rigid.ink's first range of high-quality 3D printing filament.
With so many 3D printing filament companies out there, how does one stand out from the crowd?
Ed Tyson set up rigid.ink to bring 3D printing consumables to the desktop market with quality as the driving force and a positive attitude to go with it.
“We’re a little bit different,” Ed explained. “You’ve got a lot of filament companies out there that are either trying to plug a rubbish product or they’re charging far too much. We try to meet people in the middle with price. We pride ourselves on being quite a personable company.”
Based in Wetherby, UK, rigid.ink is focused on delivering good quality filament for accurate and durable prints. Launching with two main lines of filament, in eight initial colours at 1.75mm and 3.0mm, the company is based on the ethos that good quality materials can really drive the industry forward. It might not be the biggest range just yet – more are on the way - but Ed insists the quality speaks for itself.
“We use pure materials so the raw materials we start with are as good as you will get anywhere,” Ed commented. “The machinery we use to get the tolerance’s tight is very consistent. We challenge people to find better quality.”
The company wants to separate itself from other filament manufacturers by giving customers the freedom to sample materials first before committing to a large batch of filament. The company distributes filaments from lengths of just 10 metres and even offers free sample packs to schools and universities.
“We want to really drive it in the education sector as best we can because we want to support, schools, universities and colleges.”
Catering to the consumer, educational and small business markets, rigid.ink has introduced a loyalty and referral scheme. Customers are rewarded with £6 off their orders when they introduce a new customer who is then also rewarded with a £5 voucher.
Ed is confident that by delivering high-quality filaments to customers, it will help combat the plethora of low-cost filament options already on the market that are less concerned with attaching the same seal of quality.
“It’s quite dangerous for the market,” Ed explained. “I’ve heard of other companies using things like saw dust in their raw materials so of course you’re going to get these people who spend hundreds or thousands on a printer and it just gets clogged up all of the time. They get disheartened with it and it’s no fun. It does damage the industry I think. Poor quality is not doing anyone any favours.”
Customers can expect to see more colours and material options coming from rigid.ink over the next few months. The current range is available to buy from the rigid.ink website and Amazon UK.
