Big 3d printing


Large Industrial 3D Printers - Large Format AM

BigRep's large 3D printers are your partner for industrial additive manufacturing, whether for functional rapid prototyping, tooling, or end products.

The industrial 3D printers offer a number of state-of-the-art features that enable a wide range of professional applications. Benefit from expert advice on your 3D printer purchase and the wide selection of 3D printing filaments.

ITERATE FAST. PRODUCE FASTER. GET TO MARKET FASTEST.

The BigRep PRO is a 1 m³ powerhouse 3D printer, built to take you from prototyping to production. It provides a highly scalable solution to manufacture end-use parts, factory tooling or more with high-performance, engineering-grade materials. Compared with other manufacturing and FFF printing solutions, the PRO can produce full-scale, accurate parts faster and at lower production costs.

Explore the PRO

ITERATE FAST. PRODUCE FASTER. GET TO MARKET FASTEST.

The BigRep PRO is a 1 m³ powerhouse 3D printer, built to take you from prototyping to production. It provides a highly scalable solution to manufacture end-use parts, factory tooling or more with high-performance, engineering-grade materials. Compared with other manufacturing and FFF printing solutions, the PRO can produce full-scale, accurate parts faster and at lower production costs.

Explore the PRO

GRADUATE FROM DESKTOP. GET INDUSTRIAL.

The BigRep STUDIO G2 gets 3D printing off your desk and takes it to the next level. Operating with the same ease as a desktop 3D printer and with 10 times the build volume, the STUDIO G2 provides large-scale industrial manufacturing capabilities in a compact “fits everywhere” build.

Explore the STUDIO

GRADUATE FROM DESKTOP. GET INDUSTRIAL.

The BigRep STUDIO G2 gets 3D printing off your desk and takes it to the next level. Operating with the same ease as a desktop 3D printer and with 10 times the build volume, the STUDIO G2 provides large-scale industrial manufacturing capabilities in a compact “fits everywhere” build.

Explore the STUDIO

LARGE-SCALE INNOVATION. LIMITLESS CREATIVITY.

The BigRep ONE is an award-winning, large-format 3D printer at an accessible price point. With over 500 systems installed worldwide, it's a trusted tool of designers, innovators, and manufacturers alike. With a massive one-cubic-meter build volume, the fast and reliable ONE brings your designs to life in full scale.

Explore the ONE

LARGE-SCALE INNOVATION. LIMITLESS CREATIVITY.

The BigRep ONE is an award-winning, large-format 3D printer at an accessible price point. With over 500 systems installed worldwide, it's a trusted tool of designers, innovators, and manufacturers alike. With a massive one-cubic-meter build volume, the fast and reliable ONE brings your designs to life in full scale.

Explore the ONE

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What is 3D Printing?

3D printing, also called additive manufacturing (AM), is a technology used to manufacture three-dimensional objects. 3D printers usually use plastic polymer materials (but also occasionally metal) and form objects by adhering layers to each other in succession.

Like many other manufacturing technologies, a 3D printer’s production is mapped with computer-aided designs, or CAD models. Digital models are “sliced” by specialized 3D printing software (called slicers) into individual layers and accompanying support structures, then printed.

How does a 3D Printer work?

How a 3D printer works depends on the specific technology it employs, the most common being FFF (FDM), SLA, and SLS in that order.

1

FFF - Fused Filament Fabrication

Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF), also commonly known by its trademarked name; Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM), works by depositing molten filament on top of itself in individual layers until the desired object’s final geometry is formed. FFF is the most common – and usually most affordable – form of additive manufacturing technology available today.

In FFF 3D printing, polymer filament is pushed through an extruder that melts the material at a hot-end – similar to a hot-glue gun pushing solid glue sticks through its hot nozzle. The polymer material is then “printed” in layers as it is pushed through its nozzle, the diameter of which determines the layer size, and deposited onto a build platform (or “print bed”) or preceding layers.

There is usually minimal post-processing required for parts printed with FFF technology beyond support structure removal – if they were necessary at all.

What are some features of an FFF 3D printer?
  • Usually fastest of common 3D printing technologies
  • Lowest cost in both purchase price and consumables
  • Extremely easy post-processing and minimal cleanup

2

SLA - Stereolithography

Stereolithography (SLA), the second most common additive manufacturing technology, works by curing liquid resin to itself in successive layers to form the desired object.

In SLA 3D printing, a build platform is lowered into a tray of liquid resin where it compresses the material against the bottom of a transparent tray before being cured by a mirrored UV laser. The process repeats, pushing each previous layer against the bottom of the tray until complete.

SLA is capable of incredibly detailed parts but is a material-intensive process. Significantly more of the resin material is normally required than the final object demands for the process to be effective. With excess material usually left in the tray, failed prints risk contamination. Dedicated trays are usually required for each liquid resin – which are themselves consumable as they are worn by light exposure from the UV laser.

What are some features of an SLA 3D printer?
  • Capable of very small layer sizes for intricate model details
  • Time-consuming process, increased exponentially with smaller layers
  • Requires heavy clean up and post-processing with additional curing

3

SLS - Selective Laser Sintering

Selective Laser Sintering (SLS) works by curing powdered material in successive layers as it is repeatedly spread throughout a build volume until the final object is formed. It is significantly less common than the other plastic technologies listed here, but is commonly used in metal additive manufacturing.

Similarly to SLA technology, the SLS process requires an abundance more material than is used to form the final object. However, there is little chance of material contamination and the required excess material serves a secondary purpose as a natural support structure.

Because SLS uses its powder material as a support for printed objects, it requires virtually no post-processing after the print has completed. It is capable of intricate detail but is a relatively slow and expensive process.

What are some features of an SLS 3D printer?
  • No post-processing required since excess material serves as supports
  • Typically the most expensive of the common 3D printing technologies
  • Time-consuming process, increased exponentially with smaller layers

3 steps in creating a 3D printed object