Full color 3D printing in FDM technology is the Holy Grail for 3D printers manufacturers around the globe. Many have tried; unfortunately, none has achieved anything more than a symbolic minute of fame when announcing the start of their work on this matter. We all heard about the infamous botObjects, who tried to convince the 3D printing community that they were capable of 3D print in full color on their machines, while showing models that looked like renders from some 3D modeling software. When their 3D printer eventually entered the market, it turned out that it could print in just a handful of colors separately. botObjects failed completely, but somehow survived ultimate infamy by being bought by 3D Systems in January 2015. A Polish company that tried to create a full-color FDM 3D printer, Pirx3D, didn’t have such luck. In May, the company suspended its manufacturing operations and now focuses only on providing warranty services to their 3D printers sold to date.
Pirx3D hit the Polish 3D printing market in Autumn of 2013 with a very cheap, but reliable 3D printer simply called the Pirx. It was made from wood and was priced below $700. At the time of, it was the cheapest assembled 3D printer on the Polish market and it attracted great interest among hundreds of customers.
But Pirx3D had much higher ambitions. The company never wanted to be seen as creators of low-cost 3D printers, but great innovators. Soon, they acquired a big and reliable investor, who helped them focus on R&D. First, Pirx3D showed completely new, bigger and steel version of their device, called the Pirx One. But this was just meant to be a taste of what was to come – the very first FDM 3D printer that was supposed to 3D print in full color.
Details of their technology were never released, but from my knowledge, it was completely different process than the one used by botObjects. Pirx3D gained much attention from 3D printing media worldwide, but nothing more ever happened in relation to full color 3D printing. However, the company ensured the public that everything was on the right path, and that progress was unceasing.
All of the sudden, in May 2015, I accidentally learned that Pirx3D stopped manufacturing their 3D printers altogether, and will only perform warranty services for their already sold, standard 3D printers. The Great Big Adventure called Full Color FDM stopped dramatically.
I contacted company CEO Piotr Lipert for more details, and he informed me that they decided to quit because they were unable to finish the desired goal on time. And, even though they signed a big distribution deal with ABC Data (one of the biggest IT distributors in Europe), they abandoned the manufacturing business, not wanting to be nothing more than just another RepRap manufacturer among hundreds of others. We agreed that I wouldn’t publish the information at that time, giving the company some time to organize themselves in concerning their new situation. Now, I have received permission and have the sad privilege of informing the world about it.
Pirx3D is another fallen victim in the deadly race for the Holy Grail of FDM 3D printing. Full color FDM printing sounds amazing, but, to this day, no one has achieved it and, sooner or later, they often fail miserably in their attempts. Will anyone else except 3D Systems have the courage to to face this challenge? Will they survive it? We hope so…
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