Before testing the high-profile model F3703D printer in the F123 series of Stratasys, HP soon exposed the latest positioning designers and color 3D printers in the education industry. The foreign price was 50,000 US dollars, according to the domestic sales of foreign brands 3D printers. Trading experience, the domestic retail price is at least doubled, then guess the domestic price of HP's latest color 3D printer should be more than 600,000.
StratasysF370 Professional 3D Printer purchased by Beijing Benz
It is understood that Stratasys's three models of the F123 series released in April 2017 are priced between 200,000 and 600,000, while the domestic professional-grade 3D printers are products of photo-curing technology, here are Luen Thai and Zhongrui. The brands are for reference, the retail price is around 200,000-800,000, so I want to talk to you about the market situation of professional-grade 3D printers today.
What is a professional 3D printer?
I define 3D printers that can generate application value and integrate into customer business processes into professional-grade products. At present, the price range of professional-grade 3D printers ranges from 10 to 1 million, and the span is large. Clear definition, and then the previous positioning is the production-grade 3D printer, with larger molding size and strong batch processing capabilities, such as industrial grade FDM, SLS and SLM technology products.
Fortuns900 industrial grade 3D printer from Haier Home Appliances Mould Center
Conversely, in order to better understand professional-grade products, let us first look at the current market situation of consumer-grade 3D printers.
MakerBotReplicator+ desktop 3D printer
FormLabForm2 light curing desktop 3D printer
FormLab's functional resin materials
Take two well-known foreign brands as an example. FDM technology we look at MakerBot's Replicator+, photosensitive resin equipment. We look at Form2, the molding size is small, the molding materials are mainly based on conventional materials under their respective technologies, and the FDM machines are most commonly used PLA. The materials are suitable for design assistance, but the material properties are not suitable for trial verification. The photosensitive resin is even more so. Based on the technology, the printed photosensitive resin parts perform better, but the materials are also compared to industrial plastics. There is also a big gap. The bargaining power of domestic brands' 3D printing has some gaps with international brands so far, so there is basically no relatively uniform price system in the market. However, consumer-grade 3D printers are mainly based on thousands of yuan (1000-9000 yuan). Add a small amount of 10,000 yuan (10,000-50,000).
HP Industrial Grade 3D Printer
Therefore, 3D printers for individual users and designers may be distinguished from professional-grade printers at least in terms of molding size and material properties that can be provided.
Industrial grade 3D printer with continuous production and processing capabilities
Let's look at the second level, continuous work ability, analog paper printing equipment, laser printers and copiers are divided into multiple levels according to the printing speed and print load. The equipment used in the printer shop is compared with the equipment used in the office. There is a big difference in stability and continuous output capability. I think 3D printers should be like this. Users of consumer-grade 3D printers may have a small number of 24 hours of continuous printing a day, while professional-grade 3D printers often have to meet at least departmental application requirements. When the number is not enough, It must have the ability to print continuously.
A stable system is critical to the user
The third level, stability and efficiency, often users will spit the stability of the desktop 3D printer, often problems, either plugging, or need to level the floor, printing failures occur sometimes, although most of the hardware now And the software supports power-off or continuous to-be-continued, but the stability of desktop-level 3D printers has not yet been completely improved.
Water-soluble support materials play a key role in model detailing
Fourth, the supporting materials, most of the consumer-grade 3D printer materials are single, the FDM equipment supporting the water-soluble materials or the printers of the light-curing technology are basically not available. However, in order to ensure the quality of the model, the professional machine solves the model quality through special supporting materials. The problem.
Based on the above analysis, we will simply define a professional-grade 3D printer. The professional-grade 3D printing has optimized hardware and software foundation. The supported materials have the practicability of matching application scenarios (appearance verification, structure verification, strength, surface smoothing). Degree, etc.), has a stable model quality, has a certain continuous printing ability (at least tens of hours of continuous printing), the current market price of 3D printers with the above characteristics is basically more than 200,000.
How is the procurement budget more reasonable?
Many organizations and individuals are more concerned about the purchase cost of hardware equipment when they are making 3D printer procurement budgets. At most, they add later material usage. For professional-grade 3D printers, the maintenance cost is later, except for printed materials. , wearing parts, maintenance tools and materials, bottom plate, resin tank, print head, etc. should also be within the purchase budget according to the actual frequency of use and the amount of printing.
We know that whether it is FDM equipment, light curing equipment or laser sintering powder equipment, it needs regular maintenance and maintenance. The print head, bottom plate, resin tank, belt, motor and other components need to be inspected and maintained. replace.
Therefore, in the entire procurement budget, the later expenses are even higher than the hardware purchase cost.
The author is paying attention to several brands of professional-grade 3D printers:
1. Stratasys' F123 series, the hardware price ranges from 200,000-600,000. As an upgrade and replacement of the inspiration series, F123's design is more avant-garde, which can help customers improve their corporate image to a certain extent. The high-end models support 5 kinds of consumables. , including water-soluble support, is conducive to more stable model quality, positioning schools, design companies, product developers, can be used for appearance verification, structural verification and product fitting, is an FDM professional based on design and research and development assistance. Level 3D printer.
MarkForged Series Professional 3D Printer
MarkForged handles carbon fiber and metal materials
2, MarkForged: The current product models involved include 7 models, which can print carbon fiber, metal and other distinctive materials. The simple and beautiful design is also a bright spot. At present, the domestic sales channel is single, the application demand is to be developed, and the market is not very common. The brand's products.
Formlab SLS device fuse1
3, Formlab SLS equipment fuse1: Formlab has achieved certain success in desktop-level light curing equipment, Fuse1 has become the key to advanced professional-grade 3D printers, using SLS sintered powder technology, the official price of 9999 US dollars, plus the initial material loader Need 19999 US dollars, appear in the country will not be directly down according to the exchange rate so low, look at the market price of Form2 will know.
HP's 580/540, 380/340 Professional 3D Printer (unlisted)
4, HP's 580/540, 380/340: JetFusion technology is once again blooming results, of which 380 and 580 support color 3D printing, build composite nylon material, is expected to ship in the second half of 2018, and HP sees 12 trillion The manufacturing of the dollar, not the small 3D printing industry, HP's technology and products deserve attention, but because HP invested heavily in research and development in the early stage, the first generation of products have fewer actual cases, and have not seen too much yet. A mature case that produces real value.
DesktopMetal Metal Printing Solutions
5, DesktopMetal: It is also a company that has achieved a win-win situation in both capital and sound volume due to technological innovation in the past year. After printing, the metal parts are subjected to high-temperature sintering treatment to remove the adhesive, which can produce small batches of metal parts more quickly and easily. Very general.
Zhongruiguang curing professional grade 3D printer
All of the above are new products released by foreign brands in the past year. There are certain purchase and use thresholds. So what products in China are worthy of our attention? The domestic 3D printing market is currently focusing on low-cost FDM3D printers and light-curing 3D printers on the consumer side, as well as industrial-grade SLS and SLM technology for large and medium-sized 3D printers. The intermediate-level professional-grade 3D printers are less involved. Resin 3D printers with Zhongrui are the choice of most 3D printing service providers. The moderate price and low material cost can be used for personalization and small batch production. The professional brand 3D printers of foreign brands can not match the service providers. The demand is more to enter the design and research institutions of large and medium-sized enterprises.
What if I come to the procurement budget?
I made a procurement budget form, hoping to give the buyer some reference when making budgets. This table also covers some hidden costs, including site rent, personnel costs, and machine depreciation. For a company or organization, all costs that may occur after purchasing equipment should be included to facilitate the company's investment evaluation. .
Although at present, less than 4% of the top 500 global companies are putting 3D printing technology and processes into strategic thinking, we have seen that 3D printing technology is accelerating product development and iteration, optimizing product architecture in aerospace. In the biomedical, automotive, prototyping, education, construction, and other industries, with the advent of new 3D printing technologies and the emergence of new materials, 3D printing technology will optimize our future lives and work, and many institutions And individuals will also face the problem of choosing equipment, we will focus on procurement consulting and serve the majority of users.
The professional-grade 3D printers listed in this article are limited. If you have purchased a professional-grade 3D printer, you may wish to reply to the following comment form in the above table format, giving the purchasers a meaningful reference.
(Editor)
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