14 DAY TRIAL // 3D printing technology is evolving very quickly, and seems to be keeping to the same path that ink printing and photocopy machines followed, decades ago. Which is to say, it is steadily becoming ubiquitous.
It wasn't too many years ago that no 3D printers actually existed, at least no printers that could be sold to normal consumers.
Now, though, there are quite a few of them, and their makers all want to ensure that they sell more and more, with every week that passes.
Ion Core seems to be one of the most vocal supporters of widespread 3D printing technology. Based in the United Kingdom, the manufacturer has launched the Ion Core STEM initiative.
The Ion Core STEM initiative is a program, of sorts, whose ultimate purpose is to get a 3D printer inside every school in the UK.
The plan is to have each school, university and college the chance to raise £2,350 / $3,800 / €2,840 and buy a Zinter PRO 3D Printer. Well, technically the price is of £2,850 once you've added the VAT ($4,720 / €3,446).
In case you're not familiar with the name of the company, Ion Core is a sort of analog to the United States' MakerBot.
A major power in 3D printing in the UK, it is providing educational institutions with the Zinter PRO 3D Printer Education Package, as well as some other technologies and products that should help the 3D printer become a normal fixture of classroom work.
It's not in any way different from how inkjet and laser printers have become a standard part of any office setup.
No doubt that government grants or normal donations would have eventually enabled schools to get a 3D printer, but collaborations like this one help speed things up considerably.
Any school can register (well, any school from the UK), at which point Ion Core will draw on its partnership with UK-based additive manufacturing sector magazine 3D Advertiser to kickstart the fundraising campaign. 3D Advertiser will provide £100 / $165 / €121.
Nevertheless, in the end, it will be up to the staff, students and families of the students to raise the necessary cash. At least they'll have a donation bar to use as reference, to see how much more it will take before the printer is ready to be bought.
Or they could just look for one of those 3D printers that cost a fair bit less than two grand, like the Replicator Mini from MakerBot.