Since their first commercial appearance in the late 1980s, desktop 3D printers have captured a large base of users. The device is popular for enthusiasts and professional users because it is relatively easy to use, can be relatively inexpensive and can create a wide range of objects.

But, whether it employs FDM, SLA or SLS technology, 3D printers have several major limitations that inevitably bracket its possibilities.

What if a user could employ both milling and 3D printing – on the same object?

That “hybrid manufacturing” is currently possible in very expensive, very large and very complicated setups that require years to learn. But it’s now becoming possible on our desktop machine with exciting new software that we’ve developed, called 5XCAM.

5AXISWORKS LTD, manufacturer of powerful and accessible desktop 5-axis CNC Milling and 3D Printing systems has been awarded a grant funding of £348,998 match funded by the company with £148 ,570 via the prestigious Smart Grant Program run by Innovate UK*, the UK’s innovation agency.

Five-axis printing is the biggest advancement for FDM 3D printing since the technology began in the late 1980s. It allows layers to be interwoven and stronger, with greater definition and the ability to wrap around the object.

Our 5AXISMAKER machines are the only affordable ones providing 5-axis printing (and milling), so researchers are employing them to figure out methods – such as in these four research papers.

There are two ways of operating a milling tool in the five axes of tilt, rotate, left-to-right (the X-axis), up-and-down (Y), and back-and-forth (Z).

One of these milling modes – called “simultaneous” – is most commonly employed with a mathematically-generated “surface model.” The other mode, or “indexical,” is used with a “mesh model,” which is often generated from a scan of physical objects.

Understanding the different pluses and minuses for these milling modes and 3D models is essential to getting the best result.

In order to create objects, the tools on our 5AXISMAKER milling machine/3D printer can move in X, Y and Z axes – left-to-right, up-and-down and back-and-forth.

But our machine also goes beyond those basics to add two additional axes-of-movement: tilt and rotate.

Why would anyone want these two additional axes of movement?

Around 2011-2012, 5-axis milling machines were huge industrial-grade devices that were out of reach for most projects. The cheapest ones were around £75,000 – £200,000 (about $90,000 – $250,000 in today’s dollars) – and they often filled a room.

As a result, complicated projects on a limited budget were sometimes completed by hand, instead of by machine. Because this was so time-consuming, many established model-making shops in London refused to take on these more difficult projects.

That’s when we decided to build our own.