Despite their multiple innovations in the desktop 3D printer market, California-based manufacturer Type A Machines has gone out of business.
The past year has seen a dramatic change to the desktop 3D printer industry; the market is flooded with cheap DIY 3D printer kits, and established hardware manufacturers are struggling to compete.
Perhaps the first major casualty of these difficult conditions are Type A Machines in California. In a statement on their website, the company has announced they have ceased operations with immediate effect.
“It is with a heavy heart we announce that, after 6 years serving the maker community, Type A Machines is closing its doors,” says Founder and CEO Andrew Rutter.
“I’m deeply appreciative and proud of the many customers, partners, and individuals who helped make Type A Machines a unique and innovative company, who pushed the boundaries of what was possible, and dedicated themselves to an ideal. Our future will be a bit better thanks to them.”
For existing customers, a downloads page is still active on the site, with links to resources and software for the continued operation of their Type A Machines 3D printers.
A Brief History of Type A Machines
Alongside the likes of MakerBot, LulzBot and Printrbot, Type A Machines sprang from the grassroots maker movement in the United States.
Founded in 2012, the first iterations of the machine were developed at the NoiseBridge hackerspace and Tech Shop. Later, the company moved to the East Bay to expand their manufacturing efforts.
The company’s flagship machine was the Series 1 3D printer. Remarkably, Type A Machines held true to their open source roots while still pushing the boundaries for innovation.
For example, the Series 1 was one of the first desktop 3D printers to include on-board Wi-Fi connectivity. It was also one of the first to include material profiles in its software, to minimize printing errors when loading up new materials. It also had a very capable extruder, one of the first to tackle bleeding edge materials like Nylon composite filaments.
For achievements like these — and more — we’d like to raise a glass to the memory of Type A Machines. The 3D printing industry will be poorer without them.
Website: LINK
