News and Insights of 3D Printing and Manufacturing
Wematter, a Swedish startup specializing in SLS 3D printing, has launched two new products for the additive market: a new SLS 3D printer, Gravity 2020, and the BlasThing Cabinet for safely and cost-efficiently cleaning SLS parts.
Netherlands-based 3D Hubs is continuing its global expansion. After announcing a new American headquarters in May 2019, the company has revealed it will be emerging into the French market with backing from iPod inventor Tony Fadell, who now heads the Future Shape investment firm. As part of the expansion, 3D Hubs will open new offices in France’s capital, Paris.
Carpenter Technology has announced the opening of its new Emerging Technology Center (ETC) in Athens, Alabama. The facility, which spans 500,000 square feet, will focus on additive manufacturing processes and will produce parts for a range of cross-industry applications in aerospace, transportation, energy and oil and gas.
GE Healthcare and Formlabs have entered into a partnership to increase the accessibility of 3D printed, patient-specific anatomical models. In the medical sector, patient-specific models based on medical imaging data have multiple uses, from practitioner training to surgical preparation to patient communications.
German additive manufacturing expert SLM Solutions has partnered with American conglomerate Honeywell to qualify new 3D printing parameters with the aim of printing at increased thicknesses to save more time and money. Honeywell has been a proponent for additive manufacturing for some time and has adopted various forms of the technology for a range of applications. This in depth knowledge of AM and its industrial applications will be vital to the partnership with SLM Solutions, which specializes in selective laser melting.
Xometry, the largest marketplace for on-demand (additive+subtractive+formative) manufacturing acquired Munich-based Shift, the largest on-demand (subtractive+formative-only) manufacturing marketplace in Europe. Through the acquisition, Xometry will accelerate its international expansion into 12 new countries, leveraging a worldwide network of over 4,000 manufacturers.
Digital Alloys, a Massachusetts-based 3D printing company, has announced the appointment of Carl Calabria as its new Chief Technology Officer (CTO). Calabria has worked in the additive manufacturing industry for years, holding positions such as the Head of Engineering at Formlabs, and engineering leadership positions at Markforged, iRobot, Sonos and Avid. At Digital Alloys, Calabria will help the company to accelerate the commercial release of its Joule Printing metal AM technology.
Located in the Jiangsu region, the town of Suzhou is a former mining town that has been completely rebuilt, attracting investments from some of the largest construction companies in the world. Old mines have been rapidly transformed into beautiful parks bringing the city to its former glory when it gave birth to several Chinese emperors. As the city moves into the future, one particularly innovative project stands out, conducted by construction 3D printing company Winsun: the very first 3D printed river revetment wall, over 500 meters long, is the largest 3D printed structure ever built.
Ai Build, a company that the readers of this website should know well, collaborated with a team of other creative firms in the UAE 3D printing scene, to create the Deciduous 3D printed pavilion, a digitally and additively manufactured structure that invites us to revisit our relationship with nature, through an experience reminiscent of walking through an abstracted botanical form.
Bridges have become a popular way for research groups and additive manufacturing companies to demonstrate their technologies. It makes sense. Bridges combine architecture and performance while also engaging directly with people. While not every person may recognize the ingenious nature of a topologically optimized engine component, a state-of-the art bridge can appeal to all.