Oct 19, 2015 | By Alec
Italy is increasingly becoming known as a 3D printing country, and a new unveiling by well-known office electronics manufacturer Olivetti will doubtlessly only add to that reputation. For Olivetti has just announced the development of their very own high quality 3D printer, completely made in Italy with Italian software and parts: the 3D-S2 3D printer. This interesting forthcoming 3D printer is specifically aimed at small and medium-sized businesses, and its all-Italian brand will doubtlessly entice plenty of businesses across the country.
Olivetti is well known in its own right, but they are actually a subsidiary of Italian communications giant Telecom Italia Group and have been so since 2003. The latter company recently announced an ambitious development plan with an eye on Italian industry, having set aside 60 million euros specifically to develop high quality technology and to relaunch and merge with TI Digital Solutions (TIDS). And it looks like the 3D-S2 is one of the first results of that program, with the further goal of stimulating the country’s digital manufacturing sector.
However, there is a lot more about this machine than simply being all-Italian. Completely manufactured in Canavese, Italy, it was developed in collaboration with Gimax and features some very interesting characteristics. Remarkably, it relies on the same open source Arduino technology that so many 3D printing projects work with, but does so within a build space of 40 x 40 x 40 cm and 3D prints at a remarkable 15 cm per second. What’s more, this impressive dual extrusion FDM 3D printer can work with a wide variety of materials, from the standard ABS and PLA to nylon, and even wood, glass carbon and marble, they say. What’s more, the open source nature of the technology used, means that it can even be adapted for different functionalities. All this, Olivetti says, has been done with an eye on reducing prototyping costs as much as possible (down to a remarkable 70%).
Heated bed
Linear guidance system with ball bearings
What’s more, Olivetti is planning to launch a new making platform alongside the 3D printer, to enable the SMEs (the small and medium enterprises) working with the 3D-S2 to access libraries full of CAD models that can be easily adapted and 3D printed. This ecosystem in the cloud, they say, alongside with an extensive dealer network, will greatly improve the efficiency and flexibility of 3D printing centers across the country and even Europe. This dealer network currently consists of 400 dealers across Italy and a further 450 throughout Europe, making it as easy as possible for startups and other businesses to become acquainted with 3D printing technology.
Olivetti’s CEO Riccardo Delleani confidently stated that this impressive 3D printer and the network that accompanies it, has the potential to give a new boost to Italy’s high quality manufacturing industries. ‘3D printing technology is emerging as an important part of the digitization of the small and medum-sized businesses and in particular of the manufacturing sector,’ he says. ‘We believe that Olivetti, while staying faithful to the traditions found in its DNA, can significantly contribute to the new, made-in-Italy digital world and to small and medium-sized businesses throughout the country.’
If all those hopes and ambitions can be safeguarded by a single 3D printer remains to be seen, but the 3D-S2 is certainly promising. It was on display to the public at the Maker Faire European Edition 2015, held in Rome the previous weekend.
Specs:
- Anodized aluminum body 45x45 mm
- Dual Extruder
- Nozzle diameters from 0.30 mm to 0.80 mm
- Integrated LCD control panel
- Build envelope 400x400x400 mm
- Print volume approx. 64 liters
- Large heated bed
- Printing speed 150 mm/s
- Extruder: Maximum temperature 280° C
- Software: Repetier host, Slic3r, Cura
- Materials: PLA, ABS, Nylon, rubber, HIPS, PET, Special filament (filled-up with wood, plastic, carbon and marble)
- Printer dimensions: 900x900x1,200 mm (WxDxH)
- Weight: 98 Kg / 216 lb
Posted in 3D Printer
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great for gimax and the right step for Olivetti!! hope to see the unit and the people behind it at inside 3d in düsseldorf
Gerd Schwaderer wrote at 10/20/2015 8:15:43 PM:
The print speed must be wrong. 150mm thats probably the max speed of movement in Xy direction. But certainly not Z. But it is great to see also Olivetti, after HP snd Canon.
algosuk wrote at 10/19/2015 7:51:16 PM:
i dare say that is a Gimax s2 renamed
algosuk wrote at 10/19/2015 7:50:21 PM:
it's a Gimax S2 renamed i dare say.
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