After taking the trophy at the Formnext Start-Up Challenge 2016 last week, Berlin based 3D printing software company 3yourmind are now in London and join fellow 3D printing industry company, Big Rep, at the Berlin Pop Up Lab in Soho.
3DPI visited the lab to find out more.
The industrialization of 3D printing is a hot topic this year as announcements from 3D Systems, GE, Materialise, Siemens and others illustrates.
Founded in 2014, 3yourmind offer, “intelligent 3D printing solutions for industry and architecture.” Their software can be used by 3D printing bureaus in a similar manner to 3D Hubs or San Francisco’s Fictiv. Optimization tools to automatically repair 3D files are integrated with the software, as are pricing decision tools. The company will also soon offer automated pricing for 3D printing in metal and are working with 30 3D printing bureaus, including London’s 3D Print UK.
Mobility goes Additive
The company launched a “CAD Plugin to Simplify 3D Printing Orders” called 3D Button in March 2015, but has since pivoted towards the B2B sector. On display at the pop up lab were several examples of a significant cooperation between the startup and Deutsche Bahn, the $40 billion German railway company.
As we reported earlier this year, Deutsche Bahn are exploring how 3D printing can revolutionize their supply chain and logistics operations. The railway company have fleet or networks on every continent and hold inventory valued at over $1 billion. Reducing the costs associated with maintaining inventory for the organisation by using 3D printing to produce on demand replacements through the Mobility goes Additive project aims to unlock some of the capital currently tied up in stock.
3yourmind brought two swing arms to demonstrate their approach. The older piece, pictured below, is made from iron using traditional methods while the newer looking piece using metal 3D printing and Stainless Steel 316L.
3yourmind have not publicly disclosed the specific 3D printing partner who made the metal part. However Dr Hans J. Langer, founder of EOS GmbH Electro-Optical Systems is a lead investor in the software company and EOS offer Stainless Steel 316L as a 3D printing material.
Deutsche Bahn are looking at many of the components across their business for suitability for 3D printing, surprisingly the certification and qualification process is no less lengthy than that in the aviation industry. As Stefanie Brickwede, project manager at Mobility goes Additive, explained to me during Formnext the safety requirements for railways can even be in excess of those in aerospace due to the higher number of passengers involved and the lack of specialist safety equipment, such as oxygen masks, present on trains.
In addition to the 3D printed swing arm, 3yourmind have also produced a heat exchange to be used on electric trains. A study conducted by Deutsche Bahn revealed that there was an annual requirement for this part of only 10 pieces a year, therefore mass production while initially more cost effective would incur future storage costs. Making the part using a SLS 3D printing process is the proposed solution to eliminating these costs and moving to a Just in Time, warehousing style solution.
A partnership between 3yourmind and Siemens
Also on display in the pop up lab was a 3D printed turbine model made for Siemens. The model not only demonstrates the fine detail available from the 3D printing process, but also provides a way to engage visitors with what is set to be one of the next major developments in 3D printing.
Siemens are the largest engineering company in Europe, with a market capitalization approaching $100 billion and annual revenues of $80 billion. By comparison, GE has a market cap of $280 billion and most recent annual revenue of $116 billion.
The global engineering company have motion control systems and software used by thousands of clients, many who run PLM software Solid Edge. Although details have not been widely published, 3DPI understand that the next release of Solid Edge, ST10, will feature native integration of 3yourmind software.
Next month 3yourmind will head to Inside 3D Printing San Diego, where they are in the running for another start-up prize. Also in the contest are Arfona who offer 3D printing for dentistry and San Draw with their silicone 3D printing service.
Featured image shows 3yourmind prototype for Siemens. Photo by Michael Petch.
Cesar Quijano