dp polar GmbH & ALTANA Unveiled AMpolar ® i2 3D Printer at Formnext

Formnext, held from November 19-22 in Frankfurt, yielded a wealth of information about new products in the 3D printing world. This included the latest from dp polar GmbH, with added support by ALTANA, a specialty chemicals group headquartered in Wesel, Germany, upon the unveiling of the AMpolar ^® i2 3D printer.

This new 3D printing system offers a continuously rotating platform, resulting in high-precision parts produced up to 20 times faster—and in higher volume—in comparison to technology where the printhead moves instead. The AMpolar ^® i2 features a build volume of 700 liters, which dp polar GmbH states is the largest build area for a 3D printer being used in the material jetting realm. The release of this printer will allow industrial users to move forward to the manufacturing of functional components rather than just rapid prototyping.

The AMpolar ^® i2 3D printer allows users to enjoy a varying range of materials simultaneously via multi-material jetting, uninterrupted—and is suitable for applications like electronics and assembly and ‘pick and place’ robotics.

“Our 3D production machine AMpolar® i2 currently has the largest build area and the largest installation space in the field of material jetting,” says Dr. Florian Löbermann, Managing Director of dp polar GmbH. “Combined with ALTANA’s know-how in material development, we are bringing a 3D printing solution to market that will give customers from a wide variety of sectors, including the automotive, aerospace, and medical technology industries, completely new possibilities for manufacturing their products.”

This also means that exponentially more users will be able to benefit from 3D printing and additive manufacturing. While savings is sometimes not realized immediately for those investing in expansive AM technology, hardware like the AMpolar ^® i2 3D printer means that 3D printed medical devices like orthotics and prostheses, for example, can be created much more affordably and rapidly—also leaving the door open for easier customization as new iterations of designs are quickly formed and printed.

3D printing offers new levels of comfort—especially important for children who may have suffered through arduous fittings when using conventional methods—only to find out that they had nearly outgrown devices once they were delivered.

A 3D printed device can be easily adjusted for a new size, color, or even a different style, and takes just a fraction of the time to make, as we have seen in previous stories outlining new improvements by US researchers, optimization with simulators, new design software, and much more.

While they are able to offer critical support in the development of this new 3D printer, ALTANA quite literally has a stake in this project as they acquired part of dp polar in 2017.

“The extremely close cooperation between mechanical engineering, machine development, and material development makes it possible to develop individual solutions for our customers and their specific requirements,” says Dr. Petra Severit, Chief Technology Officer of ALTANA AG. “In material development, we are focusing on our core competencies and at the same time expanding the application spectrum of our solutions in the highly innovative field of 3D printing.”

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[Source / Images: dp polar & ALTANA press release]