Long Close School rent their first 3D Printer from Utility Rentals

Long Close School, is an independent co-educational school and nursery for students aged between 2 and 16 years old. The school encourages ‘high standards for all abilities’ and as well as academic subjects, the school places a ‘great emphasis on arts, drama, music, design technology and sport’.

Long Close School had already been working with Utility Rentals for the rental of lockers for several years and so when Carolyn Andrews, Assistant to the Business Manager, was made aware that Utility Rentals could offer the rental of 3D printers, Carolyn and her colleagues were keen to find out more.

Utility Rentals understand the benefits a 3D printer can bring to education and so have created the only true 3D printer operating lease for schools, available in the UK. There are four different packages to choose from; from one option which includes a 3D printer only, through to a complete package which includes installation, on-site training, as well as a 3 year parts and labour warranty. If any faults occur, schools can simply contact Utility Rentals’ dedicated Repairs Team, who will handle the repair from start through to completion. In the first instance, Utility Rentals will do their very best to resolve the issue over the phone or on the first site visit. But, in the event that the printer needs to be taken offsite for repair, Utility Rentals want to ensure schools are left with a working printer and so in most cases are able to provide a loan machine first. In addition to this, they also include a unique ‘Teacher Lesson Pack’ as standard with every 3D printer rental package with includes 5 lessons to help teach pupils the basics of 3D printing.

Carolyn at Long Close School said “We chose to rent our first 3D printer from Utility Rentals as they had many different models to choose from and they offered us a very competitive deal, which made the decision to try a 3D printer in school very easy. We could have decided to purchase, but we needed to be sure the DT Teacher would make full use of the printer. As the rental term from Utility Rentals is for 3 years, it enabled us to see how things go during this time. As 3D printing is a new technology to us, Utility Rentals were able to provide us with a long demonstration before we placed our order to show us how the printer worked and the different options available. It was really helpful and we came away knowing an awful lot more about 3D printers and what they could do in lessons.”

Carolyn concluded, “The service we have always received from Utility Rentals and Nicola, our Account Manager, has always been excellent; nothing is ever too much trouble and Nicola is always at the end of the phone to answer questions and set everything up. The whole process from order to installation is second to none. Gavin the DT Teacher found the installation and training very good and the lesson planning was very useful too. We highly recommend Utility Rentals!”