Ultrafast 3D Printing to Enable Military and Defense Applications via Nexa3D Partnership

Obsidian Solutions Group, LLC (OSG) is a certified 8(a), Service-Disabled, Veteran-Owned Business, which offers software development, data management and analytics, IT transformation and modernization, and other solutions to the Department of Defense (DoD) and the Intelligence Community. The company has now entered into a distribution agreement with Nexa3D, and will work with commercial and industrial businesses, as well as government agencies, through its Applied Rapid Technologies (ART) manufacturing division to bring Nexa3D’s ultrafast resin 3D printing solutions to customers in the military and defense sector.

“‘Solutions’ is a big part of the OSG name, and we look forward to offering Nexa3D equipment to our customers as a possible answer to their needs,” said OSG Co-Founder and CEO Tyron Logan.

Per the distribution agreement, OSG will be representing Nexa3D’s NXE 400 and NXD 200 photoplastic production 3D printers, and, through ART, has acquired five of the NXE 400 systems and one NXD 200. Since April of 2021, ART has been working with three NXE 400 3D printers to meet customer needs for short-run production plastics, and it installed the NXD 200 and two additional NXE 400s last month.

“We are very excited about this venture. The partnership between OSG and Nexa3D will allow us to continue providing mission critical, right-time, right-place, and right level of responsive services and solutions to counter and thwart the efforts of global adversaries,” said OSG Co-Founder and President James Wiley.

For many years, ART, a wholly-owned subsidiary of OSG, has been designing and delivering 3D printing prototypes for multiple industries, including healthcare, sporting goods, and aerospace. The division offers SLA, MJF, FDM, DMLS, and SLS 3D printing, specializing in plastics, but also provides other manufacturing technologies to its customers for short-run production, including cast silicones and cast urethanes.

“The Nexa3D equipment is freeing up capacity in our cast urethane business by allowing us to divert projects directly to the Nexa3D printers. The throughput on these printers is amazing,” said Bruce LeMaster, the VP of Manufacturing at ART. “Prior to Christmas, we had a project that required 1,200 parts for delivery before the holidays. We printed 300 parts at a time, with each build taking only 28 minutes. The project was a big success.”

ART has also joined the Nexa3D reseller network, so it’s not just using the production printers in-house. The NXE 400 and NXD 200 both use Nexa3D’s proprietary Lubricant Sublayer Photo-curing (LSPc) technology, which combines intelligent optimization, modular design, advanced process algorithms, extreme print uniformity, and a large build area for onsite automation. Speaking of build area, the NXE 400 offers a 16 liter build volume, which the company says is more than twice of what other technologies can offer.

“Nexa3D believes in the ability of technology to make a powerful difference in the world. Our 3D printers have been proven to reduce production time from days to hours or minutes. In sectors where time is especially critical, the value of ultrafast 3D printing cannot be overstated,” said Avi Reichental, the Co-Founder, Chairman, and CEO of Nexa3D.

“Another primary focus for Nexa3D is improving the sustainability of manufacturing, and replacing urethane casting with 3D printing has immense benefits for our environment. We are proud to lend our technology to OSG’s important mission and to continue our own mission of advancing additive manufacturing’s capabilities.”

Nexa3D’s 3D printers feature modular designs to reduce waste, save money, make part replacement and technology upgrades easier, and decrease issues stemming from out-of-date hardware. The DoD has been increasing its use of and investment in 3D printing recently, so it’s an advantageous move to partner with OSG and make its strong AM solutions available to the Intelligence community and the DoD.