The Printr Co-founders
I know it may be beating a dead horse, as we mention this all of the time, but until 3D printing and 3D modelling is easy enough for even your grandma to understand, it will not go mainstream. With that said, we are seeing some major progress. Just in the last year alone, there have been numerous new applications and software packages released by both large and small players within the industry, concentrating on user interface, and ease-of-use. We are getting there but obstacles still lie in our way.
Printr, based in the Netherlands, is looking to collectively take the 3D printing space one step closer to mainstream adoption with the impending release of their Formide platform. The brainchild of the four Printr co-founders, Remco Katz, Chris ter Beke, Douwe Bart Mulder, and Cecile van der Waal, Formide promises to disrupt the industry in a big way.
The platform, which will launch next month, is based around 3D printing and design, and introduces applications as a new way of creating 3D printable content. They have released an API so that developers can integrate Formide into their apps, and are offering an APP SDK which requires absolutely no programming know-how. Using the SDK, which will be released imminently, applications for the Formide platform can be created with just a few clicks of the mouse, allowing complete customization.
In addition, the platform will cut out all the complicated tasks involved in 3D printing. Modelling, slicing, repairing files and adjusting a model to print correctly on your 3D printer will be things of the past, according to the company.
Formide has teamed up with some of the largest, most popular 3D model repositories on the net to offer extensive libraries of content, both free and paid. Once a model is selected, a user will be able to stream that model directly to their printer, leaving the Formide platform to worry about slicing and special settings.
Formide promises to offer some of the best security within the industry, and provide an intuitive interface which is easy for even the most amateur 3D printing enthusiasts.
It will be interesting to see just what kind of applications are created by the Formide community, and how the platform will actually function. This could be a major step in the right direction for the industry, or may just be another over-hyped idea. We will all find out next month. Let’s hear your opinion on this soon to launch platform in the Formide forum thread on 3DPB.com.
