HP and Formlabs Win Out in 3D Hubs Latest 3D Printing Trends Report

3D Printing Media Network January 17, 2018

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Top materials at 3D Hubs: PLA still rules

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Q1 in the 3D Printing Industry is starting 2018 with a great deal of optimism after a successful 2017 of unprecedented innovation. This quarter 3D Hubs added the first CNC data to the report showing the most popular materials and niches currently being used in the industry. HP and Formlabs are the clear winners for fiscal Q1 2018 (solar Q4), with HP’s MJF 4200 coming in as the most used industrial system and the Form 2 as the most used 3D printer overall.

After the introduction of the 3D Hubs waiting list for suppliers, numbers in printer model and printer manufacturer distribution have slowed so they’ve been removed for this quarter. For those still interested you can find that data on the 3D Hubs blog.

These are some highlights of the Q1-2018 Trend Report:

HP’s MJF 4200 has now become the #1 most used industrial machine, moving up from #2 in Q4 creating over 2,000 parts in Q1.
The Makergear M2 has disrupted the top three taking #1 spot for Print Quality, with the Ultimaker 2+ in at #2 and the Original Prusa i3 MK2 in at #3. The older generation of machines continues to please although proportionally the MK2 amassed 500% more reviews than #1 spot.
The Form 2 proves once again affordable industrial quality is popular as the #1 most used 3D printer in Q1, making 12,023 parts.
The most popular CNC’d materials? Aluminum 6061 dominates the list with 55.5% of all parts made with it.
New materials have been featured in the Most Used Materials section, as ASA and PETG move up to #5 and #7 respectively.
New York has reclaimed top spot as the #1 Print City in the world. California dominates the list with 40% of the cities listed in their state (San Francisco, San Diego, Los Angeles, Berkeley).

The most used technologies on 3D Hubs: filament extrusion comes in first, interesting that Markforged’s CFF beats out metal AM

3D Hubs 3D Printing Trends is a quarterly update using data from 6,000 active international service providers, who create more than 200,000 3D printed parts each quarter. It’s the only industry report based on hard numbers and the most extensive overview of the latest trends in 3D printing. You can download the full report here.