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ExOne to Partner with Xometry to Offer Metal Binder Jetting

The ExOne Company, manufacturer of sand and metal 3D printers for binder jetting technology, has announced that they will be partnering with Xometry—known for its custom manufacturing marketplace in the US. Centering around metal additive manufacturing processes, ExOne will be the sole provider for binder jetting in this new partnership.

Xometry customers will be able to benefit from ExOne’s 20 years in 3D printing and the refinements it has made with “triple advanced compaction technology” and ultrasonic dispensing (illustrated below)—allowing for better accuracy and performance in parts. Some of the greatest benefits in 3D printing are offered with binder jetting from ExOne, including affordability and speed in production as one roller evenly spreads powder, and another compacts it for the proper density. With a bonding agent deposited onto a thin layer of the powder, the process is repeated over and over until the 3D printed structure is made.

ExOne can print over 20 materials currently, including the following:

  • 316L stainless steel
  • 17-4PH stainless steel
  • Inconel 718
  • M2 tool steel

“ExOne is proud to offer our metal 3D printing services to Xometry customers,” said John Hartner, ExOne’s CEO. “Our industrial binder jet machines can truly take products from prototyping all the way to final production with a single process that is fast, affordable and sustainable.”

This type of partnership marks the accelerated trend not only in the use of metal but in evolving past rapid prototyping to using AM processes for functional parts in many different industrial applications. Metal binder jetting continues to grow in popularity too due to the ability to make strong but lightweight parts like metal casting molds and cores, and innovative tooling solutions from a variety of materials; meanwhile Xometry is able to offer customizations through a vast network which relies not only on 3D printing technology, but also traditional processes like CNC machining, injection molding, die casting, and more. Currently they customize and produce parts for companies like BMW, Dell, NASA, and GE.

“We’re excited to offer binder jetting to expand the range of services our customers can get from Xometry’s new Digital RFQ Marketplace,” said Randy Altschuler, Xometry’s CEO. “ExOne is a true innovator in additive manufacturing and we believe this partnership is a big win for our customers.”

(Image: ExOne)

ExOne has continued to show dropping revenues despite their international standing as a leader in binder jet 3D printing technology. Amidst employee layoffs, their second-quarter earnings report showed a year-on-year revenue decrease of 27%.

As was the case with businesses of all types and of all sizes this year, COVID-19 has wreaked havoc on finances. Employee furloughs and pay cuts have also been instituted in efforts to cut the ExOne budget, although the Pennsylvania-headquartered company expects revenues to be rising in the future as interest in 3D printing technology for the industrial front continues to accelerate.

Xometry’s financing rounds have been promising, however, with another $50MM raised last year—bringing overall funding to $113MM for the Maryland manufacturing startup.  They plan to invest in further product development and global expansion, along with other “growth initiatives” with the substantial funds currently at their disposal.

[Source / Images: Xometry]

The post ExOne to Partner with Xometry to Offer Metal Binder Jetting appeared first on 3DPrint.com | The Voice of 3D Printing / Additive Manufacturing.

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Ultrasonic Wondercutter Device Could Be Used to Cut Away Supports and Finish 3D Printed Parts

Unless you’re dealing with mainly small, handheld items, 3D printed parts rarely look much like their final form while still sitting on the build platform. In order to achieve functional 3D prints that look as good as they’re supposed to work, you have to take the time required for finishing and post-processing these said prints. From smoothing down and removing excess material to dissolving or breaking off supports, post-processing and finishing are both necessary evils when it comes to 3D printed parts.

Multiple companies in the 3D printing industry are working on ways to make post-processing faster, with ideas such as easy, high-speed support removal and using ultrasonic technology. This last is the path a company headquartered in Incheon, Korea, called Cutra Co., Ltd., took for its innovative Wondercutter product – an ultrasonic cutter.

At last year’s formnext show in Germany, Cutra first showcased its Wondercutter, which was originally conceptualized three years ago. In February of 2016, the company created its first Wondercutter prototype, with the second iteration completed that summer. Not long before Cutra launched its crowdfunding campaigns for the final Wondercutter prototype on Kickstarter and Indiegogo, it received a patent for the already award-winning device.

“Wondercutter is capable of cutting various materials such as plastic, PVC foam board, ABS, acrylic, and etc. We have been told from a lot of users that our product would be a great finishing tool for 3D printing industry,” Amy Jeon with Cutra’s Overseas Sales Department told 3DPrint.com.

The compact Wondercutter device comes in three colors – pink, silver, and turquoise – and is best suited for the ultrasonic cutting of 3-5 mm plastic, though it can also be used to cut materials such as felt, leather, rubber, and plywood; however, users should complete tests before using the Wondercutter with wood. For maximum efficiency, the Wondercutter is capable of emitting ultrasonic vibrations of 40,000 times per second, which constantly applies friction to materials.

The rechargeable device has built in batteries, which, coupled with its 750 g weight and 172 x 102 x 62 mm dimensions, makes it portable and space-saving. The Wondercutter also allows you to save on electricity, as its 25 W power makes energy consumption lower. It’s also easy to use – the main body has only a power button and battery indicator on it, and attached are a leg, belt clip, and cable, which attaches to the cutter itself.

While the button on the body of the Wondercutter turns the device on, you need to push the button on the side of the cutter’s handle to actually use it to cut materials, whether the parts are for architectural modeling, plastic model assembling, finishing FDM 3D printed parts, or removing the supports from your SLA prints. The handle also houses a transducer horn, or vibrator.

The Wondercutter device comes with 40 cutting blades, a charger, safety gloves, and a user guide.

“Cut anything you want,” the Wondercutter catalog boasts. “For WONDERCUTTER, cutting plastic is as easy as cutting cheese.”

While this ultrasonic cutting device does sound pretty great, I feel that this product marketing statement may be just a bit misleading. Having not used the Wondercutter myself, I can’t be certain – it could be the real deal, or it could be just press release speak.

But, if the pictures on Cutra’s website showing people of all ages using the Wondercutter at various shows and exhibitions are any indication, the device is as good as it sounds…music to the ears of people who want a faster way to remove the supports from their prints.

At the moment, Cutra is moving on from product development for its Wondercutter to marketing and sales. Hopefully, the rest of the 3D printing industry will soon have a chance to see and test out this unique ultrasonic cutting device, to see if it’s up to snuff for finishing 3D prints.

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[Images: Cutra Co., Ltd.]

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Ultrasonic Technology Improves Surface Finish of 3D Prints

Stair stepping is a common problem in 3D printing. This is when seam lines appear between layers and excess material is left as a residue on the print, negatively affecting its surface finish. For many applications, surface finish is an important component, so experts are always looking for ways to improve it. In a paper entitled “Improvement of Surface Finish by Multiple Piezoelectric Transducers in Fused Deposition Modeling,” a group of researchers apply ultrasound in an attempt to improve the surface finish of 3D prints.

Chemical post-processing, the researchers point out, is an effective way to improve surface finish, but it results in a slight change to the print, which may be unwanted. An alternative is the use of ultrasonic technology, which is often used in machining and improves both surface finish and fatigue strength. The piezoelectric components create ultrasonic vibration, which vibrate in a vertical direction and enhance surface finish in laser assisted machining. The researchers decided to apply the technology to 3D printing to see if a similar effect could be had.

In ultrasonic technology, a tool vibrates at a high frequency and pumps an abrasive slurry between the tool and the component to be finished. The process does not create a chemical reaction, and thus does not result in any chemical corrosion of the component. Mostly the technology has been used in subtractive manufacturing, but the researchers in this study thought it could be just as effective with FDM 3D printing.

The researchers used an UP Plus 2 3D printer to print several ABS samples.

“In order to assist the experiment, a common piezoelectric transducer performing in a horizontal wave or vibration mode was fixed and securely attached in contact with the hotbed of FDM machine,” the researchers state. “To guarantee the vibration will disseminate thoroughly, the piezoelectric transducer was attached to the whole surface. Most of the major challenge was the positioning of the piezoelectric transducer on the hotbed platform. The intention to assure that it mounted perfectly without making any contact or hitting 3D printer parts, while the 3D printer performing calibration and printing movement.”

The samples took the form of rectangles with four surfaces, but only one surface was focused on for the application of piezoelectricity. The researchers applied different numbers of piezos and found that with one piezo, the surface finish improved, and with four piezos it improved even more, but it was the highest quality with the application of two or three piezos, interestingly.

The research shows that the application of ultrasonic vibration can indeed reduce the staircase effect that is common in 3D printing, with the effects differing depending on the amount and position of piezoelectricity applied. The researchers believe that the technology could also be applied to different 3D printing methods such as SLA, SLS and Electron Beam Melting, and could have applications in industries such as automotive, consumer products, medicine, sports and more. Further research is recommended to study the consistency of surface finish by printing more complex parts with curved surfaces, for example, or with a different degree of angles. The researchers also recommend studying other materials such as PLA or composite materials.

Authors of the paper include A.S. Mohamed, S. Maidin, S.B. Mohamed, M.K. Muhamad, J.H.U. Wong and W.F.A. Romlee.

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