Prusa Launches the Affordable $11,380 Prusa Pro HT90 Industrial-Grade 3D Printer

The consumer 3D printer market is very crowded and very competitive — a situation that Josef Průša helped to create when he released the original open source Prusa i3 as part of the RepRap Project. That was so successful that Prusa now struggles to compete against the low-cost, mass-produced consumer and prosumer 3D printers coming out of China. I think that’s why Prusa has decided to target the industrial market with the release of the Prusa Pro HT90.

The Prusa Pro HT90 is interesting for several reasons, starting with the fact that it is a delta 3D printer. Delta kinematics were somewhat popular about a decade ago, because they’re very fast. But they seemed to fall out of favor once CoreXY kinematics, which almost match delta on speed, caught on.

I’m not entirely sure why Prusa chose delta kinematics for the HT90. They’re claiming better acceleration without artifacts and that is likely true, but the real-world speed differences likely won’t be dramatic.

Other than the kinematics, the Prusa Pro HT90’s big selling points are wide material compatibility and a focus on commercial priorities.

The material compatibility comes thanks to a high-temp nozzle (500°C max) and high chamber temperature (90°C max). It can, for example, print PEEK and other tricky engineering materials. The printhead is magnetically swappable, so users can quickly switch between high-flow and high-temp printing.

But the real selling point — and the justification for the price tag — is all about catering to commercial interests.

The number one way Prusa achieves that is by simply not being a Chinese company. Because Chinese companies must comply with their government’s laws, there is a good case to be made that Chinese 3D printers are not secure. Prusa is in the EU and isn’t subject to those laws, so they can prioritize data security.

On top of that, the Prusa Pro HT90 can operate locally without ever connecting to a network. The printer has a WiFi adapter, but owners can remove that and completely air gap the machine. In today’s world, that is the only way to be confident that your data is secure.

In addition to security, 24/7 Prusa Pro support will be available to reduce downtime. While we hobbyists can usually afford to tinker with our printers, corporations almost always prefer to pay a premium to avoid the hassle and lost productivity. That support is the real reason that industrial tools, including 3D printers, cost what they do.

At a price of €11,490 or $11,380 USD, the Prusa Pro HT90 seems very, very expensive compared to consumer and even prosumer models. And for the vast majority of hobbyists, that price is not reasonable considering the limited performance benefits. But for professional engineering teams in the corporate world, the HT90 is an affordable alternative to the handful of other industrial printer models on the market.