Inside 3D Printing Returns to Seoul June 24-26, 2020

The global trends of ‘digitization’, ‘convergence’ and ‘democratization’ have had a profound impact on every industry sector. These trends have caused new industries to spring up while disrupting established industries. In physical goods these trends are being driven by 3D printing technologies, also called additive manufacturing.

3D printing creates unprecedented added value for industries such as manufacturing, medical, dental, aerospace, automobile, mold making, architecture, jewelry, and even fashion. Applications range from the mass production of customized goods, prototypes, complex aerospace parts to small quantity batch production of discontinued automotive parts, personalized prosthetic limbs, and orthodontics.

In Seoul, we have an opportunity to explore the latest additive manufacturing trends and technology in one place at a time.

Inside 3D Printing, Seouls most prestigious 3D printing event, returns back to Seoul, Korea on June 24-26th, 2020 and showcases the newest products, technologies and materials in 3D printing, 3D scanning, CAD/CAM/CAE, metrology and inspection technologies.

Inside 3D printing started from New York in 2013, and travels around 8 major cities including Sydney, Dusseldorf, Mumbai, Seoul and Sao Paulo. It is the seventh time this year in Seoul, and it will again be held jointly with 3DR Holdings and KINTEX (Korea International Exhibition Center) in Korea.

In particular, 3DPrint.com, and SmarTech Analysis, a global market research organization were confirmed to join Inside 3D Printing in Seoul as co-producers once again. This collaboration among key industry players will enhance the quality and branding of the event.

In 2019, 10,355 attendees from 25 countries as well as 87 exhibitors and sponsors participated Inside 3D Printing in Seoul. The conference is part of a three-day event that includes an international conference in 4 tracks and a dedicated trade show in addition to various networking opportunities.

Over 100 exhibitors including HP, Formlabs, EOS, German RepRap as well as Korean major players as Hanil Protech, Prototech, Graphy, AM Korea will join this year’s event. Not only top brand’s 3D printers and scanners but a variety of AM applications including affordable desktop metal 3d printer, hybrid 3D machinery with CNC engraving, large-sized industrial 3D printers and CAD/CAM/CAE software will be showcased onsite this year.

“The participation of 3DPrint.com and SmarTech Analysis as co-producers will further upgrade Inside 3D Printing and provide the best marketing platform for our exhibitors, sponsors and 10,000+ buyers from around the world.” said John Meckler, Director of 3DR Holdings.

If interested in sponsorship opportunities or conference registration for forthcoming Seoul event, please contact Inside 3D Printing Secretariat (Inside3dprinting@kintex.com) or visit our website (www.inside3dprinting.com/seoul) for more details.

The post Inside 3D Printing Returns to Seoul June 24-26, 2020 appeared first on 3DPrint.com | The Voice of 3D Printing / Additive Manufacturing.

Korea: 3D Printed Protection Suits for Senior Citizens

In the recently published ‘Developing Fall-Impact Protection Pad with 3D Mesh Curved Surface Structure Using 3D Printing Technology,’ authors Jung Hyun Park and Jeong Ran Lee once again prove our point that 3D printing is affecting nearly every industry today—and positively so.

Here, the researchers raised the concern of the ease in which the elderly are injured by falls, which are all too common. With their new concept for 3D printed fall-impact protection pads, seniors may not be able to prevent falls that usually occur due to balance issues with age, health conditions, dizziness due to medical treatments, failing eyesight and more, but they may be able to survive them much better.

Park and Lee, both hailing from Pusan National University in Korea, present a design for curved protective pads that could be printed directly from scans of patients, allowing for individually-specific treatment—one of the greatest benefits of 3D printing in the medical realm today. And assistance is obviously much needed in this area as reports from Korea show that increasing numbers of elderly Koreans are taking such serious falls that they must be hospitalized; in fact, some remain in the hospital for over two weeks—often due to broken hips.

“It is becoming increasingly important to prevent the elderly from falling. Wearing hip protectors can prevent falls or reduce the damage caused by falling,” explain the researchers. “However, existing hip protectors are not suitable for use with daily clothes; they are not widely utilized because of aesthetic limitations. Furthermore, they are not comfortable. Therefore, it is necessary to develop an optimized impact protector with due consideration for body characteristics and motion.”

“Additionally, it is necessary to improve the wearing satisfaction by designing the impact protector in a form that is suited to the shape and motion of the human body while maintaining its protection performance.”

Park and Lee point out, and are quite right, that so far 3D printing with any type of clothing has mainly been dedicated to fashion—and with spectacular results, from haute couture to high heels.

The 3D modeling process included creating a baseline for body scan data, making an outline, and then using a pad outline along the patient’s body—making a curve to mimic the human body. Afterward, they created a hexagonal mesh structure, with the pad completed by transforming the mesh structure—according to the curves of the body.

The 3D printed pads were fabricated via FDM 3D printing using a Cubicon Single 3D printer, chosen due to its capabilities for using more flexible materials; thus, a flexible TPU was used for creating the padded materials.

Picture of the impact performance test equipment.

The researchers were forced to divide printing of the pads due to size:

“The radial split method for dividing pieces into three by 120° from the center point of the pad, and the elliptical split method for dividing pieces into four according to the sideline and curved surface were used,” explained the researchers.

Once supports were removed, the parts were stitched together. Overall, the parts proved to be ‘structurally flexible,’ and the modeling proved to be excellent for creating the necessary protection.

“Through several iterative experiments, we developed a reasonable and delicate modeling method that yielded results which are applicable to research on clothing and other fields,” stated the researchers. “Existing 3D printing technology has been deployed to produce very hard products; however, in this study, the printing conditions were finely set, in consideration of the complex characteristics of flexible filament materials. Finally, we believe that our findings foreground the possibility of using 3D printing technology to print complex and elaborate shapes in the field of functional clothing.”

Procedure of body baseline setting (a) and human body scan data processing (b).

What do you think of this news? Let us know your thoughts; join the discussion of this and other 3D printing topics at 3DPrintBoard.com.

Steps of creating pad outline and base surface: (a) rotate and place pad outline by section; (b) transform pad outlines to fit surfaces; (c) rebuild curve; and (d) create network surface.

[Source / Images: ‘Developing Fall-Impact Protection Pad with 3D Mesh Curved Surface Structure Using 3D Printing Technology’]

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Interview with Korean Firm Graphy on Developing Cutting Edge Photopolymers for 3D Printing

Whereas FDM knowledge has been spread far and wide DLP and SLA learnings are often locked away behind closed doors. Only recently have we started to see many low-cost SLA machines start to appear worldwide. At the same time, open-source machines are now being launched. We expect to see a huge boom in SLA technologies in the near term. This will be very good news indeed to Korean firm Graphy. They are one of those little known bastions of SLA knowledge. The company develops and produces resins for 3D printing, another thing that is poorly understood.

What is Graphy? What kind of products do you produce?

It is a company that develops and manufactures 3D printer’s new materials, photopolymer resin. S Plastic is a versatile material that can be applied for various applications. We have also released ‘Tera Harz’ series, a highly functional material.

Why and when did you enter the 3D printing market? 

Un Seob Sim, the CEO of Graphy started in 2D & 3D design as an engineer in 1994 and exchanged 3D printer material research and has technology with many chemical companies for 16 years since 2002. Also, he achieved the best performance in Asia as a person in charge of sales and technology for global 3D Printers, 3D CNC and 3D Scanners. He outlined his vision for the 3D printing materials along with his career.

What kind of products do you offer? 

We offer photopolymer and curable resin for 3D printers with our own oligomer synthesis technology.

What differentiates your products? 

In the past and until now, it has been challenging to develop materials, that can be applied for printing precise parts at high speed, cost effectively. Our materials exceed the expectations for their applications not only for prototypes but also final products required in engineering parts and in dental/medical devices. We’ve overcome the disadvantages of many 3D printer materials, which have been staying in the production of conventional concept prototype.

What is so special about Tera Harz? 

Tera Harz overcomes the disadvantages of the 3D printer material that has been in the production of simple prototypes, and is the world’s first high-performance 3D printing material with high impact resistance, high strength and high compressive strength to produce engineering parts and functional dental parts.

What is so unique about your resins in general?

Our resin is a high-functional photo-curing new material that is synthesized with raw materials selected from the largest 3D printer related chemical company in Korea and is developed considering the demands of 3D printer users.

We are exporting our specialized photo curable new materials for 3D printers to global companies.

Why should I switch to your resins? 

It is a safe material that passed cytotoxicity tests, Geno-toxicity and sensory test and it has much more functions and better mechanical properties than the injection plastic materials.

-Generic resins usually break down easily because of their low molecular weight. They are prone to thermal deformation and have limitations in their use as engineering plastics. It also contains VOC as it uses solvent, which has a negative effect on workers.

-Elongation is 40% approx. and the durometer hardness is 83~88(Shore D ASTM D2240)

This means that the parts printed with our material can perform better than thermoplastic and the final product can be directly fabricated on 3D printers without through injection molding.

For what printers can your material be used?

It is applicable for DLP and SLA and can be optimized for wavelength of the 3D printers.

Do you have medical and dental materials? Do you do custom materials?

Yes, we do have medical and dental materials as well as custom materials. if you provide your target mechanical properties, our R&D will develop the custom materials as per your demand.

Tell us about your Creator printer? 

The high-end 3D metal printer CREATOR offers you all the advantages of additive manufacturing. Components and constructions in almost every geometric shape that cannot be manufactured using traditional manufacturing techniques can be created easily and quickly – without the need for additional tools.

The post Interview with Korean Firm Graphy on Developing Cutting Edge Photopolymers for 3D Printing appeared first on 3DPrint.com | The Voice of 3D Printing / Additive Manufacturing.

Interview with 3DGuru’s Inbo Song on 3D Printing in Korea

We’re all familiar with Terry Wohlers and his eponymous report. What you may not know is that there is also a Korean Terry, Inbo Song. He provides companies with research, analysis, training and consulting in 3D Printing. With deep experience in the Korean market he is guiding companies there towards 3D printing through the highest quality information that he can provide. He’s also the perfect person to guide us into 3D printing trends in Korea and beyond.

What does 3DGURU do?

3DGURU provides 3D printing manufacturers, resellers and end users in South Korea with not only up-to-date information and news of, but also deep insights into, the industry including technology, trends and exhibitions through the website. It also sells select 3D printers and related services including lectures, consulting and training. 3DGURU plans to find and add various contents and profit models to meet the domestic needs. 3D printer industry stakeholders and users in Korea appreciate the insights and expertise of 3DGURU.

Why should I choose to work with your company?

3DGURU is known for a useful source where numerous Korean professionals turn to seeking the latest information on the 3D printing industry. Mainly targeting Korean market, it has been trying to reach to the representatives from various domestic and international businesses or organizations, including manufacturers, resellers, consultants, investors, government institutions and end users. Despite its aiming at the national users, 3DGURU is open to information exchange and collaboration with any 3D printing company abroad which is interested in the Korean market.

What is the 3D printing market in Korea like?

According to the 2018 3D Printing Industry Survey conducted by the Korean National IT Industry Promotion Agency(NIPA), the Korean 3D printing market of the year was about $340M, 16.3% increase from the previous year. It is expected to grow to aboout $870M by 2023, with annual CAGR of 21.5%.

As software coding education became mandatory in 2018, the demand for entry-level 3D printer has increased by 37.2%. Unlike the global trend, products (hardware, material, software) account for 80% of revenue and services for 20%. In 2018, there were 351 3D printing companies, up by 16.2% from the previous year. The fact that 235 (67%) amongst them were start-ups that had been established within last 9 years shows the rapid growth of the industry in Korea.

The education industry used 3D printers most by comparison with other industries, followed by 17.1% of government and institution, 14.5% of automobile, 13% of medical / dental. It is worthy of notice that education and government & institutional sectors accounted for 37.6% of the market, which was significantly higher than the global average, 10 to 15%.

Meanwhile, along with the Korean major manufacturers such as Samsung Electronics, LG Electronics, and Hyundai Motors, many medium and small-sized manufacturers are using 3D printers for prototyping to shorten product production cycles. Still, given the general use of 3D printers and high interest in it, large manufacturing companies tend to be rather conservative in adopting them for production.

As for the bio 3D printing, research institutes and large hospitals are carrying out a variety of experiments and the National Health Insurance Corporation is putting an effort to improve its system so that the market could be expanded.

The 3D printing market in Korea is expected to grow continuously with all the inputs from the business sector as well as government.

Are Korean companies going to expand outside of Korea?

Yes. There are some Korean manufacturers playing the role. Examples include Insstek, a manufacturer of DED process metal 3D printer, which has exported the products to the EU countries and Russia; and Sindoh, another manufacturer, which has sold their goods in U.S. in partnership with Mimaki USA and Stanley Black & Decker. Carima, Hebsiba, and several other companies also have exported 3D printers, mainly to European countries, which account for 22.3%, 4.4% to Southeast Asia, 2.6% to US and 1.8% to Japan.

What is holding back the adoption of 3D printing?

The companies which already have adopted 3D printers say that slow output speed (50%), output size limit (42.7%), low output quality (41.8%), lack of proper post maintenance (33%), lack of diversity of material (31.8%) and insufficient labor supply (22.7%) are the biggest difficulties. Unreliability of 3D printers is also considered as an obstacle. Examples include printing failures and printed objects that are not exactly same as the original designs.

Besides these technical issues, conservative corporate culture of Korean companies might be said to get in the way of expansive adoption of 3D printing.

What kind of companies buy 3D printers in Korea?

Mainly manufacturers, schools, universities and research institutes purchase 3D printers.

What kind of parts are they printing?

It depends on companes and industries. A survey conducted in 2018 reported that 28.1% were for prototype production, 21% for educational research, 20.7% for demonstration models or designs, 8.4% for customized products, 8.1% for tools and accessories. Personally, I see many cases in which prototypes, custom products, and educational applications are printed.

Are companies doing production with 3D printing?

Surveys show that only 4.1% of the entire 3D printer usage is for mass production of finished products. Not all industries are same, but generally speaking, many companies are afraid of jumping in and using 3D printing for production. The representatives of several large Korean manufacturers I’ve talked to in person seem to think that it would be premature to make final products with 3D printers. Still, their continuous interest in 3D printing technology is undeniable.

Although I have seen some small companies making final custom products using 3D printing, large manufacturers tend to be cautious about it.

Some giant manufacturers have been using 3D printers for prototypes, while, unlike the practices of the counterparts in Europe and North America, there seems to be few publized attempts to adopt 3D printers for production. 

How is the 3D scanning market evolving?

In 2018, the sales of 3D scanners accounted for 7.7% of total sales of 3D printing related products—3D printers, 3D software, 3D printer materials, and 3D scanners. Meanwhile, most of them, as high as 94.7%, were foreign-made.

In fact, Korean companies are using 3D scanners more and more.

While fixed type 3D scanners with high accuracy and high resolution have been popular, now consumers start to seek for the best options to their own needs. This trend of diversification and segmentation of 3D scanners can be also said to be of the world.

However, as more companies start to use 3D scanners to shorten measurement processes and product production cycles, and accordingly, the demand for affordable goods with proper specifications increases, various types and forms of products are being developed. These are used in various industrial fields, especially in the automobile industry.

Furthermore, 3D scanners are getting to be used as input tools for producing videos, such as movies, games, and VRs beyond the conventional usage for reverse engineering and quality inspection.

All in all, 3D scanning market in Korea is in early stage where analog information is being digitized.

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Korean Startup USEED to Launch Voice Activated AI Driven 3D Printer for Kids

USEED is a Korean startup headed by Jung Soo Lim. The eight-person company got its start making 3D printer kits, and specializes in the education market. The firm makes robotics kits, Prusa i3 type 3D printers, its own Creator 3D printer, and even an SMT placement machine. The company designs, develops and manufactures its machines in Korea and has been expanding steadily. Now they aim to undertake a bit of a quantum leap. The firm has been designing and testing its Thingi for months now. The Thingi is one of the, if not the most, adorable 3D printers I’ve ever seen. Specially designed to be accessible, safe and easy to use for children, the Thingi is meant to let kids easily 3D print. The 125 x 140 x 190 build volume machine can print over WiFi, has a 260C capable extruder, and can print up to 60 mm/s. The printer has a new trick up its sleeve, however. The voice-activated AI-powered printer can listen to kids’ commands and prints accordingly. If the voice activation works well and the company can accordingly automate the entire printing workflow, it would make 3D printing much more accessible and easier. Potentially it would make 3D printing much easier for all of us as well. It was refreshing to finally see something innovative happening again in desktop 3D printing. The company is testing the printer now and aims to go to crowdfunding in a few months. We interviewed CEO Jung Soo Lim to find out more.

What is USEED?

Our company manufactures 3D printers and coding education kits for kids. We have 8 employees. Our company was founded to provide IT seeds that can be easily implemented if anyone has an idea.

Therefore, we are currently supplying educational 3D printers and related education services to Korean educational institutions. The big plan that our company has is to launch a voice driven AI printer. In Korea, 3D printing is not being popularized fast enough. We analyzed the of this causes through our experiences in selling technical products. There was pressure to learn 3D modeling in order to use 3D printers. Also, children between the ages of 5 and 10 want to use 3D printers. However, these purchases were not made because children had to use computers independently. With that background, our company developed the Thingi early last year and is currently preparing to mass-produce it. Also, to cover the costs of molds, we are looking for funds through crowdfunding platforms.

Our company will complete 3D printers and content that children can use for making their own toys. We hope to have is available this year at Christmas.

Why a voice-activated 3D printer? 

I want kids to have fun while using 3D printers to make the things that they want. If a child wants to make a Hello Kitty patterned cup, the kid talks to our 3Dprinter. The Thingi recommends the best model file and will then print it out. We will simplify this process so that children can use 3D printers in a fun way. I think that if many people enjoy and use our products, the limitations of technology will be overcome.

The post Korean Startup USEED to Launch Voice Activated AI Driven 3D Printer for Kids appeared first on 3DPrint.com | The Voice of 3D Printing / Additive Manufacturing.

Korea: Optimizing High-Viscosity Ceramic Resins for Supportless SLA 3D Printing

In ‘Optimization and characterization of high-viscosity ZrO2 ceramic nanocomposite resins for supportless stereolithography,’ Korean researchers examine new materials for SLA printing, working to improve both dispersion and photo-curing properties. Pointing out that AM processes have been used to create a range of ceramic products via SLA and other methods, SLA is becoming most popular due to high resolution and good surface treatment.

UV-composite resins have been used previously for many studies, attempting to increase ceramic particles, but for most research, micro-particle content has been most common.

“Ceramic composite resins with higher micro-particle contents showed properties such as a lower viscosity and sedimentation, and their poor dispersion stability seemed to contribute to ultimate deterioration of the properties of the 3D-printed objects,” state the researchers. “Furthermore, this approach is difficult to apply to the supportless SLA 3D printing process, due to lower viscosity properties of resins.”

Here, the researchers created a high-viscosity APTMS (3-acryloxypropyl trimethoxysilane)-coated ZrO2 ceramic nanocomposite resins with 50 vol% of ceramic particles at a mixing ratio of 70:30 by volume for nano- and microparticles of ZrO2 for use in supportless SLA.

“Nano- and micro-particles of ZrO2 ceramic were mixed at various volume ratios of 70:30, 50:50, 30:70, and 0:100, and then the surface of the mixed ZrO2 ceramic particles were functionalized to acrylate groups through hydrolysis and condensation of APTMS. For the hydrolysis and condensation reactions, mixtures of APTMS, ethanol, and distilled water in ratios of 1:7.5:91.5 by mass were first vigorously stirred. Mixed ZrO2 ceramic particles were then added at 30 wt% to the APTMS solution, which was then hydrothermally treated at 100 °C for 3 h and dried under vacuum for 24 h at 100 °C.,” states the research study.

(a) Schematic illustration of the preparation processes of high-viscosity ZrO2 ceramic nanocomposite resins according to different polymer network structures for supportless SLA. (b) Comparison of objects 3D-printed using low-viscosity and high-viscosity resins produced by supportless SLA.

In the production of low-viscosity resins for complex geometries, the researchers recommend use of supports, due to results in the study yielding ‘sagging and distorted structures.’ With high-viscosity resins, however, they state that they almost seem to serve as the supports themselves.

“In other words, it is possible to achieve supportless SLA 3D printing using high-viscosity ceramic nanocomposite resins, which can help eliminate the washing process of supports and minimize the materials used,” state the researchers.

APTMS-coated ZrO2 ceramic nanocomposite resins showed improved properties like:

  • Higher dispersion stability
  • Greater photopolymerization
  • Larger cure depths than at other ratios

“For better rheological, dispersion and photo-curing properties, the optimum ratios of non-reactive diluents (IPA) were investigated by controlling the IPA contents, and the effects of the different polymer network structures on the 3D-printed objects before and after sintering were studied against the mixing ratios of HDDA and TMPTA monomers,” concluded the researchers.

“This is the start of a promising era for fabrication of customized zirconia dental implant restorations using supportless 3D printing.”

Ceramics and 3D printing are becoming more common, especially due to the wide range of applications that can be improved due to all the benefits of the new technology, such as titanium matrix composites with ceramics, glass-ceramics at the nanoscale, and even ceramics 3D printing robots. What do you think of this news? Let us know your thoughts! Join the discussion of this and other 3D printing topics at 3DPrintBoard.com.

Characteristics of objects 3D-printed using the APTMS-coated ZrO2 ceramic nanocomposite resins with different TMPTA contents and UV absorber contents: (a) optical images of green bodies and sintered bodies, (b) cross-sectional images of sintered bodies, (c) average grain size and density of sintered bodies, and (d) surface roughness of green bodies and sintered bodies. (For interpretation of the references to colour in this figure legend, the reader is referred to the web version of this article.)

[Source / Images: ‘Optimization and characterization of high-viscosity ZrO2 ceramic nanocomposite resins for supportless stereolithography’]

 

Inside 3D Printing Seoul Meets the Smart Factory

Inside 3D Printing Seoul is entering its 6th year and has become one of Asia’s premier additive technology events for the digital transformation of design, development and manufacturing all driven by Industry 4.0.

With the theme of ‘A New Era of Advanced Manufacturing’, Inside 3D Printing decided to diversify its exhibitors. This was needed due to the continuous increase in demand from advanced manufacturing in South Korea, which includes CAD/CAM/CAE, industrial robot, drones, metrology, inspection, monitoring, tooling, mold, CNC, smart sensors and automation verticals.

South Korea is not only an advanced country in IT infrastructure but also a manufacturing powerhouse. Korean major corporations, called ‘Chaebol’, including Samsung, Hyundai, LG, SK, Hanwha, CJ, etc., have decided to invest KRW 300 trillion (or approximately USD 250 billion) in the next 5 years in order to find new promising industry sectors.

Unlike a number of non-specialized events in Asia, Inside 3D Printing Seoul brings the 10,000+ active industrial AM users as well as supplier groups together every year. This event is the best launch pad for both domestic companies looking for a global audience and for international companies looking to tap the Korean market.

Further, more diversified products or additive technology for advanced manufacturing are to be exhibited for the first time at Inside 3D Printing Seoul. With the name of ‘Smart Factory Zone’, the first exhibitors will be given various benefits including 20% off price, premium location near cafeteria and maximum exposure in multiple online/offline channels.

Good news for this year’s event is for 3DPrint.com and SmarTech Analysis to join as co-producers of Inside 3D Printing Seoul, which will further upgrade the event and provide the best marketing platform for 100+ exhibitors, sponsors and 10,000+ buyers from around the world.

Another piece of good news is that it is still available to exhibit before 10,000+ buyers and active user groups from 28 countries with increased discount rate compared to last year.

If interested in limited exhibiting or speaking opportunities for forthcoming Seoul event taking place on June 26-28, please contact Inside 3D Printing Secretariat (inside3dprinting@kintex.com) or visit our website (www.inside3dprinting.com/seoul) for more information.

3D Printing News Briefs: May 19, 2019

We’ve got business news and materials news for your weekend, just ahead of next week’s massive RAPID + TCT show. 3D Hubs and AM Ventures are both opening new offices, but in vastly different countries. BASF 3D Printing Solutions is launching a new TPU material for use with HP’s latest 3D printer series, and Freeman Technology will be hosting a seminar about AM powders next month.

3D Hubs Opening US Headquarters in Chicago

Prototyping machine shop at mHUB

Two months ago, automated manufacturing platform 3D Hubs announced that it had received $18 million in Series C funding, some of which was earmarked for opening a dedicated US office to best serve the over 10,000 clients it serves here. Now, the company has announced that its new North American headquarters will be located in Chicago, Illinois, with the added bonus of an endorsement from the city’s Mayor Rahm Emanuel. This decision allows 3D Hubs to centralize its US workforce, and it plans to double the team at headquarters by the end of 2019. The offices will be located at the mHUB technology innovation center in the city’s West Town neighborhood, and are scheduled to open next month.

“3D Hubs joins the long list of international companies choosing Chicago for their future. With our growing tech economy and strong digital manufacturing community, Chicago is the perfect home for this innovative company,” said Mayor Emanuel. “I look forward to seeing 3D Hubs success in Chicago in the years to come.”

AM Ventures Opens Office in Korea

Germany-based AM Ventures Holding GmbH (AMV) is a top independent strategic investor in the AM industry, and over the last four years has been busily setting up an ecosystem of sustainable strategic investments, in addition to a partner network for using advanced manufacturing technologies in serial production. Now in an effort to further grow its technology venturing activities, it is expanding to the Asia Pacific region with a new office in Busan, Korea.

AMV’s Chief Venturing Officer Arno Held said, “AMV is pleased to announce the opening of its new office in Korea serving the Asia-Pacific region, a market which is already demonstrating active AM adoption for serial production and a large growth potential. AMV commits to this dynamic region and the investment opportunities available there.”

Having already moved to its new Korean home , AMV’s liaison office AM Ventures Asia has appointed Simon (Sangmin) Lee, a previous sales manager at the Korea office of EOS GmbH, as the Regional Director of Asia.

BASF 3D Printing Solutions Launches Ultrasint TPU Powder

Rüdiger Theobald, the Senior Manager for Sales & Marketing in Powder Bed Fusion at BASF 3D Printing Solutions GmbH, discusses the company’s new Ultrasint TPU powder in a recent YouTube video. The highly flexible yet accurate material, which is perfect for automotive applications and coating and simulation solutions, was launched specifically for HP’s new Jet Fusion 5200 series.

“Two great brands, two great companies merge together, both with innovative technologies on hand and a great new ecosystem to support the industry with a very innovative material,” Theobald said in the video.

“We have found out a good way to operate with different wall thicknesses, that makes it very reasonably usable for any kind of pressurized applications in regards of liquids or gas.”

Freeman Technology to Host Seminar on AM Powders

Next month, powder flow specialist Freeman Technology will be hosting a free seminar in the UK entitled “Understanding Powders for Additive Manufacturing.” The one-day event, which will take place on June 11th at the Hilton Birmingham Metropole, will introduce attendees to the principles of powder rheology, and explain how associated methodologies can also be applied in order to gain a better understanding of how to optimize powder for AM applications.

During the seminar, there will be a presentation from Freeman Technology’s Operations Director Jamie Clayton about understanding and measuring powder flow and behavior. Industry experts, such as Ricoh Material Specialist Enrico Gallino and Product Manager Cathryn Langley with Malvern Panalytical, will present about some of the major challenges when it comes to powder handling, including how to quantify the size and shape of metal powders for AM. Delegates will also have the chance to see a demonstration of the company’s FT4 Powder Rheometer. You can register for the seminar here.

Discuss these stories and other 3D printing topics at 3DPrintBoard.com or share your thoughts in the Facebook comments below.

Inside 3D Printing Seoul Unveils this Year’s Conference Agenda

It is always best to have an opportunity to explore the latest additive manufacturing trends and technologies in one place at one time.

Inside 3D Printing Seoul taking place on June 26-28 in Seoul, Korea, is entering its 6th year and has become Asia’s premier Additive Manufacturing event. At the same time it is growing into the region’s primary technology event for the digital transformation of design, development, and manufacturing through Industry 4.0.

With 20% year-on-year growth in exhibitor numbers and floor space sold, Inside 3D Printing Seoul has positioned itself as the powerhouse for industrial additive manufacturing in Asia.

Over 10,000 attendees from 28 countries as well as 100 exhibitors and sponsors participate Inside 3D Printing Seoul. The conference is part of a three-day event that includes an international conference in 4 tracks and a dedicated trade show in addition to various networking opportunities.

Inside 3D Printing Seoul boasts its 40+ world-class speakers with practical applications and cases in 4 tracks; Metal, Manufacturing, Aerospace/Automotive and Medical/Dental. 

Some of our speakers include:

Michael Tang, Senior Business Manager of BASF, is confirmed as a speaker in Manufacturing/Business track. Michael leading the BASF Asia Pacific 3D Printing regional business in BASF East Asia Regional Headquarters Ltd and will speak about ‘BASF 3D Printing Solutions Enabling Production’ on June 26.

Marvin Trutnau, Head of AMEC Shanghai of DMG MORI is also confirmed as a speaker in Metal track. Marvin is known as a ‘Metal 3D Printing Specialist’ is in charge of Advanced Material Excellence Center in Shanghai and he will explore the session titled, ‘Advances in Metal 3D Printing – From Prototyping to Mass Production’ on June 27.

Peter Rogers, Additive Manufacturing Product Specialist of Autodesk Netfabb, has participated in Inside 3D Printing Seoul as a speaker for 3 consecutive years. Peter in charge of sales, business development and channel management in the APAC region for Autodesk Netfabb will speak about ‘Design and Simulation: Software’s Role in Additive Manufacturing’ in Metal Track on June 27.

François Richard of TC 261/WG 6 ISO, also visits Inside 3D Printing Seoul in June. François with more than 30 years of experience at a major aerospace OEM has been the chair of the ISO TC-261 mirror committee on the additive manufacturing since 2014. He will present about ‘AM Standardization Perspective with Environmental, Health and Safety Considerations’ on June 26.

Dogyun Kim and Junghyun Lee from DOW, America’s major chemical corporation, also visit Inside 3D Printing Seoul and speak about the ‘World’s 1st Liquid Silicone Rubber Material for 3D Printing’. Dow co-exhibits with Hanil Protech, which deals with German Reprap products.

Albert Sutiono, Head of Technology & Grant Office, NAMIC (National Additive Manufacturing Innovation Cluster) is confirmed to speak as a keynote speaker on June 27. Albert leads a national-level program office that promotes the adoption and industrialization of additive manufacturing in Singapore with investment amount of USD 200 million. He will explain how to accelerate the AM industrialization and transformation into circular economy.

Further, dozens of industry professionals were also added as major speakers including: Shinhu Cho, Sr. Research Engineer, Hyundai Motor Group; Taekmin Kim, Manager of Digital Manufacturing, Siemens; Joris Peels, Editor in Chief, 3DPrint.com; Raymond Zhang, Regional Manager of APAC, Shining 3D; Julien Cohen, Lead Engineer, Eaton; Ozgur Tanriverdi,Global Program Manager, Henkel.

If interested in participating in South Korea’s largest industrial additive manufacturing event either as an exhibitor or visitor, please contact Inside 3D Printing Secretariat (inside3dprinting@kintex.com) or visit our website (www.inside3dprinting.com/seoul) for more information.

How do 3D Printed Dentures Stack up when Compared to Milled and Injection Molded Dentures?

Korean medical researchers have been looking into the differences in quality and accuracy of several different modern ways to make dentures, with a focus on whether there is really any significant difference between any of the techniques. The key in producing dentures is in creating a snug fit between the base and the patient’s mucosal tissue, with both deformation and shrinkage being a concern because they can affect nearly every aspect of the wearer’s experience.

It’s no secret that no matter how good dentures are, challenges remain for everyone, whether they are the technician producing them or the patient wearing them. And you may not have dentures, but most likely you have seen someone else struggling with them. Manufacturers are constantly trying to improve on areas of discomfort and ill fit, and in the last 20 years, digitalization has played a major role in improving on accuracy in production.

“When manufacturing a complete denture using digital workflow, the process begins with digital scanning of the edentulous arch, including challenging areas for the intraoral scanner device to scan, which are movable areas such as non-keratinized tissue and smooth surfaces covered with saliva,” state the authors.

Once the impression is digitized, the denture is created in CAD and then it can be milled, or a 3D printed prototype can be created. The base is the most critical area, and results are centered around accuracy—making this a topic of great research (and development) over the years, and one that the authors mention has been greatly insufficient in regarding 3D printed prototypes.

Schematic illustration of denture base fabrication.

In this study, thirty different denture bases (ten for three groups) were examined. For the injection molding group, wax block was milled, based on the .stl file, with the base created via injection and PMMA resin. The milling group bases were made on a five-axis milling machine, and the rapid prototyping group of dentures were made on a DLP Bio3D 3D printer, cleaned in isopropyl alcohol for five minutes and then hydrated for 24 hours.

 “There was no significant difference in the overall deformation in the horizontal direction among the three methods through comparison of distances between the 4 notches of the ridge,” concluded the researchers. “Comparison of fit accuracy between the cast and the maxillary complete denture base was evaluated on the 2nd upper premolar and the 2nd upper molar crossing the midpalatal suture, showing relatively high deformation in the conventional method due to polymerization shrinkage and the internal stress.”

“The mean value of discrepancies was the lowest in the RP method, followed by that in the milling method and the injection molding method. The injection molding method had significantly lower fit accuracy than the other two CAD/CAM methods at two points. The degree of resolution was evaluated by measuring the vertical distance between the highest point and the lowest point in the palatine rugae area because of the complexity of the architecture. The injection molding method had significantly higher resolution than the milling method and the RP method.”

If you are just learning about 3D printing, you will probably be surprised to find out what a role it has played in the world of dentistry and orthodontics, and reconstruction in both areas. If you are well apprised of the miracles of 3D printing, you are probably still shaking your head in wonder over how it has taken off in the dental market, especially allowing for a variety of different dentures and molds to be made, along with new and improved 3D printers coming to market regularly.

What do you think of this news? Let us know your thoughts! Join the discussion of this and other 3D printing topics at 3DPrintBoard.com.

[Source / Images: ‘Comparing accuracy of denture bases fabricated by injection molding, CAD/CAM milling, and rapid prototyping method’]

Points crossing the anterior alveolar ridge and posterior alveolar ridges (right: a, left: b) and points on posterior alveolar ridge from 15 mm distance parallel to the midpalatal suture from right and left hamular notches (right: c, left: d).

Injection molding method process. (A) Denture base fabricated from wax block by milling, (B) Investment of denture base, (C) Fabricated denture base.