“From the engineer’s desktop to the design lab to the shop floor, our digital thread for manufacturing enables our customers to work seamlessly and be much more productive. We are excited to demonstrate how our comprehensive portfolio of products and services can lead to shorter delivery times, higher quality parts and greater cost efficiencies,” said Vice President, Co-COO and CFO of Software Products at 3DS, Ilan Erez.
One of 3D Systems’ most advanced printers, the multi-material composite ProJet 5500X, will also be taking center stage at 3D Systems’ booth. They will be showing off the printer’s versatility and its ability to print entire objects with both rigid and flexible parts in a single print. Because the 5500X is capable of blending and mixing multiple varieties of composite materials to achieve an entire range of textures and finishes it is an ideal machine for prototyping and creating a proof of concept. Combining flexible and rigid materials together means that it can create a virtually limitless amount of textures that can be used to produce prototypes that are extremely close, if not identical, to the eventual finished product. The 5500X can also blend variations of clear, gray and black together into virtually any shade.
Don’t worry, 3D Systems hasn’t completely abandoned the desktop market, the CubePro will be another of their products being highlighted at the show. But despite being classified as a personal 3D printer it it is pretty clear that the Pro has aspirations well beyond the desk. With its large print volume of 10 3/4 x 10 3/4 x 9 1/2 inches (275 x 265 x 240 mm) and three printing heads it isn’t fooling anyone. Most desktop 3D printers can’t print with up to three different materials, including support materials and even the notoriously difficult Nylon. The CubePro is clearly a bridge 3D printer meant to ease small businesses into larger industrial machines as their reliance on 3D printing grows.
As buying trends have started to shift in the last year, many companies looking to experiment with 3D printing applications have been looking to smaller companies to get started rather than take on extensive leases and contracts with larger printer manufacturers. It seems to me that 3D Systems is setting themselves up as the next step for those companies just trying out the technology, and frankly it makes a lot of sense. Businesses buying inexpensive starter 3D printers are going to learn pretty quickly that those machines aren’t going to be especially reliable for long-term usage. Say what you will about 3D Systems, and everyone has an opinion about them, they do know how to market their products to the right people at the right time.
Euromold 2015 will be held this year in Düsseldorf, Germany from September 22nd to the 25th. You can find 3D Systems in Hall 15 and stand A69. Let us know if you are attending in the Euromold Forum on 3DPB.com.