While it many not seem so from the outside, in the 3D printing industry things move so fast that a new announcement often needs to be repeatedly updated over a very short time. It was recently the case for Zhuhai CTC Electronic Co. The Chinese 3D printer manufacturer announced that its desktop FFF CTC Bizer 3D printer was the second top-rated on 3D Hubs in January 2015; it then went on to announce the new CTC Bizer III dual-nozzle, FFF 3D printer with an LED touch screen, only to top it all off with the announcement of a new innovation center to study materials, the opening of offices in London, and the development of a new DLP-based 3D printer.
The recent DLP project was announced during a press conference held at the Grand Bay View Hotel in Zhuhai on March 10, 2015. CTC Electronic’s executive vice president Yang Xiaobo, supported by the company’s vice president of business expansion and planning, Allen Liang, presented the next-generation DLP 3D printer, which he said, “will present a higher degree of accuracy than the traditional SLA technology with up to 50% faster speeds.”
During the conference, CTC Electronic also announced that it would jointly establish a technological research and development center in collaboration with China Southwest Chemical Institute, focusing on research and development of next-generation photosensitive resins. The center, which will have R&D facilities in both Zhuai and Shanghai, will be directed by chemical industry veteran Qing Qiquan. He will oversee research and develop system integration for SLA and DLP photosensitive resins, ABS and PLA 3.0 materials for 3D printing, and generic moldable technology, with a focus on practical application and commercialization of the results.
Zhuhai CTC Electronic plans to invest 3 million yuan ($483,000) and recruit 15 of the top research talents in the field, in a move to reduce China’s reliance on the import of 3D printing products. This is CTC Electronic’s second R&D center following the advanced 3D printing manufacturing facility established by the company with Guangzhou University in 2013. This adds to CTC’s core 3D R&D Center, headquartered in India, which manned is by an international R&D team with more than 60 technicians and can leverage on logistics warehouses located in the USA, Europe and Australia.
In addition to the new facility, the company also announced its entry into the European market with the opening of a new London office. CTC PR director Siyi He said of the 4,000-square-foot office, located in Greenwich, “The ultimate goal of setting up a London office is to establish business relationships with local 3D printing services businesses and retailers across Europe. Most Chinese developers only focus on the Chinese market, causing them to remain quite closed-minded as their knowledge and understanding remains limited to their local market. But the fact is that there is broader space for development beyond the Chinese market.” She adds, “China has always regarded the American market as the benchmark and the American 3D manufacturers as the model that Chinese 3D start-ups should learn from and emulate. As the American and Chinese markets become ever more similar to each other, a 3D printer that has gained traction and been successful in America is quite certain to be a profitable product or a source of inspiration for China’s 3D development once introduced to China.”
Sales of the newly announced CTC Bizer III desktop 3D printer will contribute to finance both projects. The button-control panel of the CTC Bizer II has been replaced with a touchscreen LED panel, available with both English and Chinese interface.
“CTC Electronic has massively improved the software and hardware of the open source technology,” said He Siyi, Head of Public Relations at CTC Electronic, adding that the “highly user-friendly interactive interface has greatly lowered the bar for 3D printing operation.” Already available for shipping worldwide and priced at $1.300, the CTC Bizer III is a dual nozzle 3D printer with a maximum print size of 11” x 5.7” x 5.9”. It will be up to the market, and, in particular 3D Hubs’ network, to say whether it will be as appreciated as its predecessor.
