RS Components, the trading brand of Electrocomponents plc, announced in a press statement on Thursday, 16 January 2013 that it has signed a distribution agreement with RepRapPro Ltd.<\/p>\n
Under the terms of the agreement, RS said it will be able to deliver affordable, open-source, self-replicating 3D printing technology to engineers worldwide.<\/p>\n
The completion of the deal coincides with the launch of the RepRapPro Ormerod low cost 3D printer, which RS said it also sells.<\/p>\n
According to RS, the Ormerod uses the Fused Filament Fabrication process to build 3D objects in a range of plastics and in a variety of colours.<\/p>\n
This process enables the user to create almost any shape that can be modelled on a computer, including some that cannot be produced by traditional manufacturing techniques at all, RS said.<\/p>\n
RS said that the Ormerod is a monochrome 3D printer that has been configured to work with one type of plastic at a time, but that it was fundamentally designed to work with three-colour deposition. An upgrade kit for this is to be made available soon, RS said.<\/p>\n
Compared to its predecessor, the RepRapPro Mendel, construction of the RepRapPro Ormerod is much simpler.<\/p>\n
While the Mendel took two days to put together on average, the Ormerod only takes two hours, RS said.<\/p>\n
The Ormerod\u2019s electronics have also been been redesigned and now enable connectivity via a web browser, RS said.<\/p>\n
According to RS, the complete kit includes: all printed parts; all hardware, including threaded and smooth rods, screws, nuts, washers, belts and bearings; pre-soldered and programmed electronics; MicroSD card and adapter; heated PCB build surface; motors; nozzle assembly and extruder drive mechanism; 100m of 1.75mm-diameter PLA (polylactic acid) filament material (approximately 300g); power supply (for EU, UK, US and Australia); and finally, the open-source software to run the machine, including firmware for the electronics.<\/p>\n
All RepRapPro printers are capable of self-replicating their own plastic components, and RS said that hardware-only Ormerod kits will be available soon for those that want to use their Ormerod to make Ormerod printers for other people.<\/p>\n
Other specifications of the Ormerod include accuracy of 0.1mm, resolution of 0.0125mm, build speed of 1.8mm per minute and deposition rate of 33cm3 per hour.<\/p>\n
Currently the\u00a0RepRapPro Ormerod Full 3D Printer Kit is listed for\u00a0R8,999.99 with availability expected by 17 January 2014.<\/p>\n
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