Nov 9, 2015 | By Kira
Though Dutch startup Printr’s founders are all in their 20s, their 3D printing business ideas are far from juvenile. They are developing a comprehensive 3D printing platform, Formide; a 3D file streaming device; the Element, and have announced a partnership with 3DShap.es—all of which will make the process of 3D printing, from model selection to configuration to printing, easier and more accessible than ever. Today, the company announced that they have received a total amount of €750,000 (approx $820,000 USD) in seed funding to make that goal a reality, and that the Formide 3D printing platform will be officially launched in December of this year.
According to the company, the seed-funding amount will be used to add resources to their team, scale their product, and support more 3D printing manufacturers. Currently, the team is comprised of founders and former University of Twente students Douwe Bart Mulder (CEO, 25), Cecile van der Waal (COO, 24), and Chris ter Beke (CTO, 22), as well as 14 other employees.
The cloud-based Formide platform is one of their most interesting and innovative 3D printing initiatives, described as more than an operating system, but an “all-in-one 3D print ecosystem” that will allow consumers to find, configure and print their 3D models. Some of Formide’s upcoming features include:
- The ability to automatically check and modify your creations to optimize printing results
- The option to stream models directly to your 3D printer (eliminating the ‘mess’ of SD cards)
- A built-in API that helps content creators from every industry easily release their own app to the platform
- Collaborations with various popular online repositories to share a wide range of free and paid models for direct 3D printing
“Printing 3D models is still quite challenging. This is partially because of the complex settings of the printers. Sometimes there can be as many as 60 individual parameters that have to be set per model,” said Mulder. “With our new platform, Formide, we remove those barriers and make 3D printing accessible to everyone.”
In reference to that last point about collaborations with online repositories, Printr has announced that they have already teamed up with 3DShap.es, a user-friendly search engine for 3D printable content, so that their customers can select from a wide variety of pre-made 3D designs. Essentially, the user can select a 3DShap.es model from the Formide platform webshop, adjust and optimize it using their configurator, and then stream it directly to the 3D printer for streamlined and seamless 3D printing experience.
Additionally, the Formide platform has just finished a closed beta testing phase with 250 test users in preparation for the launch of their 3D printing device, The Element, which is now ready for shipment. As we wrote back in January, Printr's Element is an intuitive plus & play device that connects directly to your 3D printer via USB. Its features include:
- WiFi enabled 3D printing
- Cloud enabled slicing
- Easy to use, intuitive 3D modeling
- Automatic 3D file repair
- Queuing system for multiple users per printer
- Over-the-air updates
- Ability to remote control and monitor your printer
- Plug and play setup
- Share files with other community members
"When my friends and I first started out with 3D printing, we had to spend hours and hours trying to master all the different programs that are needed to print a simple key chain," said Mulder of their motivation. "Even when we did figure it all out, the slicer kept crashing, we had to constantly watch the printer and eventually, we ran out of (useful/relevant/practical) things to print." With The Element and Formide working together, Printr wants to make 3D printing ‘painless and productive’.
All in all, Printr seems to be on a very promising path towards success, taking an innovative approach to holistic 3D printing services for consumers of all levels. We’ll just have to wait until December to see it all come together.
Posted in 3D Printing Service
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