In early October 2011, I covered a story of a 3D printing company that announced a rent/lease program for its printers and asked would others take up the idea. One company has. Stratasys (NASDAQ:SSYS) just announced it will begin leasing bundled 3D-printer packages that include new special edition uPrint 3D printers.
The uPrint SE 3D Print Pack and the uPrint SE Plus 3D Print Pack are complete 3D-printing packages that include the 3D printer and everything needed to print 3D models. Besides the printer, the 3D Print Packs include startup supplies, a support-removal system, and cleaning agent. Monthly lease packages are USD $290 for uPrint SE and USD $380 for uPrint SE Plus. The monthly lease price is lower than the average cost of a single outsourced model.
Non-lease Print Pack purchase prices are USD $15,900 for the uPrint SE and USD $20,900 for the uPrint SE Plus.
“With the bundled package, engineers, designers, teachers and others can purchase a complete professional 3D-printing system,” said Mary Stanley, Stratasys Product Manager. “This makes it as simple as possible to purchase and get your machine up and running with no surprises.”
The uPrint SE and SE Plus machines replace the original uPrint and uPrint Plus. (The new machines are available without the bundled package, and they are priced at USD $13,900 and $18,900 respectively.)
The new uPrint special edition machines offer a substantially increased material capacity, with 40% more material per spool than the original uPrint series. Material spools contain 42 cubic inches of material instead of the 30 cubic inches previously available. This allows longer unattended print runs than previously possible and requires less frequent spool change.
Both 3D printers use SR-30 soluble support material, which enables faster support removal and therefore faster part production than previously possible. The material dissolves up to 50% faster than the previous support material in an agitation tank.
Designed for office use, the SE edition maintains the basic features of the previous uPrint models, including:
• Industrial thermoplastic: produces strong ABS plastic parts
• Ease of use: no dedicated operator necessary
• Small footprint: requires only a 25-by-26-inch space
The uPrint SE and uPrint SE Plus 3D Print Packs are available through authorized sales representatives.
Stratasys Inc.
www.Stratasys.com