beginners and 3D printers for professionals, but the Mankati E180 is geared towards the needs of both. It’s designed to be easy enough to use that it can serve as a starter printer for those just starting to explore 3D printing, but unlike many “starter printers,” it also delivers exceptional print quality, according to Mankati. The company states that the E180 cuts down on a lot of post-processing necessities by delivering highly detailed prints smooth enough to be taken off the build plate and immediately painted (or left as is) – no polishing required.

“Our product idea is to provide the 3D printer with ease-to-use for beginners, and with reliability, efficiency & accuracy for professionals,” Mankati Sales Manager Jacky Du tells us.

In terms of ease of use, it doesn’t look as though Mankati neglected any part of the printing process. A removable, perforated build plate allows for easy print removal and secure adhesion without the need for hairspray or other adhesive products. An automated material detection function pauses your print job and notifies you if your filament runs out. The E180 also offers automatic support structure generation, thanks to smart software that adds different levels of easy-removal support based on print structure.

Speaking of the software, the Mankati mWare program should be especially enticing to beginners, offering simplified slicing and printing with preset profiles for Mankati’s different materials, which include mABS, mPLA, mPC-S and mPC-T. The filament system is open, however, and the company is planning to add additional material profiles based on popular external brands in the future. For businesses with several printers, mRemote cluster management software allows for easy management of multiple printers and print jobs.

Other attractive features include an enclosed print chamber for temperature consistency, an integrated air filter, and remote printing and monitoring, as well as a modular design that lends itself to easy maintenance. Specifications include:

• Printer size: 345 x 340 x 490 mm
• Build volume: 180 x 180 x 200 mm
• Nozzle diameter: 0.4 mm
• Interface: WiFi, Ethernet or USB
• Layer height: 0.06 – 0.3 mm
• Extruder maximum temperature: 350°C (662°F)

The Mankati E180 is priced at $1,999, but until August 10 the company is offering a 15% discount plus free shipping, bringing the total cost down to $1,699. You can learn more about the E180 below, and discuss further in the E180 3D Printer for Pre-Order forum over at 3DPB.com.