3D printing has a lot of demands placed on it: customers want more options, faster, bigger, sturdier, more reliable. At RAPID, I had the opportunity to speak with some of the companies striving to meet these demands, including 3Diligent, 3D Platform, MakerGear, and gCreate. Many events are over as soon as closing time hits, but for some of the biggest shows in the 3D printing calendar year, the conversations continue even weeks thereafter. It’s hard to believe it’s already been three weeks since the last day of RAPID + TCT show, but somewhat less tough to believe that there’s still more to say about what happened this year in Pittsburgh. The show for 2017 was bigger (and better?) than ever before, with thousands of attendees and hundreds of exhibitors.
3Diligent
“We have HP!”
I last chatted with Hilkene in December at Inside 3D Printing San Diego, where the company had been focusing on an expansion of capabilities in metal 3D printing technologies. They’re still expanding capabilities across the board, and access to HP’s Multi Jet Fusion 3D printing technology is definitely something to be excited about.
“We have HP in the field, so anyone who needs parts has access now,” Hilkene noted.
While materials available on the HP machine remain limited to black nylon at present, the company is clearly making headway in broadening that portfolio; the current limitation doesn’t bother Hilkene, who noted that Henry Ford started the same way. (‘You can have it in any color you want, as long as it’s black,’ to paraphrase.) And 3Diligent isn’t at a loss for other materials; as we’d last spoken about metals, Hilkene also said that they have pre-orders in place now for the Metal X system from Markforged, and expect to see those come to fruition in the next few months as the anticipated machine from the high-strength manufacturer hits the market. 3Diligent is doing its due diligence in keeping an eye on the market, and Hilkene hinted toward some potential partnerships in the works to make available additional technologies.
3D Platform
“January 2016 was the launch of the Workbench, and since then customers have been pulling us in two directions; they wanted a lower price point from $27K and wanted faster speeds,” he told me.
Additionally serving customers’ needs, 3D Platform offers a Rebuild program, through which, Schroeder explained, any customer can send their machine back and have the old electronics stripped, updates added in — and get back a machine 15 times faster than what they’d purchased four years ago.
“This has been very welcomed,” he told me. “Customers say they want these things from manufacturers, and it’s nice to see a company live up to that. We announced this at AMUG, and formally last week. We kicked it off this week, and four or five customers here said they want to do it.”
In addition to its own hardware, 3D Platform is also focusing on the industry at large, as Schroeder noted that they have been reaching out to material and hardware companies to start a dialogue among suppliers to weigh in on standards for materials to avoid issues. As the company was showing off its 6mm (!) filament at RAPID, such diameters struck many visitors as, well, out of the ordinary; when most filament-based extruders process standard filament at considerably smaller diameters (commonly 1.75mm and 3mm), large-format 3D printers often turn to thicker strands — which have not been standardized. Among the companies involved in these discussions so far are Ultimaker, Titan Robotics, E3D, Polymaker, MakeShaper, and Essentium. As the 3D printing industry continues to mature, standards will become a more glaring need, and dialogues such as this will prove interesting to follow.
MakerGear
Visitor: “What sets you apart from the rest?”
Pollack: “Quality.”
I’ve seen Pollack, and an M2, since RAPID already, as both he and the 3D printer were present at Additive Engineering Solutions’ open house in Akron, Ohio where the M2 complements the other showpiece 3D printer in that company’s facility: a BAAM. Just as the M2 isn’t out of place near a BAAM system, MakerGear does seem to fit in wherever it shows up.
gCreate
“We’re constantly reinvesting profits, and building the business organically,” Lee told me.
Since the 2013 Kickstarter, gCreate has introduced the third 3D printer in the series, having followed up the 1.0 Kickstarter kit with a 1.5 partly assembled kit and the 1.5+ fully assembled printer. Last spring, the company released updates for its more recent releases, as well, in line with their thoughtful strategies.
“We’re constantly testing, constantly iterating,” Lee said. “So many things change along the way! We’re really excited, and hoping to launch this summer. Price per cubic inch will be lower than other 3D printers that launched on Kickstarter. The design, manufacture, and shipping is all in-house from Brooklyn, and all parts are from either the US or Europe, with powder coated steel made in Detroit.”
We’ll be following the gCreate story as it progresses — and will be hearing more from Lee soon as well, as the enterprising businesswoman will be talking with us more about building the company up and bootstrapping a success story in hectic NYC as part of our Spotlight on Women series.
Shows like RAPID are critical for getting the community around 3D printing together, as face time enhances understanding and the potential for forward momentum. Several large collaborations were announced during the event, and more contacts and leads generated during the week. The opportunity to talk with these important teams face to face is an important part of understanding the dynamics of the industry, and underlies much of our philosophy here at 3DPrint.com, where we strive to bring an in-depth view of informed news in 3D printing — direct from the source.
[All photos: Sarah Goehrke]