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Article: Going mainstream: cheap systems seek to bring 3-D printing to the masses.(3D Systems Corp.)(Desktop Factory Inc. )
- Article from:
- Mechanical Engineering-CIME
- Article date:
- June 1, 2007
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2007 American Society of Mechanical Engineers. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Will 3-D printers follow the route of color laser printers, faxes, large-format printers, and copiers? When those engineering office essentials first hit the market, they cost thousands and few could afford them. Now they are everywhere. Could the same thing happen with 3-D printers used to make solid prototypes directly from CAD models?
Two companies, 3D Systems Corp. of Rock Hill, S.C., and Desktop Factory Inc. of Pasadena, Calif., are betting on it.
3D Systems plans to release its new V-Flash desktop modeler for $9,900 this summer. Looking a little like a 2-foot-high laser printer, V-Flash is small enough to fit on any desktop that can accommodate its ...