Irish 3D printer company Mcor are seeking to scale-up the research and development of their 3D printers with an investment of €5million.
The money is hoped to create 100 new jobs for engineers, software developers, marketers, and customer support staff, and target the 2,000 mark for monthly 3D printer sales.
According to MacCormack, speaking to Independent IE, the €5 million investment is likely to come from VCs or strategic investors in the US or Europe. Mcor CMO Deirdre MacCormack also backs the statement, adding:
Mcor has raised €16 million to date – this current round is all about scaling up for high volume manufacturing with the ARKe through our partnership with Flex.
3D printing with paper
Mcor are the only company in the world to use the selective deposition lamination (SDL) method of 3D printing. SDL uses paper as feedstock. This means that Mcor’s 3D printers can use readily developed printer inks to create objects in full CMYK (cyan, magenta, yellow and key) spectrum color.
The process is best described by Mcor CEO and co-founder Conor MacCormack himself,
We lay down a layer of adhesive. Pull in the next layer of paper. Stick them together. Then we cut out the profile. We jet out the ink to build in the color, and then repeat.
Industrial and desktop 3D printers
Mcor currently have three 3D printers on the market: the industrial Matrix 300+ and Iris, and the desktop ARKe.
The company handed manufacturing of its ARKe 3D printer over to American multinational tech company Flex (NASDAQ:FLEX) in June 2016 to redirect focus onto the innovation side of the business.
From 3D Printing Industry’s interview with Mcor’s CEO, Conor MacCormack gave an idea of the company’s capabilities and hinted at this expansion:
With the Iris we were producing 100s per year, with the Arke we’re now pushing into the 1000s, so it’s been a big deviation for us. The manufacturing of the printer has been moved over to Flex, formerly Flextronics, a $24billion company, and they’ve [taken] a real strategic interest which has been an affirmation for us. Funding wise, we’re not looking at the moment, but it is something we could be looking at when going into the new year.
In the interview MacCormack also talks about Mcor’s carbon-fiber projects with car manufacturers Honda, part of a high-profile client list that includes Boeing, MIT, Nike and NASA.
CMO Deirdre MacCormack confirms to 3D Printing Industry that NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) have ordered an ARKe 3D printer in light of the company’s work 3D printing Block Island – a meteorite found on Mars by NASA Exploration Rover.
For a closer look at Mcor 3D printers, the company will be present at some of the industry’s biggest trade shows throughout 2017, including RAPID and Inside 3D Printing New York. 3D Printing Industry certainly hope to be able to take a closer look at the ARKe soon.
Nominations for best 3D printers in the annual 3D Printing Industry Awards are now open.
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Featured image shows Mcor 3D printed prosthetic hand. All photos in this article, including the featured image are courtesy of Mcor CMO Deirdre MacCormack.
Awesome :