Parisian large scale 3D printing firm XtreeE has received a major investment from TTWiiN Investment Partners, an investment arm of the US-based engineering consulting firm Thornton Tomasetti, in the company’s latest round of funding. The details of the funding round have not been disclosed, but additional investment was made by Shibumi International, subsidiary of international construction […]
3DVinci Creations and Ai Build Sign Agreement to Expand Large-Scale 3D Printing Use in the UAE
3DVinci Creations, a 3D printing service bureau located in the city state of Dubai, provides affordable and accessible 3D printing solutions for a variety of applications, such as medical models and concrete construction. Earlier this week, the five-year-old company signed a comprehensive distribution agreement with London-based Ai Build that will help expand large-scale 3D printing in the United Arab Emirates.
Ai Build develops autonomous, large-scale, robotic 3D printers for factories of the future, and companies that use its proprietary hardware and software together end up reducing material waste and human labor, which in turns leads to time and cost savings. In the past, the company has partnered up with such industry heavyweights as Zaha Hadid Architects and KUKA Robotics. Now, thanks to this new distributorship agreement with 3DVinci Creations, its autonomous robotic 3D printing technology and Factory-as-a-Service business proposition will come to the UAE.
“Dubai has been at the forefront of 3D printing scene in the last few years, especially in Construction. We are very excited to become a part of this bold vision for the future of 3D printing set out by governments and authorities in the region,” said Daghan Cam, CEO of Ai Build. “As a fast-growing company, working with strong partners is critical for our success. The distribution agreement with 3DVinci Creations allows us to bring our disruptive technology into this vibrant market with an experienced key player in the region for large scale 3D printing.”
Next month at its Dubai headquarters, 3DVinci Creations will unveil its first AiMaker – Ai Build’s large-scale robotic 3D printing solution – so that the region can have access to the autonomous technology.
Additionally, the company has begun distributing more of Ai Build’s products across the region in order to help Dubai achieve part of its lauded, multi-tiered 3D printing strategy: ensuring that 25% of all new buildings constructed within the city state are 3D printed by the year 2030.
“At 3DVinci Creations, we strive to find the right 3D Printing solution for our customers, helping them turn their concepts and designs into physical objects. With this distributorship agreement, we aim to provide cost effective and superfast large-scale 3D printing solutions to the GCC market,” said Edouard Baaklini, the CEO of 3DVinci Creations. “This agreement with Ai Build is an opportunity to bring quality large scale 3D printing closer to users in the region in order to reap the benefits it brings to the local market in terms of reduced labor costs, reduced material waste, sustainable eco-friendly additive manufacturing, use of recycled plastics, improved design capabilities, and reduced duration of production. With the potential of 3D printing to change the ways we design and build, it can truly contribute to creating a better and healthier world.”
AiMaker [Image: Ai Build]
Manufacturers across the UAE will now be able to lease the AiMaker and AiSync cloud platform as a hardware and software bundle through 3DVinci Creations, so that they can autonomously 3D print large-scale products at their own facilities…bringing the technology another step closer to mass production.
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[Images provided by 3DVinci Creations]
3D Printing News Briefs: October 13, 2018
We’ve got business and education news galore in today’s 3D Printing News Briefs. First, Voodoo Manufacturing has launched its new Shopify app, and BeAM Machines is partnering with Empa, while Sculpteo is working with a property developer to provide 3D printed apartment models. VSHAPER has signed an agreement with educational publisher Grupa MAC, and the United Arab Emirates is introducing 3D printing into over 200 of its primary schools. The US Navy will be testing the first 3D printed ship component, and Lufthansa Technik has established a new Additive Manufacturing Center. Finally, maker Thomas Sanladerer shared on YouTube about his recent visit to the Prusa headquarters.
Voodoo Manufacturing Launches Shopify App
This spring, high-volume 3D printing factory Voodoo Manufacturing began its full-stack manufacturing and fulfillment service for 3D printing entrepreneurs, which allows users to outsource work like quality control and assembly for their products through its easy shopfront integrations with online marketplaces like Shopify. Now, the company has launched its own Shopify app, which will allow online sellers to create and customize 3D printed products and sell them on their own Shopify stores. Once the app is installed, users can make their first product in less than 5 minutes, which is then automatically added to their store, ready for purchase.
“We wanted to make it ridiculously easy for ecommerce stores to diversify their product offering with 3D printed products. By applying 3D printing to the print-on-demand business model, we are opening up an infinite range of product categories for Shopify merchants,” said Max Friefeld, the Founder and CEO of Voodoo Manufacturing. “The Voodoo app provides a new source of high quality, customizable, on-demand products, that don’t require any 3D design experience.”
Before the official launch this week, Voodoo piloted the service with a group of beta users, including It’s The Island Life by graphic designer and Guam native Lucy Hutcheson. She is already successfully selling six different products made with the help of the new Voodoo app.
BeAM Machines Partnering with Empa
BeAM, recently acquired by AddUp, has signed a research and development agreement with Empa, the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology. Together, the two will develop novel applications for BeAM’s powder-based Directed Energy Deposition (DED) technology, which uses focused thermal energy to fuse materials by melting them while they’re deposited. This makes parts manufacturing much faster. The partnership has come on the heels of Empa’s acquisition of a BeAM DED 3D printer, which is located at its Laboratory for Advanced Materials Processing in Thun and is used to integrate and test out innovative components.
Patrik Hoffmann, who leads the laboratory, said, “We are very excited to collaborate with BeAM’s engineers to push the boundaries of this innovative additive manufacturing technology and to develop a whole new range of applications for Swiss industries and beyond.”
Sculpteo 3D Printing Apartment Models
Together with Sculpteo, French property developer Valoptim is working to improve customer experience by providing clients with miniaturized 3D printed models of their future apartments when they sign their contracts, so they can better visualize and prepare for moving into their new home. These small, exact replicas give new owners an immersive experience, which is a definite value add. In addition, production of the 3D printed models is local, and can be done fast.
“Sculpteo uses the best machines and 3D printing processes on the market today. At first, we had the ambition to test the feasibility of 3D printing in the real estate sector. This innovative process has proven to be extremely interesting: the realistic rendering, with high-end finishes, allowed our clients to discover a miniaturized version of their future apartment enabling them to realistically imagine themselves living in it,” said Edouard Pellerin, CEO of Valoptim. “This innovation contributes to our business dynamic: constantly improving the customer experience.”
VSHAPER and Grupa Mac Sign Agreement
Polish 3D printer manufacturer Verashape has signed an agreement with Grupa MAC, the country’s top educational publisher, in front of Poland’s education curators at the recent Future of Education Congress. Per the agreement, Grupa MAC will use a network of educational consultants to distribute the VSHAPER GO 3D printers to kindergartens and other schools in the country. Grupa MAC recognizes that 3D printers are a good way to quickly present the effects of students’ learning, and the VSHAPER GO is the perfect choice, as it is easy to use and comes with an intuitive interface of SOFTSHAPER software.
“Classes with students are a perfect environment for the use of 3D Printing. Creating a pyramid model for history lessons, the structure of a flower or a human body for biology lessons are just a few examples, and their list is limited only by the imagination of students and teachers,” said Patryk Tomczyk, a member of the Grupa MAC Management Board. “We are happy that thanks to our cooperation with VERASHAPE, 3D Printers have a chance to reach schools through our network of educational consultants.”
3D Printing to be Introduced in UAE Primary Schools
Speaking of 3D printing in education, the Ministry of Education (MoE) for the UAE has announced that in early 2019, a country-wide introduction of 3D printing into over 200 primary schools will commence. As part of this new technology roll out, Dubai education consultancy company Ibtikar is partnering with Makers Empire, an Australian education technology company, to deliver a program that implements 3D printing and design. Makers Empire will supply 3D software, curriculum, teacher resources, training, and support to Ibtikar, which will in turn train MoE teachers to deliver the program.
“Through this rollout of 3D technology, our students will learn to reframe needs as actionable statements and to create solutions to real-world problems,” said HE Eng. Abdul Rahman of the United Arab Emirates Ministry of Education. “In doing so, our students will develop an important growth mindset, the skills they need to make their world better and the essential ability to persist when encountering setbacks.”
US Navy Approves Test of First 3D Printed Shipboard Part
USS Harry S. Truman
The US military has long explored the use of 3D printing to lower costs and increase the availability of spare parts. Huntington Ingalls Industries, the largest military shipbuilder in the US, has also been piloting new technologies, like 3D printing, as part of its digital transformation. In collaboration with the US Navy, the company’s Newport News Shipbuilding division has worked to speed the adoption of 3D printed metal components for nuclear-powered warships. This has led to an exciting announcement by the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA): a metal drain strainer orifice (DSO) prototype has officially been approved as the first 3D printed metal part to be installed on a US Navy ship. The assembly is a component for the steam system, which allows for drainage and removal of water from a steam line while in use. The 3D printed DSO prototype will be installed on the USS Harry S. Truman in 2019 for evaluation and tests. After one year, the assembly will be removed for inspection and analysis.
“This install marks a significant advancement in the Navy’s ability to make parts on demand and combine NAVSEA’s strategic goal of on-time delivery of ships and submarines while maintaining a culture of affordability. By targeting CVN 75 [USS Harry S. Truman], this allows us to get test results faster, so-if successful-we can identify additional uses of additive manufacturing for the fleet,” said Rear Adm. Lorin Selby, NAVSEA Chief Engineer and Deputy Commander for Ship Design, Integration, and Naval Engineering.
Lufthansa Technik Opens New Additive Manufacturing Center
Lufthansa Technik, a leading provider of maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) for civil aircraft, has established a new Additive Manufacturing Center. The goal of the new AM Center is to bundle and expand the company’s experience and competence with the technology, which can be used to make individual parts more quickly and with more design freedom. As the world of aircraft is always aware of weight, making more lightweight parts is an excellent benefit of 3D printing.
“The new AM Center will serve as a collaborative hub where the experience and skills that Lufthansa Technik has gained in additive manufacturing can be bundled and further expanded,” said Dr. Aenne Koester, the head of the new AM Center. “The aim is to increase the degree of maturity of the technologies and to develop products that are suitable for production.”
Tom’s 3D Visits Prusa Headquarters
Maker Thomas Sanladerer, who runs his own YouTube channel, recently had the chance to tour the Prusa Research headquarters in Prague. Not only did he get the opportunity to see how the company makes its popular MK3 and and MK2.5, but Sanladerer was also able to see early models of the company’s recently announced SL1 resin 3D printer, as well as the Prusament filament production line.
“I always find factory tours like this super interesting because it’s the only chance you really get of seeing behind the scenes of what might really just be a website, or you know, a marketing video or whatever,” Sanladerer said in his video.
Sanladerer took the tour of the Prusa factory right after Maker Faire Prague, which the company itself organized and sponsored. To see behind the scenes of Prusa for yourself, check out the rest of the video below:
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Jumbo 3D Manufacturing Launches with New 3D FARM
By now, most everyone familiar with 3D printing knows about the Dubai 3D Printing Strategy, which aims to make the United Arab Emirates city-state the 3D printing capital of the world. Dubai’s accomplishments so far have included a 3D printed laboratory, a 3D printed office building, several medical innovations, improvements in transportation and much more. As 3D printing rapidly expands throughout the country, new facilities and companies are springing up to meet the many needs that are arising for the technology.
Jumbo Group is a leading diversified business in the UAE, established in 1974 and becoming the country’s leading distributor of IT and consumer electronics. Now the company has announced the launch of a new business called Jumbo 3D Manufacturing, which will be dedicated to 3D printing.
After the Dubai 3D Printing Strategy was announced, Jumbo opened its own 3D printing division, which was followed by a partnership with EnvisionTEC and HP. Now comes the launch of Jumbo 3D Manufacturing, accompanied by the opening of a new facility in partnership with HP 3D Printing Solutions. The facility, called the 3D FARM, is based around HP’s Multi Jet Fusion technology and focuses on applications including dental, architecture and more. In addition to MJF machines, the facility houses equipment for post processing, finishing and painting 3D printed products.
Entrepreneurs in the UAE who want to start their own businesses but lack financing, technical knowledge, or business planning support can take advantage of the facility to help advance their ideas. The 3D FARM will offer a variety of services including training, business consulting, proof of concept development, product design assistance and financing options.
“Jumbo’s 3D FARM will not only serve as a proof of concept for early adopters but will also act as an initiative to develop a community of collaborating professionals involved in 3D Manufacturing in the UAE,” said Arvind Agrawal, Head of Jumbo Group. “We will shortly announce partnerships with several 3D printing bureaus who will be joining this community. The objective is to pool the knowledge, design capability, skills and resources to create an eco-system for faster adoption of 3D printing technology in the country.”
In the months to come, Jumbo plans to expand its range of 3D printers to include the latest technologies in color, metal and concrete. As the United Arab Emirates continues to build toward its goal of leading the world in 3D printing, companies like Jumbo 3D Manufacturing, and facilities like the 3D FARM, will help entrepreneurs and small businesses to advance and form the foundation that the country needs. The news has been full of headlines about what the government of Dubai is doing with 3D printing, but the government can’t meet the UAE’s 3D printing goals alone – it needs the support of strong companies to take the technology to new levels. Jumbo 3D Manufacturing, along with the companies it helps to incubate, can provide that support and further help Dubai to reach its goals.
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