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At the annual IDTechEx Show, Eindhoven based Additive Industries won the ‘Best Development in 3D Printing’ Award for their ‘MetalFAB1’. On receiving the award, Additive Industries commented: “This will greatly support the entry of our industrial 3D printing systems for series production on the US market!”

IDTechEx analyst, Dr Jon Harrop, added:

“Additive Industries is focusing on the industrialisation of additive manufacturing. 3D printing has been developed for prototyping and there are still some major hurdles to it becoming a truly useful manufacturing technique. Continuous production and integrated post-processing make it easier to scale up the process to make bigger numbers of final parts, and reduces the cost per part. Process predictability and better reproducibility, enabled by simulation and in-process quality controls, improve product quality, so it can be used in industries with lower tolerances. Unmanned operation and automated handling is making these machines safer. The modular architecture of the MetalFAB1 allows users to scale up the process after initial trials and testing, which lowers barriers to entry and lengthens lifetime. Shipments of these 3D printers to the aerospace industry show this product is relevant to one of the biggest markets for additive manufacturing.”