BCN3D Spins Off into Standalone Company After Receiving $3 Million in Seed Funding

BCN3D put Barcelona on the map for 3D printing years ago. They have continued to be one of the main players in desktop offerings too, with IDEX 3D printing technology, and the initial offering of their Sigma, an FFF 3D printer allowing for dual color and multi-material production, along with a host of other features, and other hardware that has been added to their 3D printer lineup too.

Continually growing (and sharing) in technical development, they also released the open source CAD files for their powerful Sigmax 3D printer last year. Now, they are an independent company, after raising $3 million in funding in a recent seed round with VC firms Accurafy4, JME VC and Victoria.

“We are really excited to join BCN3D’s adventure in this impressive sector that has already started changing the world. The limits of Additive Manufacturing and Digital Manufacturing are still to be discovered and its potential is massive,” said Samuel Gil, Partner at JME Venture Capital. “We believed BCN3D will play a major role in this revolution since the moment we met the team. Their talent, passion, and execution skills are exceptional. They have a unique vision of the industry and their ambition to lead the market is as promising as the products they are developing.”

Notably, BCN3D emerged from Spain’s Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC) as a program and spin-off from their technological center, CIM UPC—with Roger Uceda as CEO and then a company transition as Xavier M. Faneca took his place. Taking off as a standalone, the new BCN3D has been founded by the following members: Martinez Faneca (CEO), and the executive team including Roger Antunez, Pol Domenech, Marc Felis, Jose Antonio Ortega, Eric Pallares, and technology advisor, Roger Uceda.

“Technology transfer is, along with research and training, our greatest commitment related to the challenges of Industry 4.0 and Additive Manufacturing,” said Francesc Torres, Rector at Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya – BarcelonaTech (UPC). “The project of BCN3D has been developed within our technological center CIM-UPC and it’s an example of how knowledge can generate value and have a social impact. We are very proud of this new step for BCN3D and we will support their growth from the university.”

Throughout the years, BCN3D has introduced multiple refinements and additions to their hardware series, as well as new materials. Continuing to lead with IDEX technology, known to double productivity in desktop 3D printing, they have recently sold over 5,000 3D printers through their global network of 60 distribution partners.

“BCN3D is one of the largest spin-offs from an engineering university we have seen in Spain and one of the largest in Europe. They have a breakthrough technology—IDEX—that only the best spin-offs have, plus a degree of commercial traction that most spin-offs need years to accomplish and that they’ve already got before day one,” said Abel Conill, General Partner at VICTORIA Venture Capital. “We are thrilled to be part of the company and are fully committed to helping the team accomplish their future goals.”

BCN3D 3D printers are used for industrial purposes such as:

• Prototyping
• Functional validation
• Manufacturing of tooling, jigs, fixtures

“Since BCN3D introduced the IDEX technology I knew they would become one of the big players in the Additive Manufacturing industry. We have high expectations on the company’s commercial growth and their ability to create market dominance through new technology development,” said François Minec, Accurafy4’s Lead Investor. “At Accurafy4 we are now delighted to join the company and we will make our best efforts to maximize BCN3D’s global impact and develop strategic partnerships.”

Current and past BCN3D clients include industry leaders such as BMW, Samsung, Louis Vuitton, Nissan, NASA, HTC, and SEAT—or ALBA Synchrotron.

“We are working on a new range of products to improve the experience of our clients and take the IDEX to a completely new level,” says Faneca, regarding current BCN3D innovation initiatives.

“With this funding, we will be able to ramp-up our production to meet the market demand and cut down the long delivery periods we have experienced in the past due to production limitations.”

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