We’ve got a lot of business news to catch you up on in today’s 3D Printing News Briefs, starting with an acquisition and a new agreement. 3D printing software provider Beamler has acquired Printr, which closed its doors this fall, and GE has signed a multi-year agreement with ANSYS. Moving right along, biotech startup Pandorum has closed a Series A funding round, while TEI and voxeljet have signed a volume contract for 3D printed sand. Nano Dimension has a new reseller in South Africa, Roboze is opening a new US branch, and the Danish Technological Institute is breaking ground on a new industrial 3D printing facility. Speaking of buildings, Dubai will be 3D printing its first villa for a new government housing program.
Beamler Acquires Printr
“Printr is a promising company which is pioneering in our market,” said Beamler Founder Willem-Jan van Loon. “Printr offers an ERP cloud system for desktop 3D printers. This allows engineers to access different 3D printers at the same time from any computer through the cloud. We see this technology as very promising and as a key solution for further development of our industry. The merger of our two businesses is great news for all our stakeholders and it accelerates the market. We intend to continue to invest and grow Printr technology. We will also incorporate different functions to our platform with the software version 1.1 at Q2 2018.”
GE Signs Agreement with ANSYS
Ajei Gopal, CEO of ANSYS, said, “ANSYS is committed to driving Pervasive Engineering Simulation and to providing engineers with the tools needed to transform design, manufacturing, operations and product development. With ANSYS technology further integrated into GE’s engineering process, we can take our 30-year collaboration to the next level of strategic partnership, and enable ANSYS and GE to better drive innovation.”
The companies have formed an Executive Management Review Board as part of their agreement, in order to collaborate and increase innovation in areas of mutual interest to both parties.
Pandorum Technologies Closes Series A Funding Round
“The current fundraising is to help us to make the transition from advanced prototype to market-ready product stage,” said Co-Founder of Pandorum Technologies Tuhin Bhowmick. “This will include capacity enhancement in key areas including team, tech, infrastructure, scale up and regulatory compliance.”
TEI and voxeljet Sign Volume Contract
“This is an outstanding opportunity for both companies to further capitalize on the benefits of large scale 3D sand printing for engineered aluminum castings,” said Oliver Johnson, President of TEI. “With voxeljet working alongside us to supply molds and cores, we will be able to compress lead times even further for our customers while also setting new records in terms of the size and weight of parts we can cast.”
Nano Dimension Announces South African Reseller
“There is a clear and growing demand for 3D printing solutions for emerging technologies such as wearable electronics, embedded RFID, and electromagnetics. Nano Dimension’s award-winning DragonFly 2020 Pro allows us to offer our customers the latest innovations and methodologies on the planet, in order to enhance their product offerings,” said Nechan Naicker, the Director and Founder of EDA Technologies. “We’re confident that the DragonFly 2020 Pro will be a transformational addition to our portfolio of services. Together with Nano Dimension, we will help our customers to fully utilize the latest world-class additive manufacturing technology in their products, while also drastically shortening time to market in the highly competitive marketplace.”
Roboze Opens Illinois Branch
Italian industrial 3D printer manufacturer Roboze told 3DPrint.com at formnext 2016 that it was hoping to expand to the large US market by opening a branch here, and celebrated the inauguration of its New York operating office last spring. Now, the company has opened a new office in Naperville, Illinois, in the industrial heart of the Chicago area, in response to increasing US demands for Roboze solutions. Roboze has opened its new sales and technology center in the City Gate Center, and the office currently holds the Roboze One 3D printer, which will be used for parts manufacturing, training, demonstrations, and seminars. Naperville, which is the fourth largest city in the state, has easy access to two airports and major highways; the new office there will help Roboze reach its customers more quickly.
Alessio Lorusso, Roboze CEO and Founder, said, “The opening of a new office in the heart of the Chicago’s metropolitan area is our response to the strong demand from the US market for a high quality solution for the production of parts with additive manufacturing methods with innovative materials and extraordinary performance, such as Roboze polymers. Ron Weavil also has extensive experience in the market and, above all, it is local. This is what our customers need in order to take full advantage of Roboze solutions and optimize their work.”
New Industrial 3D Printing Center at Danish Technological Institute
“Faster and easier development of prototypes is not only a particular prerequisite for continuing to maintain competitive jobs, but also for maintaining a high level of product innovation — and having the opportunity to launch new products faster,” said Claus Erichsen Kudsk, the DTI’s Product Development Leader, about the fact that neighboring countries have a more competitive edge when it comes to 3D printing.
3D Printed Villa in Dubai
“3D printing is a disruptive technology, one that promises to upend the entire real estate industry,” said Sameer Lakhani, the Managing Director of Global Capital Partners. “Currently, the process is still more expensive than conventional building methods; moreover it is in its embryonic stages, being able to accommodate only rudimentary designs. However, within a 10 to 15-year time frame, it appears likely that this form of ‘printing’ will start to replace existing methods of construction.”
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