News and Insights of 3D Printing and Manufacturing
Though a small nation, the Netherlands has made quite a significant impact on the additive manufacturing industry in recent years. Industrious and innovative companies, including professional 3D printing service Oceanz, got their start in the Netherlands and many startups and businesses are helping to cultivate a rich environment there for the advancement and adoption of additive manufacturing.
BASF 3D Printing Solutions (B3DPS), the subsidiary of German chemical company BASF, is preparing to unveil a range of new AM-related products, including new photopolymer and laser sintering materials, at Formnext 2018 in Frankfurt. The company is also marking the AM industry event with the announcement of several new partnerships, including Origin, Photocentric and Xunshi Technology.
Ford has been using additively manufactured production and assembly tools for several years. Up to 50% of the respective costs are related to the creation of design data. In order to scale the applications of Additive Manufacturing (AM), Ford is partnering with software company trinckle to automate the design process.
Linde Gases, a division of The Linde Group, today announced they will be featuring their innovative ADDvance powder cabinet at formnext, the leading exhibition and conference showcasing the best of next-generation manufacturing technologies. Linde’s ADDvance powder cabinet has been designed to retain the quality of the valuable, sensitive metal powders used in additive manufacturing by protecting them from exposure to ambient air and humidity. The quality of metal powder has a fundamental impact on the microstructure and physical properties of the printed item, so they must be of a defined and consistent quality, meaning that correct storage and handling is vital.
Consumer 3D printing is an interesting sector at the moment. While some areas, like 3D printed eyewear, may feel a bit saturated, others are almost completely untapped. German company Sandhelden is a good example of a company seeking to leverage 3D printing in a pretty unique way: by offering a collection of design-oriented 3D printed washbasins.
The 2019 edition of the 3D Pioneers Challenge has officially launched, inviting designers and specialists from around the globe to submit their most innovative and boundary pushing 3D printing-related projects. For the fourth year running, the 3D Pioneers Challenge is seeking to find the best AM ideas and projects in the categories of Design, MedTech, FashionTech, Material, Architecture, Digital and Mobility. This year, a new category, Sustainability, has also been added to the roster.
The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) announced the expansion of an existing agreement with America Makes to increase its role in the collection of performance data for the 3D printing industry. UTEP, which became the first America Makes Satellite Center in 2015, says the updated partnership will not only benefit the AM industry but will offer greater advantages to its students.
3D Systems is going to feature its complete end-to-end additive manufacturing solutions portfolio at Formnext 2018, stand F10, Hall 3, enabling companies to innovate, design and manufacture in new ways and realize competitive advantage. In addition to showcasing the industry’s most comprehensive portfolio of plastic and metal additive manufacturing solutions, 3D Systems will demonstrate a full range of industrial customer applications designed to create more innovative products faster, with lower total cost of operation.
Visitors to Dublin Castle in Ireland might be drawn in by a bubble gum pink sculpture standing outside of the government complex, contrasting with its grey stone and brick façade. The piece is a modern take on the classical David and Goliath motif by English artist Jam Sutton which shows a young man (David) clad in streetwear sitting atop the severed head of Goliath.
Yissum, a technology transfer company affiliated with the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, Israel, has developed a new 3D printing technique for producing drug capsules. The process, to be presented at the annual 3D Printing and Beyond conference today at the Hebrew University, utilizes custom 3D printed hydrogels with the capacity for delayed release for controlled drug dosage.