In this edition of Sliced, 3D Printing Industry’s news digest, we take a look at the latest partnerships in the additive manufacturing sector, 3D printers, software, and material releases, and uncover the potential for constructing 3D printed bamboo gazebos.
All this from CyBe, Nano Dimension, Airbus, CRP Technology, Maker’s Muse, Autodesk and more.
Business partnerships and advancements in the 3D printing sector
Nano Dimension, a leading additive electronics provider based in Israel, has expanded its reach within the Asia Pacific market as a result of a strategic partnership with the AURORA Group, a Taiwanese distributor of additive manufacturing systems. Through this new partnership, AURORA Group will market and sell Nano Dimension’s DragonFly 2020 Pro 3D printer to customers in China.
Additionally, the AURORA Group has purchased its second DragonFly 2020 Pro 3D printer. The first DragonFly 2020 Pro 3D printer was recently purchased and installed for AURORA Group’s showroom in Taichung, Taiwan.
Furthermore, GoPrint3D, a 3D printer reseller based in North Yorkshire, has partnered with Mayku to become an authorized reseller of the Mayku FormBox, a desktop vacuum former which is a complementary technology to 3D printing.
Rolls-Royce, British manufacturer and distributor of power systems for aviation and automotive industries, has partnered with international aerospace pioneers Airbus to develop and test 3D printed and welded architecture for Rolls-Royce’s UltraFan engine.
This includes nacelles, a streamlined casing on the outside of an aircraft or motor vehicle which commonly house aircraft engines. And pylons, which are primary structures that connect an engine to the airframe of an aircraft.
Specializing in advanced 3D printing materials and high-technology applications, Italy’s CRP Technology, that manufactured Hexadrone’s Tundra-M drone, has won the Red Dot Award 2018 in the drone category.
The University of Pittsburgh’s Swanson School of Engineering is to lead investigations to advance additive manufacturing technologies for the nuclear industry. This project will be completed on a $1 million award as part of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Nuclear Energy Enabling Technologies (NEET) program.
German Selective Laser Melting (SLM) specialist, SLM Solutions has incorporated WITT-Gasetechnik’s AV 919 safety relief valve to keep gas pressure constant during melting within the SLS 3D printing process.
Graphene 3D Lab, a New York-based chemical and materials company, has welcomed Scott Goldfarb as its new Director of Sales and Marketing.
CORE Industrial Partners, a Chicago-based private equity firm, announced the acquisition of Hayes Manufacturing Services, a rapid prototyping manufacturer of precision-machined plastic and metal components. This acquisition is through CORE’s portfolio sheet metal fabrication company, Prototek.
India and Korea have signed 10 agreements covering a broad spectrum of areas, including Internet of Things (IOT), Artificial Intelligence (AI), Big Data and anti-dumping as part of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA).
Suresh Prabhu, Minister for Commerce and Industry Minister for India and his Korean counterpart Kim Hyun-chong released a joint statement on the objective of the CEPA, which is to “facilitate ongoing negotiations on upgrading the India-Korea CEPA by identifying key areas for trade liberalization (including shrimp, molluscs and processed fish).”
HORIBA MIRA, an automotive engineering and development consultancy company based in Warwickshire, UK, has partnered with The MIRA Technology Institute (MTI) to build a multi-million technology institute which will operate to close the skills gap in the automotive sector through new technologies such as 3D printing.
HORIBA MIRA has now revealed that this new institute will create thousands of apprenticeships for budding engineers.
Angus Deveson, owner of Maker’s Muse, a technology YouTube channel based in Australia, has released a new video alerting 3D printing companies of a fraudulent Maker’s Muse impersonator.
Improved 3D printed spinal implants & new bioprinting methods
Renovis Surgical Technologies, a medical technology company based in Austin, who recently obtained 510(k) clearance for its 3D printed Tesera SA hyperlordotic ALIF interbody spinal fusion system, has now improved its implants long-term biological fixation through a highly porous 3D printed titanium surface structure.
With help from the patented Tesera Trabecular Technology (T3), which enables bone attachment and in-growth, the spinal implant currently maintains optimized strength and stability for the mechanical interlocking of bone growth.
Researchers from the Russian 3D Bioprinting Solutions Laboratory and the Joint Institute for High Temperatures of the Russian Academy of Sciences (JIHT RAS) have developed a new a technology for 3D printing biological tissues in a study using magnetic levitation in the conditions of microgravity.
More accurate patient 3D models are being developed according to a recent journal entitled “From Improved Diagnostics to Presurgical Planning: High-Resolution Functionally Graded Multimaterial 3D Printing of Biomedical Tomographic Data Sets.”
Showcase of 3D printing in primary schools
Over 500 teachers, students and invited guests attended the South Australia Department of Education’s and Makers Empire’s 3D Printing in Schools Showcase Day at the Adelaide Convention Centre.
The Showcase Day celebrated the 3D printing skills achieved as a result of the 3D Printing in Primary Schools Project – which began in 2016.
Approximately 50 schools were in attendance as they demonstrated ideas for 3D printing and 3D design-based solutions for real-world problems in their schools and communities. The primary school ideas ranged from a 3D printed name badge for a woman who had trouble remembering her nurse’s name, 3D model planes for a former Australian Air Force pilot, and a 3D printed plant pot for avid gardeners.
Adopting additive manufacturing software
Toolcraft, a German manufacturing and construction company, plan on applying five-axis additive manufacturing technologies after the successful initial adoption of Siemens PLM software.
“With Siemens NX, we work with only one file along the process chain,” said Ralf Domider, Additive Engineering Part Designer at Toolcraft. “There is less complexity. You can work in less time and have a lower error rate. That’s the main advantage of Siemens NX. With Siemens NX, we can supply all of these systems and all of these machines – Trumpf, EOS, and Concept Laser.”
Kubotek, Japan-based developers of mechanical CAD software and core precision 3D technologies, has licensed translation technology from Datakit, a CAD data exchange company, for inclusion in its new CAD utility products.
Generative design, fiber composites, & a new polymerization process
Massimiliano Moruzzi of the Autodesk Research’s Computational Science group has commented on the abilities of Autodesk’s generative design processes and fiber-composite materials that can potentially create smart structures.
“We define the physics and the material properties of the [fiber] composite and then we use FEA [Finite Element Analysis] to solve the design problem,” explained Moruzzi explains.
“Now the material and its placement can be driven by the structural loads and functionality, [which] will lead to new functional materials and augmented manufacturing processes.”
A research team from Berlin have developed a new polymerization process detailed in a study entitled “A photoswitchable catalyst system for remote-controlled (co)polymerization in situ.”
Innovative 3D printer product releases
Italian 3D printer manufacturer, Robot Factory, has released its new 3D printer using FFF thermoplastic extrusion technology, Sliding-3D. Its “endless” build volume allows uninterrupted production of small series and 3D objects with unrestricted length.
“Initially, various 3D printing solutions were examined, some of these would overcome the dimensional limit of the printing plan,” said Andrea Martini, CEO and Founder of Robot Factory.
“The solution adopted on Sliding-3D has allowed engineers a product that effectively overcomes these limitations, and to guarantee reduced production times and greater efficiency.”
CyBe, a 3D printing construction solutions company based in the Netherlands, has provided the first mobile concrete 3D printer worldwide to a precast concrete manufacturer in Japan. With over 28 plants throughout Asia, the Japanese manufacturer will use this 3D printer in the production of toilets, manholes, bridges, and buildings.
Budmen Industries, a postdigital workshop based in Pennsylvania, has introduced its newest invention – the Budmen Buildini 3D printer.
Created for ‘creative minds of all ages’, The Budmen Buildini has a build volume of 500mm x 300mm x 490mm, this printer can be used to produce 3D objects from art sculptures to furniture.
Tucker, a Texas-based Powersports products distributor, will exclusively distribute a new line of custom Triumph motorcycle parts, created through 3D printing technologies and clay modeling, from Motone Customs, a motorcycle parts store in Wales.
3D printed bamboo structures & custom footwear
As part of Singapore’s Urban Design Festival 2018, the Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) and AIRLAB, have 3D printed bridge connectors to create a bamboo gazebo known as Sombra Verde.
Furthermore, Mirreco, an Australian Bio-Technology company, is planning on construction 3D printed Hemp Homes to improve eco-friendly, sustainable living conditions.
Finally, ECCO, a heritage footwear brand and manufacturer from Denmark, has used additive manufacturing technologies from ViscoTec to create customized 3D-printed midsoles through its latest project, QUANT-U.
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Featured image shows Sliced logo over the Sombra Verde 3D Printed Bamboo Structure. Photo by Carlos Bannon, Professor at SUTD.
