Bye bye faithful 3D printer……how technology changes!

Back in 2011 we bought our first 3D printer. It was produced by Bits for Bytes, a spin-out from Bristol University. We were so proud when it was unboxed. We bought it in kit form and although it was suggested to take two days to assemble, it took us four!

The construction is primarily rods, belts and stepper motors - pictured on the left hand side. At the time we thought it was very advanced, but now it looks almost antiquated. 

This lead me to write a few lines about how 3D printing technology has advanced since then.

We were one of the first product design consultancies to bring 3D printing in house. This rapidly changed the way we work, allowing us to create early stage concepts without the usual time consuming clay, foam and card modelling. It was revolutionary. Always a crowd pleaser with clients and also at exhibitions.

It doesn't seem all that long ago and since buying the machine we think we've got through over 1,700 builds and thousands of metres of filament.

Over recent years the 3D printing industry has exploded with a whole range of refined products to suit a range of consumers, from hobbyists to larger scale machines that print concrete. There is still a misunderstanding about what 3D printing is, and it was very humorous a few years ago hearing about people being concerned about 3D printing guns.

We bought our second 3D printer last year and decided that we needed SLA quality, so after much research we decided on a Form 2. Strictly speaking it isn't a 3D printer since it does not use the traditional layer type build of additive manufacture. This has again been a game changer allowing us to print with various types of resins to produce very high quality rigid and flexible parts alike. 

We now have four 3D printers which help with early stage proof-of-concept to highly refined development models, all of which add value to our reputation in product design, innovation and commercialisation of products.

Although we've hung onto our faithful Bits for Bytes printer mainly for posterity, it is now time to say goodbye to the antique and give it a good send off for recycling! Thank you Bits for Bytes.