3D Printing News Briefs, August 10, 2023: Flame Retardant Material, Military Training, & More

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We’re starting off with materials news in today’s 3D Printing News Briefs, as 3D Systems introduced new materials to expand the capabilities of its SLA and Figure 4 platforms. Moving on to business, Caracol welcomes Multistation as a commercial partner in France, Zortrax is partnering with the UK’s AM Centre of Intelligence, and Custom Aerospace joined the Roboze 3D Parts Network. Finally, SPEE3D successfully participated in a US Marine Corps integrated training exercise.

To improve both its stereolithography (SLA) and Figure 4 portfolios, 3D Systems (NYSE:DDD) introduced new materials that will expand their capabilities and enable more efficient production of end-use parts for industries like aerospace, automotive, consumer goods, and semiconductor. Accura AMX Tough FR V0 Black is said to be the industry’s first flame-retardant material for SLA printing and is also available as Figure 4 Tough FR V0 Black for large-format parts. The material has a combination of flexural modulus and unmatched elongation at break of nearly 35%, as well as long-term stability and a UL 94 V0 rating. Figure 4 JCAST-GRN 20 is the company’s latest jewelry casting material, which is a perfect complement to its MultiJet Printing (MJP) solution. The material, optimized for clean and easy burnout of detailed, high-resolution jewelry patterns, improves the direct casting workflow by enabling higher fidelity master casting patterns. The new Accura AMX Tough FR V0, Figure 4 Tough FR V0 Black, and Figure 4 JCAST-GRN 20 should be available in Q3 2023.

“Materials are at the core of our additive manufacturing solutions. It’s imperative that we offer our customers the most advanced materials in a fully integrated system to address their unique application needs. Their challenges fuel our innovation,” explained Marty Johnson, Vice President, Product, and Technical Fellow, 3D Systems. “With the introduction of these novel SLA and Figure 4 materials, we are able to deliver additional capabilities to our customers that will facilitate operation and application flexibility and accelerate their innovation.”

Additive and subtractive manufacturing services and systems provider Multistation has been announced as a new commercial partner in France for Caracol. The Italian AM company developed the large-scale robotic HERON AM system, which features a patented thermoplastic pellet extrusion head and proprietary algorithms for parts with complex geometries and enhanced mechanical performance. Caracol supplies its integrated AM solutions for applications in industrial sectors including aerospace, automotive, energy, and marine, and supports customers throughout the entire production process by helping them develop the necessary skills to produce their parts.

Multistation, an independent services supplier and disruptive technology company for digital and additive fabrication, has expertise in several markets, including railway, energy, medical, education, R&D, aerospace, automotive, and more. The company offers a varied portfolio of machine tools and 3D printers for metal, non-metal, and composites, just as Caracol has a large number of available materials, potentially reinforced with carbon fiber or glass. According to Caracol, Multistation will play an important part in distributing its integrated robotic AM solutions on the French market.

Recently, global 3D printer manufacturer Zortrax signed a letter of intent with AM Centre of Excellence (AM-COE), a British company that specializes in producing advanced resins. Together, the two partners will develop a professional 3D printer designed for advanced ceramic resins, and Zortrax will manufacture the solution and supply it to AM-COE. Its R&D team has been working daily with resin 3D printing for years, and has experience developing high-quality printers, a variety of resins, automated post-processing machines, and software to support resin 3D printing. Its co-collaborator owns professional research laboratories for specialty resin production, so it’s a good match. Per the partnership, Zortrax will manufacture the printers with embedded firmware and implement its dedicated Z-SUITE software, designed to prepare ceramic resin models. Additionally, it will be responsible for the printer’s warranty and ongoing software and firmware updates. AM-COE will provide consulting services for ceramic resin printing, distribute the new system, and test the software before each update.

“AM-COE is the biggest research and manufacturing centre on vat-photopolymerization of ceramic parts and components for aerospace, electronics, chemical, automotive, and other industries. In our strive for offering a mass manufacturing solution for 3D printed ceramics, we’ve partnered up with Zortrax to develop a versatile, fast, effective, and affordable ceramic 3D printer, like no other,” said Ehsan Sabet, CEO at AM-COE. “This excellent machine is an open-source solution with free software that assists researchers to develop material and ceramic printing processes, as well as manufacturers who are after a low-maintenance and easy-to-run ceramic printer for mass manufacturing.”

Florida-based company Custom Aerospace, a specialized supplier of flight and mission-critical components for extreme environments, has joined the Roboze 3D Parts Network in order to expand the availability of AS9100-certified aerospace components to global customers. Custom Aerospace has been a top provider of precision manufacturing solutions for defense and aerospace for over 30 years, operating out of two facilities to engineer and manufacture complex components that measure up to 21′ x 11′ x 6′. The company takes a multidisciplinary team approach to leverage advanced 3D printing to make aerospace-certified parts more accessible, and gives its customers the ability to manage the entire qualification and certification process. Roboze prints with high-performance technical metal replacement materials, like ULTEM, PEEK, carbon PEEK, and more. By joining its 3D Parts Network, Custom Aerospace will be able to offer its customers a wider range of 3D printed components certified for the aerospace industry.

“We are delighted to welcome CUSTOM AEROSPACE to our Network. The fusion of CUSTOM AEROSPACE’s expertise with our technology will undoubtedly drive the qualification of additively manufactured aerospace parts,” said Francesco Pantaleone, EVP Business Development at Roboze. “This alliance will promote the production of stronger, more durable, and temperature-resistant components, offering a significant boost to flight-worthy parts, beyond the non-structural interior parts currently available.”

Leading metal AM company SPEE3D successfully participated in a recent military event, and in fact was the only AM company to join in the Marine Corps Annual Integrated Training Exercise (ITX) 4-23. This live-fire exercise combined aircraft, artillery, infantry, combat logistics, and all supporting elements. It featured a series of progressive exercises that involved assessing the adaptability and ability of over 3,700 Marines and sailors as the battalion and squadron-sized units were trained in tactical application of a combined-arms maneuver and both defensive and offensive operations during combat. They deployed the largef-format WarpSPEE3D printer, with SPEE3D’s patented Cold Spray Additive Manufacturing (CSAM) technology, for on-demand manufacturing of crucial parts that were broken. The system was brought from ground support at the Marine Corps Air Station in Miramar, California, and was then flown to the live fire Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center in Twentynine Palms, California. This truly proves SPEE3D’s ability to provide expeditionary capabilities at the point-of-need for defense applications.

“For two consecutive weeks during Integrated Training Exercise 4-23 with the U.S. Marine Corps Forces Reserve, SPEE3D repeatedly demonstrated their ability to 3D print metal replacement parts, outdoors, in an expeditionary environment,” stated Chris Curran, Program Manager for the Consortium for Additive Manufacturing Research and Education (CAMRE). “What was impactful was their ability to produce parts in a matter of hours – not days – which could potentially offer warfighters and maintainers a competitive advantage in a contested environment.”

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