I decided some time ago, after my bad experience with an inexpensive 3D printer that couldn’t even print the test model, that if I did try 3D printing again, it would be with an Ultimaker. They are consistently ranked high, in terms of ease of use and reliability.
But since their 3D printers are quite pricey, that hasn’t happened yet. Ben did put a different idea in my head, tipping me off about a well-regarded brand whose printers are much more affordable, but we’ll see.
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My Google feed this morning had a story about some kind of business arrangement made between Bosch and Ultimaker.
I found the press release, and this is the headline: Bosch Announces Global Investment in Ultimaker 3 Extended Printers.
I couldn’t find any announcement by Bosch; the press release was sent out by Ultimaker.
Here’s the press release, and here’s an interesting part:
The printers will now be used in different locations across Germany, Hungary, China, India, the United States and Mexico for printing prototypes, tooling, jigs and fixtures—meant to boost innovation while cutting manufacturing and design costs.
There’s one other part that caught my attention:
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This global investment of Bosch confirms that our 3D printing ecosystem is ready to advance innovation on a global scale.
3D printers are far from new, in both commercial and more recently hobby spaces.
A lot of companies are churning out ideas and turning them into products in less time than some of us can make purchasing decisions about them.
What I’m wondering is how the new 3D printers might be used by engineers and designers at Bosch Tools and Bosch Tools North America. I’m sure they have large commercial-grade 3D printers. Somewhere? I don’t know, I’ve never visited any Bosch R&D facility.
But what will having smaller 3D printers at the ready allow them to do? Will we see any boost in product R&D at Bosch Tools, or will this new investment more benefit Bosch’s other business segments?
Do you use 3D printers or similar additive manufacturing technology for your work? Hobbies? Do you want to?
The yeti
Im intrigued. Personally i imagine this is more for appliance and automobile fittings than for tools. Think of all the plastic pipes in a dishwasher for instance. All the threaded connections.
A 3d printer u could create a part as needed. Could really change the way stuff is repaired and eventually how it is made.
As for the tool division i see less ways this could be readily used however im no bosch engineer. I am sure theose guys have it figured out.
Trouble with bosch is they do have a lot business segments. So really hard to guess where they are going. Seems they are a car company first
Brian
Yeah, there isn’t much reason for the tool division to use 3D printing outside of the initial design process which is surely a larger industrial machine. Maybe creating accessories like prototypes for a bit holder on a drill or a stand alone bit holder. Bosch makes basically everything in every category and the dishwasher/appliance application seems like a really good one.
3D printers are certainly one of those things that will change our World. Just yesterday at work we had a friend print a part for a 30+ year old reel-to-reel that saved it from the scrap heap. Without that we’d have to find a donor unit and generally that meant it sitting for years and never getting done. CNC stuff is changing every industry as it becomes more affordable, woodworking is a big one with CNC routers.
Adam
We’re looking at getting a 3D printer here, but haven’t decided on a particular one yet. A good chunk of our business is restoration of antique plumbing fixtures, and there doesn’t seem to be a single manufacturer who used a standard size of washer, so it would be helpful to be able to fabricate our own.
Marshall
Are you just looking to do 2D profiles then? If so, a CNC plasma cutter might be a better value overall. However, you can do investment casting with 3D printing; I’ve had good success using stereolithography-based systems such as those from Formlabs.
Jef
VW has been using them as well for a little while:
Jalopy_J
Wow, they are pricey though. I’ve been thinking about buying a Dremel 3D45. I wonder how it would do compared to one of these.
Stuart
Dremel has been going after the “educator” market. Ultimaker seems to be increasingly targeting businesses and companies, where someone doesn’t want to have to tinker to get things just right.
If you can’t find reviews for the Dremel, look at FlashForge reviews. I believe that even the new machines are made by them.
Jason. W
I work for Subaru of Indiana Automotive. We make the outback, lagacey, impressa, and soon the accent
We have 3d printed stuff all over the shop.
Jigs, tool racks, carts, saftey items, orginization stuff.
They have been working on a new sunroof jig for the accent. It’s like an 80lb sunroof that needs to be installed. About once a week there’s different 3d printed parts on the jig as they fiddle with it to get it working just right. I can only imagine how 3d printing has made this kinda process way easier then before
RKA
Rapid prototyping, printing on demand rather than inventorying parts and producing highly specialized or no longer available parts are all great applications I’m hearing about for additive manufacturing technologies. There are challenges in implementation in each of these areas, but companies clearly see value in sorting those out.
Paul
It seems major companies utilize them quite often for jigs and fixture items.
$10-$30 on an overnight part straight off the CAD model is pretty convenient.
Hit repeat on the print and the odd time doing cleanup is great for a handful of parts or something that sees a lot of revisions. Additive mfg is a great tool that keeps progressing as more major companies pick it up and influx of money pours into the industry.
firefly
That’s good to hear. I am glad that industrial 3d printer have come down a lot in price. I used to work at Bell Helicopter and we have several 3d printers. Those things cost a fortune.
Marshall
I’m a little surprised by this announcement given Bosch’s foray into 3D printers via its Dremel brand. Our facility has both prosumer and commercial-grade 3D printers, and I’ve largely been unimpressed by what people are printing. Most people seem to be using it to extricate themselves from the corners into which they’ve designed themselves.
The best prints I’ve come across serve in supporting or intermediary roles, as some have already memtiomed, such as jigs, fixtures, moulds, wax positives for investment casting. When it comes to designing consumer products, it can be quite useful to print multiple versions for evaluating ergonomics with a physical model. In terms of printing end-use products, one of the most compelling applications is biomedical implants where there’s a real value proposition for anatomically customised implants. The other market would be time-critical parts such as replacement parts for oilfield services and mining operations where downtime can cost operators millions of dollars.
The future certainly holds a lot of potential for additive, and it will be exciting to watch as it evolves. However, I think it has been over-hyped in media coverage. Right now, I can do a lot more and do it more quickly with a laser cutter and a desktop CNC than I could with a 3D printer.
Gruven
A bigboy cnc/laser unit is out of reach to many individuals due to cost.
Brandon
Don’t get an ultimaker. You can get a Prusa MK3 for a fraction of the price and produce prints of the same quality. Plus it’s open source so you can upgrade it to your hearts content. It’s constantly improved by both Prusa and the community as well.
Stuart
That’s the “different idea” that Ben put in my head.
For business use, I would go with the Ultimaker. If I was very serious into 3D printing, I’d maybe make the same choice. But for less serious needs or occasional use, the Prusa looks reasonably mature and trouble-free.
Brandon
The ultimaker is good if you have more money than abilities. The prusa is rated higher than the ultimaker but is a little less plug and play. You’ll get similar quality prints from both with the prusa likely having the edge.