Apr 10, 2018 | By David
Here’s another 3D printing round-up, in case you missed out on any developments recently. The latest stories include a giant 3D printed ski boot from Massivit 3D, Red Dot awards for DWS Systems and CellInk, and many more besides.
1. Red Dot Awards recognize DWS Systems and CellInk’s 3D printing technology
Winners of the annual Red Dot Awards were recently announced, and both DWS Systems and CellInk were recognized by the panel, which includes industry-leading design professionals from various different sectors. Companies from 59 countries were judged in the competition, and awards were given out for a number of different categories.
DWS won an award for Product Design in the Best of the Best category, for its DFAB 3D printer. The DFAB was developed to efficiently and quietly produce natural-looking dental prostheses, and it is the first ever true chair-side 3D printer for dentists and prosthodontists, streamlining workflow and quickly delivering high-precision color-matched prosthetics. The machine can produce restorations in one session without the use of external dental labs, and it guarantees a 20-minute building time for a 5-element bridge. It can make use of Temporis, a new class of biocompatible material, to provide a natural-looking finish.
Another award went to bio-printing pioneer CellInk. Its BIO X 3D Bio-printer, launched in 2017, was given the Red Dot Award for product design.
2. CG Bio gets safety certification for 3D printed cheekbones
Korean 3D bio-printing expert CG Bio has received certification from the country’s Ministry of Food and Drug Safety to market its 3D printed cheekbone implants. The cheekbones are fabricated using 3D printing and BGS-7, a bioactive glass material developed and patented by CG Bio.
BGS-7 offers huge advantages over conventional metal or polymer-based materials, as it is compatible with organic tissue, and can form bonds with bone. The strong bonds that it forms minimize side effects or complications after reconstructive surgeries, without any foreign body reaction.
CG Bio makes use of locally-sourced materials at every stage of the manufacturing process.
''It is Korea’s first-ever 3D printing system using bioceramics that are (the) most bone-friendly. We will keep developing our technologies to apply the product to various bone losses,'' said Yoo Hyun-seung, CEO of CG Bio.
3. HP starts use of its own MultiJet Fusion 3D printing technology in supply chain
Tech giant HP has announced that it will start making use of its own MultiJet Fusion 3D printing technology, for producing various other products and supply chain applications. This is an effort to cut production times and costs, as well as serving as a major case study of the weaknesses and strengths of its additive manufacturing technology for large-scale operations. Clients such as GoPro and Forecast 3D have also recently expanded and upgraded their fleets of HP 3D printers to meet rising demand.
This new initiative has been named ''Reinventing HP With Multi Jet Fusion'', and the plans are being outlined at this year’s Additive Manufacturing Users Group conference. The company stands to save millions of dollars if the program is successful.
50 percent of the custom plastic parts in the Jet Fusion 4200 are possible to make using HP's own 3D printing technology, and more than 140 parts inside the Jet Fusion 300/500 Series can also be produced with 3D printing. Using additive manufacturing techniques for HP’s Large Format printers should see a 93 percent weight reduction, and a 50 percent reduction in costs, compared to the conventional machining process.
This will not only be beneficial for the company in terms of reducing overall weight, part counts, and tooling times, it will also contribute to more sustainable manufacturing processes with a smaller carbon footprint.
4. PostProcess launches new 3D software platform
PostProcess Technologies, a pioneering company in the field of automated and intelligent post-printing solutions for industrial 3D printing, has today announced a new software platform, CONNECT3D. This is an upgraded version of the company’s AUTOMAT3D software solution. The product was designed to offer options for the intelligent removal of 3D support materials and surface finishing, after 3D print jobs are complete. CONNECT3D will see this capability extended into the Cloud for the first time, with all the advantages of networked operations.
According to Daniel Hutchinson, Founder & CTO of PostProcess, "Currently, the concept of the ''digital thread'' within additive manufacturing ends once parts are printed. Conventional finishing processes rely on tribal knowledge and hand tools so there is no ability to collect or transfer data. The lack of transferable data limits the post-print process, but also fundamentally weakens the design process. Design input decisions, such as part orientation, are undermined due to a lack of downstream process data. Critical areas such as maintaining strength along a preferred axis and minimizing the amount of support material are jeopardized.''
CONNECT3D addresses these issues by enabling the digital manufacturing thread to be extended to post-printing. The new, smarter post-processing systems will analyze CAD files or 3D slices and automatically define the necessary requirements and algorithms, in a way that will reduce cycle times and increase consistency.
5. Massivit 3D printer used to make model ski accessories including giant ski boot for festival
(source: Massivit 3D)
The annual Ski Deal Week recently took place in Sella Ronda, Italy, and the organizers enlisted the help of advertising agencies SismaItalia and METROPOLE, in partnership with Marie 3D and 3D printer manufacturer Massivit, to create some larger-than-life 3D printed accessories. Ski Deal Week is an annual event organized by travel agency Ski Deal, intended to give avid skiers and snowboarders a week-long European winter sports and entertainment experience.
Making use of Massivit 1800 3D Printers, the company printed some large ski models. These included a pair of oversized goggles, a helmet and a full-size snowboard.
The main attraction, however, was a gigantic 3D printed ski boot. Measuring 2.2m long and 2.3m high (7.2ft x 7.5ft), the realistic ski boot comprised two pieces and was produced within just 38 hours. Once the gloss finish was applied, the lifelike boot was ready to be transported by cable car to its final destination – 3000m / 1.9 miles above ground level, to steal the limelight.
The boot ended up featuring prominently on social media after hundreds of visitors chose to climb inside for a selfie or two.
Posted in 3D Printer Company
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