Formnext Connect 2020: Carbon & Fast Radius Expand Strategic 3D Printing Partnership

Formnext 2020, called Formnext Connect this year, has officially begun, and will last through Thursday, November 12th. Today during the virtual event, Carbon announced the expansion of a strategic partnership with its largest North American production partner, digital manufacturing company Fast Radius. The two have been working together since 2017, teaming up 3D print end use parts for projects ranging from critical automotive components and redesigned office chairs to point-of-care COVID-19 diagnostic testing using Carbon’s Digital Light Synthesis (DLS) technology. Now, as part of this expansion, Fast Radius is adding the Carbon L1 3D printer to its fleet of M2 3D printers in order to support large part production and prototyping.

The large-format L1 was introduced during Formnext 2019, and companies have found the production-grade DLS system to be reliable enough for use in robust manufacturing environments, such as 3D printing various prototypes, the midsole for the Adidas Futurecraft 4D shoes, models for clear dental aligners, hockey and football helmets, and more. It has the largest build volume of all Carbon’s 3D printers, which helps design engineers and manufacturers make bigger parts, or more quantities of smaller parts, with a 15% cost reduction, and provides customers with a single platform to rapidly produce prototypes and highly accurate end-use parts, which increases time-to-market.

Riddell’s SpeedFlex Precision Diamond football helmet, 3D printed with Carbon’s DLS technology

“We’ve seen great success with the Carbon DLS process and the L1 printer will allow us to meet customer demand for larger DLS parts,” said Lou Rassey, CEO at Fast Radius. “The speed and accuracy of the DLS process used in both printer series makes them attractive for end-use parts and rapid prototyping as well. By adding the L1 printer to our fleet, we’re offering exciting new capabilities to print large parts and higher volumes of parts more economically.”

Headquartered in Chicago, with an onsite production hub in Kentucky and other offices in Georgia, Hong Kong, and Singapore, the Fast Radius factory contains North America’s largest public-use fleet of Carbon technology, as the L1 is joining its current lineup of M2 printers + Smart Part Washers. As venture-backed Carbon’s first production partner to adopt the L1 3D printer for general purpose use, Fast Radius can now increase its ability to scale up small part production and lower costs.

Carbon L1

“We’ve built an exceptional partnership in collaboration with Fast Radius that has resulted in bringing reimagined products to market in less time than using historical manufacturing processes. Having our largest partner in North America double down on their commitment to Carbon with the adoption of the L1 printer is validation of the demand we are seeing for large scale end use parts,” stated Carbon’s CEO Ellen Kullman.

Fast Radius is now taking orders for production of large parts 3D printed on the L1 with Carbon’s DLS technology.

(Source/Images: Carbon)