Howdy folks,

Our engineering facility is looking to add a 3D printer to speed up design development. We recently took ownership of a Makerbot Z18 ($7000+ with the MakerCare Package), which worked pretty well for about a month before we started getting horrible print quality, leading up to a fatal extrusion mechanism jam. With the machine offline and a two week lead time for getting replacement extruders, we're seriously considering returning the Z18. It just isn't measuring up to what we need it to do.

The question I've got is: what would be a good replacement?

Forget about price, friends.

Our office deals with high speed cable assemblies, as well as the testing equipment to measure their performance. Print volumes range from items the size of a micro-USB overmold to Arduino / electronics enclosures, up to a maximum of around 10" x 10" x 10" (larger is better if we need to print a wire harness guide).

Since we will be attaching PCBs and other electronics to the printed parts, we'd need consistent print quality and a material that we can work with in a machine shop. By that I mean something we can drill into, or create threaded holes with a tap, and install thread-forming screws into without fear of the print breaking or splintering. (My guess is that would be ABS?)

Above all the 3D printer must be reliable, or at least very easy to service / maintain (which the Makerbot Z18 is NOT).

One of the directors in the building has said the reliability should be "like working with a photocopier: you set it up and calibrate it, then push GO and walk away."

My personal knowledge of 3D printers is limited to the hobbyist level, so I was thinking Ultimaker, SeeMeCNC's delta units, and others. But I'm not an expert user.

That's why I'm here!

Can y'all help our engineers out?