Jump to content
UltiMaker Community of 3D Printing Experts

MakerBot and Ultimaker agree to merge


SandervG

Recommended Posts

Posted · MakerBot and Ultimaker agree to merge

What a news that hit the newsstands today! 😮

"MakerBot and Ultimaker agree to merge to accelerate global adoption of additive manufacturing", so reads the title on our press page. Ultimaker investor NPM owning 54.4% and Stratasys 45.6% of the new entity. The merger between Ultimaker and Makerbot will continue under the Ultimaker brand. More details will be shared in the upcoming days, weeks and months.Ā 

Ā 

I'm curious to hear your thoughts. Questions and comments you can leave below and we'll do our best to answer and at the very least respond! The most solid information we have available for the moment is shared via our press release, you can read itĀ here. Take care!Ā 

  • Like 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

Posted · MakerBot and Ultimaker agree to merge

Hi,

Ā 

these news were certainly unexpected. And completely unthinkable some years back, as Joris Peels put it.

It will be interesting to see how this moves forward.Ā 

IMO Ultimaker is in a very interesting position, or was before yesterday, as they have arguably the best or most comprehensive software offering that enables digital workflows on an industry level. Add to this the propably most extensive material portfolio (as it represents a big chunk of the materials market). In contrast to this, the UMS5 leaves quite a bit to be desired, especially compared to more recent offerings in the same ballpark.

If taking on Makerbot also means the adoption of IP, developers and a bunch of cash in the process, it will hopefully mean a new, competitive hardware lineup in the not too distant future!

  • Link to post
    Share on other sites

    Posted · MakerBot and Ultimaker agree to merge

    Hi @neute, thank you for your comment. Only a very small handful of people knew about this merger being in the air so it was a surprise for a lot of people. Some say they saw it coming, but I can tell you.. I wasn't one of them šŸ˜›Ā 

    And I agree, completely unthinkable several years ago.Ā I imagine you can look at it from different angles, people are not out of place being sceptical but I think it is important to remember that at Ultimaker we have also gone through the growth and investment cycles and have always been able to safeguard our principles and values. And I like to think we will do again now. Proof being that NPM owns 56% of the shares.Ā 

    Ā 

    But.. we're not perfect, and MBI is no villain. It is a company with passionate engineers just like us. Without a doubt we can learn from each other and no one would have started this journey if we didn't believe we would make it out stronger on the other end.Ā 

  • Link to post
    Share on other sites

    Posted (edited) · MakerBot and Ultimaker agree to merge

    Ultibot does not know what to make of his new outfit yet...

    Ā 

    image.thumb.png.4dda41b20e4293d15679d9ccde54122f.png

    Edited by ahoeben
    • Like 4
    Link to post
    Share on other sites

    Posted · MakerBot and Ultimaker agree to merge

    But it is wearing a Tee Shirt with a big "M" on it.Ā  Did it know ahead of time???Ā  Possible insider trading going on???Ā  Or maybe it was having an affair with a cute Makerbot???

    • Like 2
    Link to post
    Share on other sites

    • MariMakes unpinned this topic
    • 2 weeks later...
    Posted · MakerBot and Ultimaker agree to merge

    Anything at all that can make the MakerBot software more standards-centric (and open source) will be an astounding success. I [briefly] owned a MakerBot Method X Carbon Fiber and spend two weeks trying to get it to print reliability. I ended up returning it and getting an Ultimaker S5 and haven't looked back. To be fair, there was a lot of tech goodness going for the Method X, but at the end of the day it was poor [proprietary] slicing software and terrible support that made me send it back within the 30-day return window. I'm willing to bet if CURA had been usable on the Method X I would still have that device today.

    Ā 

    I just hope this merger doesn't degrade all the good I've seen with Ultimaker hardware and CURA software so far or obsolete this still newish S5.

    Ā 

  • Link to post
    Share on other sites

    • 3 months later...
    Posted · MakerBot and Ultimaker agree to merge

    Is there any information, if or when we could expect Ultimaker Cura to support Makerbot Method printers?


    MakerBot Cloud slicer has some nice features but it can't compare to Cura.

  • Link to post
    Share on other sites

    Posted · MakerBot and Ultimaker agree to merge

    Wow, I have both a Makerbot Replicator+ and an Ultimaker S5, both providing me with outstanding performance and brilliant prints! Looking forward to receiving this new software update as I have found both softwares very reliable and efficient!

  • Link to post
    Share on other sites

    Create an account or sign in to comment

    You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

    Create an account

    Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

    Register a new account

    Sign in

    Already have an account? Sign in here.

    Sign In Now
    • Our picks

      • UltiMaker Cura 5.3 stable released
        In this stable release, Cura 5.3 achieves yet another huge leap forward in 3D printing thanks to material interlocking! As well as introducing an expanded recommended print settings menu and lots of print quality improvements. Not to mention, a whole bunch of new printer profiles for non-UltiMaker printers!
          • Thanks
          • Like
        • 31 replies
      • Here it is. The new UltiMaker S7
        The UltiMaker S7 is built on the success of the UltiMaker S5 and its design decisions were heavily based on feedback from customers.
        Ā 
        Ā 
        So what’s new?
        The obvious change is the S7’s height. It now includes an integrated Air Manager. This filters the exhaust air of every print and also improves build temperature stability. To further enclose the build chamber the S7 only has one magnetically latched door.
        Ā 
        The build stack has also been completely redesigned. A PEI-coated flexible steel build plate makes a big difference to productivity. Not only do you not need tools to pop a printed part off. But we also don’t recommend using or adhesion structures for UltiMaker materials (except PC, because...it’s PC). Along with that, 4 pins and 25 magnets make it easy to replace the flex plate perfectly – even with one hand.
        Ā 
        The re-engineered print head has an inductive sensor which reduces noise when probing the build plate. This effectively makes it much harder to not achieve a perfect first layer, improving overall print success. We also reversed the front fan direction (fewer plastic hairs, less maintenance), made the print core door magnets stronger, and add a sensor that helps avoid flooding.
        Ā 

        Ā 
        The UltiMaker S7 also includes quality of life improvements:
        Reliable bed tilt compensation (no more thumbscrews) 2.4 and 5 GHz Wi-Fi A 1080p camera (mounted higher for a better view) Compatibility with 280+ Marketplace materials Compatibility with S5 project files (no reslicing needed) And a whole lot more Ā 
        Curious to see the S7 in action?
        We’re hosting a free tech demo on February 7.
        It will be live and you can ask any questions to our CTO, Miguel Calvo.
        Register here for the Webinar
          • Like
        • 18 replies
      • UltiMaker Cura Alpha šŸŽ„ Tree Support Spotlight šŸŽ„
        Are you a fan of tree support, but dislike the removal process and the amount of filament it uses? Then we would like to invite you to try this special release of UltiMaker Cura. Brought to you by our special community contributor @thomasrahm
        Ā 
        We generated a special version of Cura 5.2 called 5.3.0 Alpha + Xmas. The only changes we introduced compared to UltiMaker Cura 5.2.1 are those which are needed for the new supports. So keep in mind, this is not a sneak peek for Cura 5.3 (there are some really cool new features coming up) but a spotlight release highlighting this new version of tree supports. Ā 
          • Like
        • 23 replies
    ×
    ×
    • Create New...