Gartner Names Quantum Materials, Rize and Senvol Cool Vendors in 3D Printing for 2017

Gartner, Inc. is a leading research and advisory company that, every year, creates a Cool Vendors List for multiple industries, including 3D printing. There are a lot of cool vendors in the 3D printing industry, so it can’t be easy to narrow it down, but Gartner has released its verdict, bestowing the 2017 title of Cool Vendor on three companies: Quantum Materials Corp, Rize, and Senvol.

Quantum Materials is a Texas-based company that manufactures quantum dots and nanomaterials for use in medical, display, solar energy and lighting applications using a proprietary high-volume continuous flow production process. The company made the Cool Vendors list for its solution to the problem of counterfeit 3D printed parts. To prevent counterfeiting, Quantum Materials embeds light-emitting quantum dots into 3D printing resins for product identification, making parts almost impossible to fake.

Speaking of protecting intellectual property, Quantum Materials was also awarded a patent today from the US Patent and Trademark Office for continuous synthesis of high quantum yield InP/ZnS nanocrystals.

“This is an important milestone in consolidating and protecting our intellectual property for large scale volume synthesis of non-cadmium quantum dots,” said Quantum Materials Founder and CEO Stephen Squires. “Continuous synthesis micro-reaction technology is the solution for synthesis of high-quality nanoparticles due to the many advantages our patented process provides, including precise temperature control, mixing efficiencies, fast reaction speed and parallel operation for scalable volume production.”

It’s a big day overall for Quantum Materials, which was also named a finalist for the 2017 Austin A-List Awards for Most Innovative Startups, taking place on May 25.

Another innovative startup and Cool Vendor is Rize, based in Massachusetts. Rize’s claim to fame is its patented Augmented Polymer Deposition (APD) process, which allows the binding of thermoplastic polymers with functional inks for a variety of purposes. One of the most talked-about features, however, is the generation of support materials that snap off easily, essentially eliminating the dreaded post-processing of 3D printed parts.

“It’s great to be called ‘cool’ on any day! But to have such a prestigious firm as Gartner recognize Rize as a ‘Cool Vendor in 3D Printing’ reinforces what we’ve seen in market acceptance for our APD 3D printing process as uniquely providing the capability to produce injection molded-quality parts on demand in any location safely, quickly and inexpensively,” Julie Reece, Rize Vice President of Marketing, told 3DPrint.com of the company’s inclusion.

In addition, APD allows for detailed text and images to be 3D printed directly onto parts, and, in the future, Rize plans to introduce materials with special properties such as conductive, thermo-insulating and thermo-conductive inks. This will allow the 3D printing of items like smart sensors, batteries, and better hearing aids.

“Being named as one of only three 2017 Gartner Cool Vendors in 3D Printing is a testament to our world class team of 3D printing pioneers and validation that our breakthrough APD 3D printing process will transform how products are designed and manufactured,” said Rize Founder and CTO Eugene Giller.

Finally, there’s Senvol, based in New York. The Senvol Database is the most comprehensive database of industrial additive manufacturing machines and materials available. It’s free to search, and users can peruse almost 2,000 total entries (1,155 materials and 740 machines) using over 30 search fields, such as machine build size, material type, or material tensile strength. The Senvol API allows companies to incorporate the Senvol Database directly into their company’s operations, and the Senvol Indexes are detailed data sets for additive manufacturing material characterization.

“As the additive manufacturing industry continues to mature, the importance of providing accurate data increases,” Senvol President Zach Simkin told 3DPrint.com. “Whether material properties, process parameters, or feedstock characteristics data, Senvol is focused on serving this growing need. We’re excited to be named a Cool Vendor and are pleased that Gartner has recognized Senvol’s ongoing contribution to the industry.”

If you’d like to learn more about Gartner’s Cool Vendors in 3D Printing for 2017, you can access the full report here. Discuss in the Cool Vendors forum at 3DPB.com.