Jan 7, 2016 | By Kira
As much as metal 3D printing has seen some pretty explosive growth in the past year, with metal 3D printer sales proving to be the only sector within the industrial 3D printer market that actual prospered in 2015, the truth is that due to the high cost of materials and machines, many manufacturing companies still prefer to 3D print both prototypes and end-use parts in plastic or nylon. Thanks to 3D printing company MarkForged, however, these businesses no longer have to compromise cost for quality.
MarkForged’s patented 3D printing technology reinforces nylon parts with extremely strong materials, including carbon fibre, fiberglass or even Kevlar, resulting in cost-efficient 3D printed parts that can actual displace components that would typically be machined in metal. The company’s Mark One professional desktop 3D printer—introduced just two years ago—is the first and only 3D printer system that can automatically reinforce engineering plastics to aluminum strength and beyond, right on your desktop.
The result of all of this is industrial strength 3D printing made available to businesses of all sizes. And with growing interest and demand for affordable yet strong 3D printed parts across several rapidly expanding vertical markets, including automotive, aerospace, machining services and more, MarkForged’s technology is in higher demand than ever: The company has today announced an explosive finish to 2015, with 400% growth in revenue year on year.
“Our customers are able to bring products to market faster because the Mark One prints high-strength components that endure where traditional plastics parts would just break,” said founder and CEO Greg Mark. “When we debuted this technology two years ago, our first customers were aerospace companies looking for cheaper composites, but over the last year we saw the largest growth from companies interested in high-strength, tough parts. We offer the only affordable 3D printer that prints these types of parts, and it is resonating in the market.”
MarkForged 3D parts are able to achieve their strength thanks to the Mark One’s dual print heads, with one reserved for 3D printing in nylon, and the other used to continuously reinforce those parts with their proprietary high-strength materials. The company also boasts that its 3D printer can complete parts equal to or better in strength than aluminum up to 90% faster and 70% cheaper.
In addition to automotive, aerospace, and machining services, MarkForged reinforced 3D printed parts have applications in several markets, including: systems integration and installation; customized durable goods; industrial automation; small lot production; tooling for mass production; and defense.
“We see a lot of users calling their Mark One their ‘secret weapon’. The automotive industry is using the Mark One to create industrial strength fixtures for holding heavy parts. Machine shops that previously shunned 3D printing are adopting the Mark One as the only 3D printer able to replace or complement aluminum and steel and are beginning to ship 3D printed parts. In fact, a growing number of consumer and business products you see showcased at CES have standing behind them a Mark One printed part,” said Director of Sales, Matt Katzman. “The icing on the cake for our customers is that the Mark One pays for itself in a year or less.”
Though more and more 3D printing companies are beginning to invest in metal 3D printing and metallic 3D printing materials, MarkForged offers an equally durable yet much more affordable alternative for businesses interested in expanding their production via 3D printing technology. Having finished 2015 as strongly as their 3D printed parts, we’ll see what MarkForged has in store for the coming year.
Posted in 3D Printer Company
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