[Image: AMUG via Facebook]
“Tomorrow, the entire manufacturing industry should see AM as a viable route to sustainable production. This requires an accelerated adoption of AM technology. At DSM we are looking at all options to support this development,” said Hugo da Silva, DSM’s VP of Additive Manufacturing. “We are moving quickly to introduce new materials and collaborate with partners as and where possible.”
DSM’s conference schedule looks pretty busy, as the company works to continue speeding up the adoption of 3D printing. Its AMUG program really shows off its ecosystem and vision of industry partnerships and sustainability. For instance, a beta version of the company’s new PBT 3D printing powder product – a first for the company – will be announced at the show.
Hugo da Silva
“Our prime ambition is to unleash the full potential of additive manufacturing and to increase adoption in the manufacturing industry,” said da Silva. “That is why we are proud to announce the first beta PBT powder of our technology platform in co-development with the market. The final outcome will suit the needs of our customers even better.”
It’s the first PBT powder made commercially available for SLS 3D printing, as well as the first developed from DSM’s new powder technology platform. The company is working to co-develop this platform with customers, so it will definitely meet viable application and market needs.
From 6 to 10 pm on Sunday, March 31st and 10 am to noon on Monday, April 1st, DSM will introduce its powder, and its business leaders, along with exhibiting demo applications of its other materials, at booth D18 and in conference suite 4J.
DSM, which is well-known for its AM ecosystem approach, has also announced numerous partnerships over the last year, including with companies like Adaptive3D, Fortify, Chromatic, and JuggerBot 3D.
“At DSM, we like to offer our customers choices; and as we cannot do everything ourselves, we are always on the lookout for new partnerships. This is exactly how the 3D printing ecosystem matures further,” da Silva explained. “Some of our partners (such as printer manufacturers) play elsewhere in the value chain while others are materials companies. They help us bring an expanded portfolio to our customers – exemplified by our ventures with Adaptive3D (DLP) and Chromatic 3D (Thermoset 2K Extrusion) and a partnership with Fortify (DLP).”
DSM is continuing to increase its collaborative efforts in the AM industry in order to ramp up adoption of the technology. Hopefully we’ll get some more information on these efforts soon. Until then, the company and some of its partners are presenting about some of these collaborations at the AMUG Conference.
First up, Walter Voit from Adaptive3D will be presenting “Adaptive3D and DSM AM Partner to Bring Photopolymer Resins to Market to Enable Tough, Strain-Tolerant Rubbers and Elastomers” from 3 to 4 pm on Monday in the DSM suite. Tuesday morning from 10:30 to 11:30, Ultimaker’s Bas de Jong and DSM’s Noud Steffens will be presenting “Ultimaker and DSM AM accelerate the adoption of high performance thermoplastic filaments to produce jigs and fixtures” in the suite, followed by a short presentation at 2:30 that same day by Chromatic’s Cora Leibig, entitled “Partnership between Chromatic 3D Materials and DSM AM develop first printable industrial polyurethanes.”
The final partner presentation will take place in DSM’s suite at 1:30 on Wednesday. Dan Fernback & Zac DiVencenzo from JuggerBot 3D will be presenting “Opportunities and challenges of 3D printed tooling in production programs.”
Many of DSM’s thought leaders will be attending the conference and giving talks and presentations during the event. At 1:30 on Monday in the Hilton Chicago’s Wilford A/B, da Silva will discuss why 3D printing should be sustainable from the get-go in “Sustainable Manufacturing – No Longer a Dream With 3D Printing.”
“As the industry gathers momentum, it is presented with a huge opportunity to make AM sustainable from day one,” da Silva said.
“We have a historic window to develop, from the beginning, new materials that are recyclable, reusable and/or bio-degradable or bio-based. Investing in solutions where plastics can be 3D printed into usable applications fits perfectly with the intrinsically sustainable nature of AM as a production process. Using only what is needed to build layer by layer, it reduces scrap and waste. As it can be done locally, it has the potential to reduce carbon emissions substantially by shortening the supply chain.”
On Tuesday, DSM’s Greg Costantino will present “High Performance Filaments for Automotive Spare Parts” at 1:30 in the company’s suite, followed by DSM’s first Learning Lab at 3 pm in Spaces C1 and C2 in Salon C. Pieter Leen from DSM will give an in-suite presentation titled “Rapid tooling solutions to increase product development speed and optimize manufacturing processes” from 3 to 4 on Wednesday, and the company’s Global Director Marketing and Sales for Additive Manufacturing, Jill Cohen, will later lead a panel discussion, titled “The Additive Manufacturing Ecosystem Shapes Sustainable Manufacturing,” from 4:30 to 5:30 in Wilford C.
Thursday morning at 10:30, DSM’s Jasper van Dieten will present “Qualification of Materials for medical applications” in the company’s suite, and DSM’s second Learning Lab will be presented by John Schaefer at 1:30 in Salon C, Spaces 1 and 2.
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