I was really surprised at how easy the Ultimaker was to setup and create our first 3d Model. We were able to set this up without the help of our IT department. When our IT guys saw that we had a 3d printer going they were impressed because they had nothing but trouble with some other brands.

Our research lab uses our new UM3 to prototype sensor enclosures that help us measure the impacts of health and environmental interventions in the developing world. We purchased the printer last month, and have already put it to good use, turning out tons of parts using dual-extrusion PLA and PVA.



The detail is quite good for an FDM printer, and lets us perform fit-checks before sending the parts to be SLS printed or injection molded.



We're about to start experimenting with the other materials available to Ultimaker users, both open-source and provided by UM. It's great to be able to hop over to 3DV to pick up materials when we need them.



This is a great printer for research and for product development. It's pricey, but worth it if you need high-quality parts, a variety of material choices, and most importantly the ability to print both support and build material.