Formnext 2022: 3D Printing Hardware Roundup

While additive construction is being deployed at this very moment to aid in a military conflict between India and China, the additive manufacturing (AM) industry is focused on Germany. We’ll see how the numbers stack up after the event, but there’s a sense that Formnext 2022 is the largest trade show the AM industry has seen so far. To tackle all of the news out of the conference taking place in Frankfurt, Germany right now, we’re publishing several roundups dedicated to 3D printing hardware, software, materials and more. In this post, we’ll provide a brief overview of equipment that we haven’t gotten a chance to dedicate entire articles to.

Genera to Automate DLP 3D Printing

Genera is integrating Siemens operational, informational, and automation technology into its digital light processing (DLP) 3D printing. This will include incorporating its DLP 3D printers into Siemens simulation and planning tools for factory design, allowing Digital Twin software to simulate all combinations of Genera print and post-processing machines for factory planning. Together, the firms will collaborate on industrial-scale projects for data handling and environmental, health, and safety concerns, such as the large-scale production of electronic plug-in connectors made using a specialty flame-retardant resin, post-processed with demineralized water rather than solvents.

XYZprinting Showcases SLS 3D Printing

XYZprinting is showcasing its Open Platform Fast Cycle Sintering (OPFCS) technology, which allows users of the firm’s MfgPro236 xS 3D printer to use and recycle third-party powders and re-use materials at the end of their lifespan. This allows users to combine 20-30 percent fresh powder with recycled powder. The company highlights the benefit of this technology particularly to service bureaus, which face high disposal costs. Among the users of XYZ’s SLS technology are German glasses manufacturer H&U Scheffler GmbH and drone-based maritime surveillance provider TEKEVER. XYZprinting also launched the da Vinci Pro EVO desktop 3D printer, capable of 3D printing with over 10 filament types, including TPU, PC, Nylon, and Carbon Fiber.

Massivit Displays Massive 3D Printer for Molding

Israeli manufacturer Massivit 3D (Tel Aviv Stock Exchange: MSVT) unveiled its new Massivit 10000-G 3D printer alongside its flagship Massivit 10000. The company’s technology was initially used to produce large scale marketing objects, but Massivit has found new utility in the moldmaking space. The Massivit 10000 is meant to speed up composite manufacturing through the 3D printing of large molds, as well as tools, jigs, fixtures, and mandrels. The Massivit 10000-G has the added benefit of being able to use the firm’s gel dispensing technology for direct custom manufacturing, functional prototyping, thermoforming, resin transfer molding, and reaction injection molding. The new system complements the release of the Massivit’s Dimengel 400, the firm’s strongest and toughest thermoset photopolymer, with double the impact resistance of its previous materials and a high Heat Deflection Temperature.

Zortrax’s Powerful Trio Ecosystem

Zortrax introduced what it calls “the Powerful Trio,” a resin 3D printing ecosystem which includes a Zortrax Inkspire 2 UV LCD 3D printer, Cleaning Station, and Curing Station, along with a range of engineering resins from chemical companies like Henkel and BASF Forward AM.

The Powerful Trio from Zortrax. Image courtesy of Zortrax.

In addition to the Powerful Trio, the Polish 3D printer manufacturer is showcasing new materials for the firm’s industrial LPD Plus 3D printer, the Endureal, as well as its packages for metal 3D printing with BASF Ultrafuse 316L and 17-4 PH.  Also available for use on the Endureal is Victrex AM 200 FIL (PAEK). Zortrax is also exhibiting its 4D printed models, the first demonstration parts with electrically activated movement. They were printed on the M300 Dual 3D printer under a European Space Agency contract.