Formlabs, a leading manufacturer of desktop SLA 3D printers, recently announced the launch of Form 3BL – a dental and medical 3D printer optimised for biocompatible materials. Formlabs will also start shipping its flagship large format printer, Form 3L. Both printers signify the expansion of the company’s line of large format stereolithography (SLA) 3D printers to enable manufacturers and creators to print high-detail large-scale parts.
In addition to the new Form 3BL dental 3D printer, Formlabs also announced the launch of Wash L + Cure L, a fully automated post-processing system created for large-scale prints, which will ship in 2021. Already the best selling professional desktop printer company in the world with over 70,000 printers sold, Formlabs is now bringing its renowned ease-of-use, value, and professional-grade quality to large format printers.
Form 3BL Dental 3D Printer
The Form 3L, Formlabs’ flagship large format SLA 3D printer announced in spring 2019, delivers accurate, repeatable prints across the printers’ larger build platform without compromising cost or quality. The advanced Low Force Stereolithography (LFS) print process and larger build platform enabled Formlabs user Black Diamond, an outdoor equipment company known for its products’ durability and performance, to rethink its R+D process. Given early access to Form 3L, Black Diamond determined it would be able to cut prototype development lead times from seven days to three days and slashed costs by about 85%.
“Our large format printers are poised to have the same disruptive effect on the 3D printing industry as our Form 1 launch did. The companies that have dominated large format printing for the past 20+ years have lacked the innovation and agility needed to move the 3D printing industry forward.“
– Max Lobovsky, CEO and Co-Founder of Formlabs
Lobovsky added, “At Formlabs, we are changing that. With the Form 3L and Form 3BL, we are opening this powerful technology up to a whole new group of users at an accessible price while maintaining a professional quality. We are looking forward to seeing how this new technology will be used in industries like automotive and aerospace that need the large build platform to best utilize 3D printing.”
“The Form 3L makes the product design process more cohesive,” said Matt Tetzl, R+D technician at Black Diamond. “The larger printer enables our designers to make tweaks in CAD and work off a full-scale model to close the gap between feedback and design. We have reduced our costs on full-size prototypes from $425 a print to $70 a print – with that savings, Form 3L would pay for itself in only 3 months.”
Features and Benefits of New 3D Printers
- 3D print large-scale parts or many smaller parts in a single build, with stunning surface finish and detail that resemble final products.
- A build volume of 33.5 × 20 × 30 cm (13.2 × 7.9 × 11.8 in), five times larger build volume than the Formlabs Form 3 desktop SLA 3D printer.
- An intuitive workflow, with automatic resin dispensing, simple print preparation software, and an interface anyone can use.
- A robust end-to-end system designed for nonstop throughput with minimal intervention.
- Access to nearly all of Formlabs’ extensive materials library, ensuring a stable supply chain and access to the resins needed for any project — including biocompatible materials on the Form 3BL.
Optimised for Biocompatible Materials
The Form 3BL dental 3D printer, similar to the Form 3B, is optimised for biocompatible materials for use in the dental and healthcare industries. The Form 3BL SLA 3D printer balances throughput, quality, and reliability, and is thoroughly validated by Formlabs’ dental team to meet the accuracy requirements for dental aligner production, with consistent part quality and accuracy across the entire build plane.
In medical settings, the Form 3BL dental 3D printer is capable of printing human-scale anatomical models, in-house, on a single build platform. With the Form 3BL, healthcare providers can meet the tight deliverable windows needed to produce the customized surgical guides that are used to improve care and reduce the time spent in the operating room.
The Form 3L SLA 3D printer is available and shipping today, the Form 3BL dental 3D printer is available for pre-order here and will ship in October 2020, and Wash L + Cure L will ship in 2021.
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