3DPrint.com | The Voice of 3D Printing / Additive Manufacturing |
- When 3D Printing Mergers Collapse: Essentium SPAC Fallout with Collider
- CIA’s In-Q-Tel Invests in Fortify’s Composite 3D Printing
- Arburg Introduces PEEK 3D Printing and In-Process Monitoring at RAPID + TCT
- Kornit Showcases the Future of Sustainable Digital Fashion, 3D and Otherwise
- Bioprinting Startup Satellite Bio Exits Stealth with Ex-Novartis Exec as CEO
- ASTM to Offer Certification Program for Metal 3D Printer Operators
- Finnish R&D Institute to Create Database of Metal 3D Printing Materials
- Epson to Recycle Metal Scrap into Metal 3D Printing Powders
- Myth Busting: CNC Machining vs. 3D Printing
- $160M Drives 3D Printed Hypercar Startup Divergent in Series C Round
| When 3D Printing Mergers Collapse: Essentium SPAC Fallout with Collider Posted: 28 Apr 2022 06:30 AM PDT Before investors pulled the rug out from mergers with special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs), 2021 was a record-breaking year as 604 blank-check deals raised $144 billion. The timing was crucial for 3D printing businesses, with many of them finding ideal opportunities to merge with publicly traded shell corporations to go public. Among them was Essentium. Had the deal been finalized, the Texas-based industrial 3D printing solutions provider would have seen its valuation reach close to $1 billion. Just like dozens of other companies, Essentium's deal went sour as the market deteriorated in the back half of 2021. Essentium and the SPAC company, Atlantic Coastal Acquisition Corp. (NASDAQ: ACAH), decided to terminate the deal, and the startup's plans for rapid expansion stalled. As a result, Essentium lost another deal. This time with Collider, a startup that officially came out of stealth mode in 2016 with its hybrid Programmable Tooling technology and Orchid 3D printer. The post When 3D Printing Mergers Collapse: Essentium SPAC Fallout with Collider appeared first on 3DPrint.com | The Voice of 3D Printing / Additive Manufacturing. |
| CIA’s In-Q-Tel Invests in Fortify’s Composite 3D Printing Posted: 28 Apr 2022 06:30 AM PDT Fortify, manufacturer of the FLUX series of composite digital light processing (DLP) printers, just made two big announcements that bode well for the company's future. First off, Fortify will be making commercially available a range of materials that it has developed specifically designed for the additive manufacturing (AM) of electronics devices. Additionally, the company has entered into a strategic investment agreement with In-Q-Tel, a principal venture capital vehicle of the U.S. intelligence community.
The two announcements are not unrelated, as Fortify's partnership with In-Q-Tel will also involve the development of materials and production processes related to radio frequency (RF) devices and wireless tech. In particular, the materials of interest will be those optimized for two Industry 4.0 areas: 5G infrastructure and the industrial internet of things (IOT). Beyond those two sectors, although certainly also overlapping with them, the two companies will be exploring applications of the materials for the aerospace and automotive industries.
Fortify uses the term "Continuous Kinetic Mixing" (CKM) for its proprietary DLP printing technique. The main problem that Fortify's technology addresses is sedimentation and aggregation of the resin in parts during the print process, a typical issue faced by users of 3D printers with loaded resins (resins mixed with reinforcement materials). With CKM, the materials are, well, mixed continuously, preventing this problem. One major advantage of this is that it allows the company's printers to work with more viscous materials than is the case with most DLP machines. This is reflected in a recent low-loss dielectric resin developed in partnership with Rogers Corporation, soon to be a subsidiary of DuPont. The material has applications in the development of unique antennas with complex geometries.
As mentioned above, one major objective of the partnership — and In-Q-Tel's funding — is to scale up and further develop materials optimized for 3D printing devices reliant on 5G and the industrial IOT. Most specifically, this means the new capabilities for sensing systems made possible by 5G. The materials that Fortify has already developed are all designed to meet the standards necessary for many types of popularly-available electronics devices. By partnering with In-Q-Tel, Fortify will be facilitating the bespoke replication, research into, and adaptation of those same types of devices for America's spies and soldiers. The materials and designs enabled by CKM may, among other things, enable greater potential for device encryption and cybersecurity. And also, of course, today's military hardware is tomorrow's consumer tech.
It's not clear how much In-Q-Tel is investing in Fortify, but in a recent round of funding about a year ago, Fortify gained 20 million dollars in investments. It's doubtful In-Q-Tel invested anywhere close to that amount, but, given In-Q-Tel's track record, it does strongly suggest that that $20 million has been well-spent thus far — and that Fortify will probably succeed at its goal of scaling up. Images courtesy of Fortify. The post CIA’s In-Q-Tel Invests in Fortify’s Composite 3D Printing appeared first on 3DPrint.com | The Voice of 3D Printing / Additive Manufacturing. |
| Arburg Introduces PEEK 3D Printing and In-Process Monitoring at RAPID + TCT Posted: 28 Apr 2022 05:30 AM PDT RAPD+TCT 2022 is just around the corner and among the attendees is Arburg is ready to show off advances made to its Arburg Plastic Freeforming (APF) technology. At the event, the German leader in injection molding and 3D printing technology, will be displaying a standard Freeformer 300-3X alongside a specialty version of the system capable of processing high-temperature materials. Additionally, the company will be presenting its ProcessLog app, for tracking and documenting 3D printing jobs in detail. The Advantages of APFAPF is distinguished using a piezoelectric screw to deposit individual droplets of polymer material at rates of up to 200 droplets per second with diameters of 0.2 and 0.4mm. Because commercially accessible pellets are employed, the approach is amenable to a far broader range of materials that manufacturers are likely already familiar with and might be used for mass manufacturing. Because filaments are much more expensive than injection molding pellets, this dramatically cuts part costs.  At RAPID + TCT in Detroit, two Freeformer 300-3X machines will additively manufacture sophisticated functional parts. Image courtesy of Arburg. Arburg has begun expanding both its presence in additive manufacturing (AM) and in North America. With the acquisition of German RepRap, it gained a series of industrial fused filament fabrication machines, as well as silicone deposition technology. Through a partnership with Würth Additive, it began distributing its products in North America. High-Temperature 3D PrintingThe firm's attendance at North America's largest AM trade show furthers Arburg's marketing efforts in the region. In particular, the company will be showcasing the ability of the Freeformer 300-3X to reach 200° Celsius, allowing it to process high temperature materials, such as ULTEM and PEEK. ULTEM 9085, for instance, is a permanently flame-retardant, low-smoke material approved for aerospace applications. The Freeformer 300-3X can also 3D print biocompatible, resorbable, sterilizable and FDA-approved original materials.  A high-temperature Freeformer 300-3X can process PEE, into such items as individualized skull implants, including support material. Image courtesy of Arburg. The system features optimized temperature management, including cooling necessary for proper printing. This is particularly important for the axis drives, ensuring the precise positioning of the print along the x, y and z axes. Altogether, the Freeformer is capable of printing parts that achieve 95 percent strength in the X- and Y-axes. Moreover, the printer can be made suitable for clean room applications with only some minor tweaks. This makes it possible to 3D print implantable and biocompatible parts. At RAPID + TCT, the Freeformer will showcase these possibilities by processing a medically approved PEEK granulate. Process MonitoringAdditionally, Arburg will present its ProcessLog app, which captures process and build job data and displays it in a clear, visual manner. This information is documented and traced on a per-part basis. The data can be viewed over the course of an entire build, including granular information related to material pressure, screw position, droplet frequency and discharge rate. By reliably documenting the printing process and production of each part, manufacturers can ensure traceability for products in safety-relevant applications. Additionally, multiple Freeformer machines can be networked together using an Industrial Internet of Things tool, such as the “arburgXworld” customer portal.  All Freeformers can be networked with the “arburgXworld” customer portal. The specially developed “ProcessLog” app allows a wide range of process and build job data for APF parts to be displayed in clear graphical form, documented, and traced on a part-specific basis. Image courtesy of Arburg. Arburg at RAPID + TCTOutside of high-temperature materials and the ProcessLog app, Arburg will demonstrate flexible materials, polypropylene parts, and hard and soft combinations at RAPID + TCT. Thanks to post-processing partner OTEC, the company will also showcase 3D printed parts with surface quality that match those made with injection molding through the use of vibratory finishing and barrel tumbling. Arburg suggests that the North American market will benefit from access to local and remote service, process monitoring, as well support for customer orders and processing customer-specific materials. As the German company is already well-established in the industrial manufacturing space, it suggests that it applies its expertise across the entire value chain, in turn, ensuring industrial quality in AM from the start. To learn more, visit the Arburg website or see APF in person at Booth #2108 at RAPID + TCT. The post Arburg Introduces PEEK 3D Printing and In-Process Monitoring at RAPID + TCT appeared first on 3DPrint.com | The Voice of 3D Printing / Additive Manufacturing. |
| Kornit Showcases the Future of Sustainable Digital Fashion, 3D and Otherwise Posted: 28 Apr 2022 05:00 AM PDT Fashion is one of the world’s most polluted industries, as Ronen Samuel, CEO of Kornit Digital (NASDAQ: KRNT), said at Kornit Fashion Week Tel Aviv 2022. I was lucky enough to be at the event in Israel when he said this, as I was invited by Kornit, alongside investors, partners, customers, and other journalists when the company unveiled its Kornit Atlas MAX Poly and Kornit Apollo solutions for digital, sustainable fashion. The theme of the whirlwind week was “Witness the Future.” I really felt like I was, as the focus was on changing the fashion and textiles industry to produce far less waste, while still maintaining flexibility to celebrate one’s own identity.
A little background: Kornit specializes in on-demand textile production, and its 3D-related technology, called direct-to-garment (DTG) printing, basically applies digital printing to textiles. Kornit systems use inkjet printheads to deposit color onto fabric, starting with white ink to achieve full color on dark garments. The company’s MAX technology, and its XDi feature, deposits 3D layers, and embeds 3D objects, onto fabrics. It looks a lot like embroidery or screen printing, but it’s a single additive process. Kornit also offers a single-step, direct-to-fabric (DTF) printing solution for textiles as well, and both are meant to be more sustainable. In 2020, Kornit acquired cloud-based software workflow solutions provider Custom Gateway. Last year, 3DPrint.com’s Editor in Chief Michael Molitch-Hou noted that the closest competing technology to Kornit’s XDi was by Voxel8. Just a few months later, Kornit purchased Voxel8, nipping that problem in the bud. This winter, the company acquired Tesoma, which specializes in textile drying and curing machinery that now drives the new Kornit Apollo. As Robert Zoch, Global Content Manager at Kornit Digital, told event attendees, the hardware acquisitions make its technology possible, while the software acquisitions make it accessible. These acquisitions helped Kornit achieve strong system sales and a record $87.5 million revenue for the fourth quarter of 2021. So, the company entered 2022 with a very strong backlog and even more visibility, putting it in a great position ahead of its exciting announcements. Before we got to see Kornit’s latest technology for ourselves, we saw the results in two exciting fashion shows at Hangar 11, an entertainment and event venue in the port of Tel Aviv. Fashion Week was already in full swing by the time my group got on the scene. Our arrival was timed to see two fashion collections that were, as Samuel told the crowd, “based 100% on Kornit’s technology,” specifically the Kornit Presto MAX, and made in Israel by one of the company’s partners.  The Sigal Dekel collection. © FASHION WEEK TEL-AVIV | PHOTOS BY @IDOCVM First up was Israeli fashion designer Sigal Dekel with a beautiful collection of clothing that actually looked wearable. The color palette was muted but lovely, with blues, grays, and tans, and frequent pops of pink. I also appreciated that the runway show featured a diverse array of models; we learned later that one of the women was in her 70s! A brief cocktail hour was followed by a runway show by Yanky & Nataf, two fashion designers who also happen to be married.  The Israeli singer stands center of the catwalk, flanked by models and disco balls. © FASHION WEEK TEL-AVIV | PHOTOS BY @IDOCVM This collection was the polar opposite of the first, with bright, shiny colors galore. There were literal disco balls on the runway, and the show opened with a performance by a talented Israeli singer, who stayed to sing on the runway while the models strutted around him.  © FASHION WEEK TEL-AVIV | PHOTOS BY @IDOCVM The whole time, I felt like I was on an episode of Project Runway, and I loved it. Our shuttle buses then came and whisked us all away to the non-profit Peres Center for Peace & Innovation, another one of Kornit’s new partners. In addition to enjoying dinner, drinks, and conversation, we were all given a tour of the center, which develops and implements unique programs and celebrates the many innovations born in Israel—including Kornit’s sustainable fashion technology.  The Peres Center for Peace and Innovation The next morning, we went to Kornit headquarters in Rosh HaAyin, where about 500 employees work. When we arrived, we had the chance to grab some coffee and breakfast before sitting down for a morning of presentations and demonstrations.
Samuel, who was wearing a jacket with white ink produced on Kornit’s Presto Max printer, went on to say that, for every screen printed shirt today, thousands more are made in the same batch. But many of those thousands of shirts aren’t worn, and end up as yet another waste product. These large quantities are produced to address next season’s consumers, which makes absolutely no sense from a sustainability perspective, but is unfortunately how the fashion industry has been run for many years. Samuel also noted that 28 trillion liters of water are used to produce shirts, and 40% of produced clothing goes to the landfill.
The supply chain is also “really broken.” We all remember what happened in the Suez Canal last year, and, unfortunately, this will continue to be an issue. As a result, there’s been a shift to more onshore and nearshore production, which is causing the behavior of brands and retailers to change. But it’s not just because ships can’t get from Point A to Point B. The larger reason is that people are moving more towards the digital world. While we used to consume fashion through magazines (I remember how excited I was in middle school for my dELiA*s catalogue to arrive), today we watch influencers on social media, and rely more on e-commerce. Samuel said the virtual experience in fashion will also influence this evolution, as people will likely buy more clothes online. He also suggested that Kornit’s “on-demand sustainable proximity production” is the way to “connect the virtual to the physical.” The idea is that, if you’re shopping for clothing online, you can get any color or type of image without having to manufacture thousands of the same item. There’s no inventory sitting around taking up space. Once an order is placed, it’s routed to a fulfiller close to the consumer. In this way, garments can be customized and personalized, but with equal amounts of consistency and quality.  CEO Ronen Samuel demonstrates augmented reality with an iPad. Another way to connect the physical world to the virtual one is with augmented reality. Using an iPad, Samuel showed us how an employee’s Kornit-made shirt, featuring David Bowie and a QR code, could be scanned and take you to a virtual experience, like a video of Bowie performing. It often takes over 18 months to launch fashion collections. However, Samuel said the two collections we’d seen the day before were created and launched in just one month with Kornit’s technology. The company has held fashion shows in Milan and Los Angeles, and will soon host another in London, “to show people that they can unleash their creativity in a sustainable way.” Kornit is focusing on the production floor, connecting the virtual and physical worlds through KornitX business solutions, automation, and the virtual world itself, i.e., working with NFTs. Customer testing has already begun for the automated Apollo system, which was designed for mass customized production and should be available next year. Kornit has 1,300 customers around the world that could benefit from the platform, which Samuel said can produce 400 black t-shirts with white ink in one hour, “the highest productivity available today in the digital world.” He also described KornitX, which goes from “pixel to parcel” to connect the demand to the supply. According to the website, KornitX helps brands, fulfillers, and licensors move to on-demand fashion by providing the tools with which to generate more revenue and update the supply chain. Kornit hopes to become the operating system of the fashion industry for sustainable, on-demand production. The company also recently released its impact report, and promised that, by 2026, it will save 4.3 trillion liters of water. Finally, Kornit wants to bring diversity and inclusivity to the runway and send a message that “beautiful is not one-size-fits-all.” Stay tuned for more about my visit to Israel…until then, take a look at some more of my pictures from Kornit Fashion Week Tel Aviv 2022 below: Feature image © FASHION WEEK TEL-AVIV | PHOTOS BY @IDOCVM The post Kornit Showcases the Future of Sustainable Digital Fashion, 3D and Otherwise appeared first on 3DPrint.com | The Voice of 3D Printing / Additive Manufacturing. |
| Bioprinting Startup Satellite Bio Exits Stealth with Ex-Novartis Exec as CEO Posted: 27 Apr 2022 06:30 AM PDT After years in the making, biotech research firm Satellite Bio emerged from stealth mode last week with more than $110 million in financing to pioneer an entirely new category of regenerative medicine called tissue therapeutics and announced former Novartis executive Dave Lennon as CEO. Co-founded in 2019 by MIT Wilson Professor of Engineering Sangeeta Bhatia and Boston University William Fairfield Warren Professor of Biomedical Engineering Christopher Chen, Satellite Bio aims to restore organ function and provide treatment solutions for progressive and elusive diseases. The company explains that through its exclusive Satellite Adaptive Tissue (SAT) platform, it can turn virtually any cell type into bioengineered tissues integrated into the body to restore natural function. These implantable therapy tissues, called Satellites, can deliver the comprehensive cellular response, in vivo, needed to repair or even replace critical organ functions in patients with diseases caused by genetic and environmental factors. Furthermore, Satellites can overcome many of the challenges that have hindered prior attempts to restore organ function and change the course of progressive and difficult-to-treat diseases.
Virtually any type of cell across many clinical applications can be used with the SAT platform, including primary, induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC)-derived, or engineered cells. This can drive a pipeline of sophisticated cell-based therapeutic solutions across a broad range of clinical applications to tackle elusive diseases in patients. Initial efforts will be focused on liver cells, which secrete proteins to clear toxins from the bloodstream. This is no coincidence, considering that Bhatia's research began at MIT and Massachusetts General Hospital when she started to work on finding a way to keep liver cells alive outside the body so that they could be used to filter the blood of patients with liver disease. Even though that was twenty years ago, she was focused on creating a "microliver" technology that was very successful and is currently used by over 40 biotech and pharmaceutical companies worldwide to test their drugs for liver toxicity before they enter clinical trials. Later, with Chen and fellow researchers, Bhatia began developing "satellite livers," which consisted of liver cells on a specially patterned matrix of blood vessels and transplanted them into their disease model. Once the scientists realized that "satellite livers" could improve outcomes for patients suffering from liver disease, establishing Satellite Bio was the obvious next step. Today, the startup has an exclusive license to the unprecedented technology originating in the labs of Bhatia and Chen, and the duo also shares co-founding credit with Arnav Chhabra, an MIT PostDoctoral Fellow and head of the Satellite Bio Platform research and development group. The bioprinting startup is the culmination of decades-long work by the founding duo, who began research into the technology, biology, and engineering of tissue therapeutics in the early 2000s. Building on the work of Dr. Robert Langer (founder of tissue engineering in regenerative medicine) and others, they combined more than two decades of collaborative research in tissue technology, biology, and bioengineering to create this new class of regenerative medicine called tissue therapeutics. Throughout this time, they have also been heavily involved in bioprinting research, even becoming part of the Wyss Institute's 3D Organ Engineering initiative, where they work closely with microscale 3D printing pioneer Jennifer Lewis to bring "the know-how about how to go in vivo with engineered organs" and ultimately grow tissues that are large enough to help patients.  Satellite Bio Co-founders Sangeeta Bhatia and Christopher Chen, and CEO Dave Lennon. Images courtesy of Satellite Bio.Before coming out of stealth mode, Satellite Bio raised $110 million in previously undisclosed Seed and Series A funding. The recent Series A round, which concluded on March 2022, was led by aMoon Growth and included prior seed-stage co-lead investors Lightspeed Venture Partners, aMoon Velocity, Polaris Partners, and Polaris Innovation Fund. In addition, new Series A investors included Section 32, Catalio Capital Management, and Waterman Ventures. The funds will support the development of the bioengineered tissues to repair, restore or replace a critical organ or tissue function, as Satellite Bio ultimately sets out to incorporate tissue therapeutics at point-of-care in the clinic. The post Bioprinting Startup Satellite Bio Exits Stealth with Ex-Novartis Exec as CEO appeared first on 3DPrint.com | The Voice of 3D Printing / Additive Manufacturing. |
| ASTM to Offer Certification Program for Metal 3D Printer Operators Posted: 27 Apr 2022 06:00 AM PDT Knowledgeable and experienced 3D printing operations people are in short supply. There were very few sites doing any kind of 3D printing at scale ten years ago. People well-versed in machine operations, management of printers, or manufacturing to specifications are rare and prized. To let the market grow, we need more people. ASTM International is taking a step to help by offering the ¨Powder Bed Fusion – Laser Beam (PBF-LB) Machine Operator Certification program.” Pursuant to its ISO/ASTM 52942:2020 standard for qualifying LPBF machines, ASTM now offers theory and practical tests leading to the certification. Participants go through the Additive Manufacturing Procedure Specification (lists of relevant variables that should be controlled), standard operating procedures, machine management and build process monitoring, post processing, maintenance and materials. The program was codeveloped with EOS and is based on its M290 metal LPBF system.  Image courtesy of EOS.
Of course, it’s nice to be the standard and, in entry level systems, EOS has been the de facto standard, especially in North America for years now. It’s obvious that the firm wishes to leverage this effort into further trainings based on other systems, where EOS dominance is not so assured.
Certification and qualification is crucial to the further growth of our industry. Certifying operators, standards, quality management and the like, will make or break efforts in actual manufacturing. We are still going from lab to fab and a lot of clipboards and paperwork will be what will get us there. There are some excellent trainings for 3D printing, such as John Hart’s MIT course on Additive Manufacturing and the classes from Purdue and Barnes. However, there are few courses worldwide and there should be much more on offer. Often universities offer little in the way of actual practical 3D printing instruction, let alone operational competence. Many languages don’t have a definitive 3D printing certification or courses, for example. So we need a lot more in a much broader variety of formats and at different price points. There should be standard courses available for all levels and all types of machines. Safety and management courses for operating 3D printers in medical facilities, fire safety for powders and powder machines, safety for schools should all be available worldwide. Hopefully, ASTM´s reach and considerable efforts in 3D printing will go far into making a widely accepted certification available globally. The post ASTM to Offer Certification Program for Metal 3D Printer Operators appeared first on 3DPrint.com | The Voice of 3D Printing / Additive Manufacturing. |
| Finnish R&D Institute to Create Database of Metal 3D Printing Materials Posted: 27 Apr 2022 05:30 AM PDT DIMECC Ltd. is a Finnish organization dedicated to R&D founded in 2008 and is owned by almost 70 academic and industrial entities. Think of it as a Finnish version of Fraunhofer, the renowned and gargantuan German research institute. The group has now launched a project to establish a “comprehensive and open" database of metals used in additive manufacturing (AM) for Finnish industry  Since 2016, DIMECC ("Digital, Internet, Materials & Engineering Co-Creation") has had a particular interest in the digitalization of Finnish industry, along with the creation of new businesses focused on furthering that same purpose. Through its 3D printing contingent, Finnish Additive Manufacturing Ecosystem (FAME), the organization is pursuing further digitization, in a project dubbed the “Database for Radically Enhancing Additive Manufacturing and Standardization.” Or, to throw one more acronym at you: “DREAMS.” DREAMS will accomplish this by printing 10,000 test rods composed of different metals and alloys, using different types of metal AM printers and production processes. Additionally, the project will also study "the utilization of 3D printing of metals in the most demanding applications." The project's funding, totaling €6 million, came from Business Finland, a Finnish government investment agency, as well as the organizations involved. The latter include eight of the companies associated with FAME, as well as three Finnish universities. They hope to be done with the project by 2024. Concerning the role of the database in Finland's economic trajectory over the next several years, director of FAME Markus Korpela said, "With the help of extensive implementations of DREAMS, we will raise Finnish know-how to international awareness. For Finland, the development of domestic 3D printing is important so that the industry can be more export-oriented in the future."  Although it has a population of only about 5.5 million people, Finland is something of a tech hub. Investment in startups in the Scandinavian nation was at its highest levels ever in 2020 and 2021, with much of the capital coming from foreign investors. In turn, progress made by FAME could likely have global implications. Finland's robotics industry slipped from top 10 in the world in the middle of the last decade to no longer in the top 20 by the end of the the 2010s. However, the significantly increased investments in the country's tech sector the past couple years — which includes a project announced by Amazon in 2021, to develop autonomous delivery vehicles in Helsinki — suggest that Finland could once again become a global capital of automation. The connection here is that the building of a database of materials is exactly the sort of thing required for optimizing automation in an AM-centered ecosystem. If DREAMS is a success, Finnish industry will be in good position to become a leader in the next generation of automated production of metal parts. Moreover, as I mentioned before, Finland's research could also reverberate in the global metal AM market. Automating the production of metal parts would seem to be one of the linchpins for tempering the volatility of global supply chains, and a comprehensive materials database is a necessary prerequisite for making future strides in automation of that sector. Images courtesy of FAME The post Finnish R&D Institute to Create Database of Metal 3D Printing Materials appeared first on 3DPrint.com | The Voice of 3D Printing / Additive Manufacturing. |
| Epson to Recycle Metal Scrap into Metal 3D Printing Powders Posted: 27 Apr 2022 05:00 AM PDT Seiko Epson Corporation (TSE: 6724, "Epson") makes everything from watch movements to desktop printers. Given its precision and printing expertise it has long been speculated that the company would enter the 3D printing market. It did so last month, with an industrial extrusion system. Now it has, it is moving further into the space. Epson subsidiary Atmix, which makes artificial quartz and metal injection molding (MIM) parts, will produce powder for MIM and 3D printing. Atmix is building a factory to manufacture its own powder, recycling Epson metals and the scrap of its partners. The logic behind this is not only commercial but based on the desire of Epson Group to be “underground resource free by 2050.” Epson suggests that it will not mine for any virgin nonrenewable materials by that time. This is seen as an environmentally advantageous move that also reduces the risk of the group to higher prices in the future. The plant will take in metal powder products that are out of spec, as well as waste from its factory, used molds, dies, and metal scrap from Epson and its partners. Within three years of the factory’s operations, the company expects recycled metal to represent 25 percent of the total raw metal needs of Atmix. To produce the powders, the company uses water atomization and a unique Spinning Water Atomization Process (SWAP) that can make amorphous metals and amorphous magnetic powders. With SWAP, a molten metal is broken up with high pressure gas and then quickly cooled.
On the polymer side, Epson is creating new IP by fundamentally improving extrusion processes. By coordinating extrusion speed through a valve and depositing material at a controlled temperature and in a highly precise way, the company aims for better layer adhesion and part strength. By making it open to a broad portfolio of materials, this technology could be of use in many areas while maintaining a low cost.
It seems that Epson is inching its way towards the 3D printer market. It is not only releasing a machine but also a powder that could see broader adoption. The firm is deploying 3D printing in a cost-conscious way. Epson’s 3D printer launch was not flashy and not supported by a lot of collateral or marketing heft. The company has not made any huge investments in additive. It is also creating a relatively simple 3D printer. On the powder side, the company is looking at its metal footprint and materials to guide it. It is looking to replace its own virgin materials use most of all. Now, considering the size of Epson as a company and all of its watches and cartridges, the firm has a long way to go. After all, it has over $9 billion in revenue and 67,000 employees.
However, by only covering its own needs, it can become a player in our comparatively tiny market. The 3D printer seems likely to be able to process pellets of many sizes and grades, so as to take on a large selection of known plastic waste materials. Metal waste could be atomized, which would use a lot of energy but would let it be made into accurate MIM parts or 3D printed parts. It’s a very logical approach for the firm. It would also make sense for the company to release a binder jet machine for production runs lower than can be fulfilled with MIM. Taken together this could be a rather well-defined and -executed recycling strategy for a large company’s metals into new products. I’m not sure how many other firms will look to developing new technologies in tandem with additive to turn to more efficient use and reuse of their materials. Let’s hope that there will be many more. The post Epson to Recycle Metal Scrap into Metal 3D Printing Powders appeared first on 3DPrint.com | The Voice of 3D Printing / Additive Manufacturing. |
| Myth Busting: CNC Machining vs. 3D Printing Posted: 27 Apr 2022 04:30 AM PDT 3D printers have quietly been transforming production lines at some of the world's leading manufacturers. Once considered primarily for prototyping; advancements in materials and productivity have made 3D printers a powerful tool for applications beyond prototyping that range from tooling to end-use parts. As these 3D Printers move from R&D onto the shop floor the question that keeps coming up is "Will 3D printing ever replace CNC Machining?" The short answer is no because it doesn't need to. Both 3D Printing and CNC Machining have their place in manufacturing. The truth is they are friends not adversaries. Simply put, these are two different tools in your toolbox! Both are useful, but do different jobs. The key is to know how to use them for your application. The main difference between the tools is that 3D printing is an additive process while CNC is a subtractive process. 3D printing starts from nothing and builds a part layer by layer. Whereas CNC begins with a stock of material and removes that material until the desired shape is achieved. Here are the advantages of each: 3D Printing Advantages:
CNC Machining Advantages:
Hybrid (CNC & 3D Printing) Approach Benefits:
Conclusion:3D Printing & CNC Machining can indeed work together to serve your customers better. The first step should always be to decide which technology is best for your part. Both processes have their advantages and both complement each other, which can then provide you and your customers with:
Please join us at one of our two live one-of-a-kind informational in-person events where we will showcase some of the latest metal 3D printing technologies. If you have any interest in learning more about 3D Printing this is a great opportunity! Attendance is free, but you must register to attend. The first event will be held at the Cimquest headquarters in Branchburg, NJ on April 28, 2022. Attendees will be able to tour our new Metal 3D Printing showroom, interact with parts, and network with other participants. This is a great way to learn about key industry insights in Metal Additive and see how it can open an entirely new world of applications and jobs. Nate Higgins, Co-founder of FreeFORM will be available to discuss their use of 3D Metal Printing. For the second event, Cimquest is partnering with ABCorp and hosting the event at their facility in Boston, MA on May 4, 2022. ABCorp designs 3D-printed highly-detailed prototypes and parts and they deliver omnichannel content to elevate the customer experience. They will be explaining how they are using additive technologies to grow their business today and in the future. At this event, you'll also get to see the Desktop Metal Shop System live, tour ABCorp's Shop Floor, and interact with parts. At both events we will be giving away these metal 3D-printed sample parts. Join us for a very informative and enjoyable day and score yourself one of these unique gifts. About Cimquest:Cimquest has been a leader in both Additive and Subtractive technologies for over 26 years. Global leadership with many products such as: Mastercam, Desktop Metal and Xact Metal, Cimquest helps to direct companies in their quest for manufacturing excellence. If you are interested in talking to one of our team of experts about selecting or optimizing your additive or subtractive manufacturing technologies, give us a call. The post Myth Busting: CNC Machining vs. 3D Printing appeared first on 3DPrint.com | The Voice of 3D Printing / Additive Manufacturing. |
| $160M Drives 3D Printed Hypercar Startup Divergent in Series C Round Posted: 26 Apr 2022 08:50 AM PDT Coming off the heels of an exciting presence at the 2022 AMUG Conference, Divergent Technologies has announced a successful Series C round totaling $160 million in funding. The investment will go toward industrializing its fully integrated platform, which combines generative design, additive manufacturing (AM), and automated assembly. Divergent will also be able to expand its hypercar 3D printing operations and meet the demand from automotive original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) for the design and production of vehicles. As the startup completes the investment round, former President of Goldman Sachs John L. Thornton will join the Divergent Board of Directors.  In the upper right is a blurred out photo of the company’s Divergent Adaptive Production System. Image courtesy of AMUG/Divergent 3D. The heart of Divergent's business is the Divergent Adaptive Production System (DAPS), which covers the entire design to production workflow for manufacturing. At the moment, this means producing optimized hypercars, like the Czinger 21C, a zero-emissions vehicle that recently beat Circuit of the Americas and Laguna Seca production car track lap records. However, Divergent founder and CEO Kevin Czinger told 3DPrint.com that this same technology can be used to produce anything, from cars to drones. This is because it requires no tooling.
 A look at an exploded view of the 21C reveals how radically different every component looks from traditionally made counterparts. Image courtesy of Czinger Vehicles. The end product is created with generative design before SLM Solutions' 12-laser metal 3D printers sinter complex metal parts. Finally, a 20-meter-wide robotic cell performs fixture-less assembly of the final product. According to Czinger, this cell is capable of putting together 10,000 complete vehicle structures or up to 150,000 sub-frames annually. More 3D Printed Cars from DivergentAt AMUG, Czinger wasn't able to disclose everything about his firm, but what he did reveal was more than worthy of the investment. In addition to saying that Divergent will unveil its first public partnership with an automotive OEM this September, he noted that his company will showcase a series of luxury vehicles, including a coupe and an SUV, at Monterey Car Week in August 2022. By 2024, Divergent hopes to replicate its Los Angeles microfactory in Europe, as well.  Divergent’s future vehicles. Image courtesy of AMUG/Divergent 3D. So far, Divergent has over 500 patents field, as well as more than 180 engineers and scientists across its four divisions: Structures, Software (HPC, GD and AI), Additive Manufacturing (Hardware, Software and Materials) and Automation (Software, Optics and Robotics). As the company expands, it hopes to build out a global network of DAPS factories that ultimately operate in a circular fashion.
Joining the Board of Directors is John L. Thornton, former President of Goldman Sachs, who not only invested in this Series C round, but in previous financing rounds as well. Thornton also served as Executive Chairman of Barrick Gold and a Board Member of Ford Motor Company.  Kevin Czinger with 21C 3D printer hypercar. Image courtesy of @iamted7.
As we see numerous auto manufacturers like VW, Ford, and BMW adopt AM, gradually ramping up to production parts for consumer vehicles, Divergent will be the first to put a largely 3D printed car on the road. The C21 will be manufactured in a lot of 80 vehicles, but Divergent plans to expand to more accessible automobiles as it uses its proceeds to scale up. Partnering with eight leading OEMs, Divergent is primed to drive up the use of AM across the entire auto industry. It's now wonder then that the 3D printing industry is expected to reach over $50 billion by 2030. Feature image courtesy of @iamted7. The post $160M Drives 3D Printed Hypercar Startup Divergent in Series C Round appeared first on 3DPrint.com | The Voice of 3D Printing / Additive Manufacturing. |
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