Pioneer bioprinting company Organovo presented new findings in their stem-cell-based approach to developing kidney tissue using its 3D bioprinting platform, the NovoGen Bioprinter. During the annual meeting for The International Society for Stem Cell Research, held during the last week of June in Los Angeles, California, the company presented new data that demonstrates the automated production of complex kidney organoids, with potential future applications including in vitro disease modeling and the treatment of patients with renal disease.

The NovoGen Bioprinter fabricating tissue.

“Partnerships with world-class institutions can accelerate groundbreaking work in finding cures for critical unmet disease needs and the development of implantable therapeutic tissues,” said Taylor J. Crouch, CEO of Organovo. “Our recently announced collaboration with Murdoch Children’s Research Institute (MCRI), in Melbourne, Australia, and Melissa Little (head of the Kidney Research laboratory at MCRI) has made our work automating the fabrication of kidney organoids possible. By combining MCRI’s proprietary approach for modeling human kidney tissue from stem cells and Organovo’s 3D bioprinting platform, we’re able to produce detailed kidney tissues, which is a key step toward advancing this promising technology for both drug testing and therapeutic applications. We’re hopeful that this will be an important step along the way in treating kidney disease.” 

According to Organovo publications, recent advances in the directed differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells (also known as human embryonic stem cells) to kidney organoids advances the prospect of drug screening, disease modeling, and even restoration of renal function using patient-derived stem cells.

Single-cell transcriptional profiling shows the equivalence between standard and bioprinted kidney organoids

They claim to have demonstrated the successful adaptation of the directed differentiation protocol on the NovoGen Bioprinter MMX technology to achieve automated, rapid fabrication of self-organizing kidney organoids. Bioprinted organoids were found to be equivalent to those previously reported via manual generation, at both the level of morphology and component cell types and expression profiles. High-throughput toxicity screening was achieved by treating organoids bioprinted in 96-well plates with a classic nephrotoxic compound. Collectively, these results suggest that bioprinted kidney organoids are functionally equivalent to those prepared manually and thus are likely to be useful for a multitude of applications. In fact, using a bioprinter allows for the generation of large numbers of uniform and highly reproducible organoids in reduced time (approximately 20 times faster) compared to manual processes.

So 3D bioprinting enables automated and scaled fabrication of human-induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-derived kidney organoids equivalent to those generated manually at the level of cellular complexity, identity, and gene expression. In addition, the inclusion of the bioprinter increased speed and reproducibility facilitating larger production runs without comprising organoid quality. The work is significant to the utility in drug testing and modeling human development and disease in vitro and provides translational promise for the combined use of iPSC and tissue engineering technologies for functional restoration in patients with renal disease.

Characterization of kidney organoids bioprinted using control and reporter iPSC lines, showing evidence of increasing tubular complexity (scale bar represents 800 µm)

Companies around the world are heavily pushing the limits of bioprinting to get closer to tangible and robust results that will prove useful to patients worldwide in just a few years. Finding solutions for conditions like renal failure and disease are on the top of the list for many bioprinting companies and researchers. The Global Burden of Disease (GBD) estimated in a study that in 2015 alone, 1.2 million people died from kidney failure, an increase of 32% since 2005. In 2010, between 2.3 and 7.1 million people with end-stage kidney disease died without access to chronic dialysis. Additionally, each year, around 1.7 million people are thought to die from acute kidney injury. Overall, therefore, between five and ten million people may die annually from kidney disease.

The San Diego-based biotech firm has been targeting 3D bioprinted tissues with human functionality for over 10 years, pursuing IND-track programs to develop its NovoTissues to address a number of serious unmet medical needs, initially focusing on liver disease. In 2017, Organovo’s program for Alpha-1-antitrypsin deficiency received orphan drug designation from the FDA and they have also provided access to its ExVive in vitro tissue platform to facilitate high-value drug discovery and development collaborations. As part of their hopes to advance medical care, Organovo has focused much of their research on kidney tissue, releasing a plethora of information regarding the performance of its 3D printed kidney tissue in research and testing over the last five years. It’s all part of the advances that are paving the way for the future of regenerative medicine and personalized patient care, two of the biggest challenges humanity faces with an aging population, which continues to grow in numbers and evolving healthcare needs. This type of medical advances can help save lives and reduce the considerable costs of healthcare everywhere.

[Images: Organovo]

In ‘Digital Fabrication: 3D Printing in Preschool Education,’ Federico Avanzini, Adriano Baratè, and Luca A. Ludovico explore the connection between 3D printing and the classroom through preschool music lessons. While music lessons act as the vehicle to show the level of educational value, the researchers use it to present a rich example, beginning by pointing out how important music education is to preschoolers—and featured in numerous research studies previously.

There are links found between better spatial-temporal reasoning, along with early reading skills. Other recent studies have shown that preschool children have ‘implicit harmonic knowledge’ with broad potential. The authors examine cognition, and especially as it is derived from the sensorimotor function—with preschoolers offering ‘paradigmatic examples.’ Smaller children learn through ‘perception-action in the environment,’ along with enjoying information arrived at from other senses too.

“It is often difficult to distinguish between exploration and play: during the sensory-motor development, very young children need to explore first to be able then to proceed to playful behavior, which is one of the most important activities for their development; by playing, children start to explore the world and to acquire and master new skills which can be vital for them,” explain the authors, along with reminding us of the importance of ‘open-ended’ nature in interactions, as kids are able to create new ways to play with an object—delighting in their discoveries.

While 3D printing has much to offer, preschoolers tend to lack the required modeling skills for creating parts and prototypes. Today, there are numerous different software programs developed precisely for preschoolers, allowing them to design and fabricate small items. In designing a 3D printing education, however, the authors realized some complications due to accessibility and affordability, along with space for hardware to be kept. They were also concerned that lack of suitable materials could be an obstacle too.

A raw 3D model of a mouthpiece

“Nevertheless, 3D printing offers relevant opportunities of young music learners, allowing them to build low-cost and customizable didactic objects,” state the researchers.

Providing a library of models is helpful to preschoolers—along with some designs they can begin customizing. Simple models can also be a great way for parents and new tutors or teachers to learn about 3D design and 3D printing. Examples might include everything from sounding objects to actual instruments. There may be percussion toy instruments, miniature xylophones, marimbas, and more.

3D models of musical instruments obtained by the extrusion of 2D shapes

“Even if a scaled model of a complex musical instrument can be hard to find, simplified 3D shapes can be easily obtained by extruding 2D contours without affecting the efficacy of the didactic experience,” stated the researchers. “Besides, 3D-printed objects can foster an early learning of organology, i.e. the science of musical instruments and their classification, including technical aspects of how instruments produce sound.”

The corresponding printed objects

Kids may also be drawn to more alternative educational fun like 3D printing action figures playing their instruments together. Such models could be challenging to find, but they encourage children to enjoy role models playing music, and especially in 3D printed or figurine form. Scale models and figures can be easily re-sized in 3D printing, and different materials can also change the way an item looks significantly.

They also included a case study regarding common western notation (CWN), a method for encoding notated music, as well as the concept of the piano-roll model where details like pitch and timbre are linked to 2D geometric shapes and more. 3D printed solid blocks can be created and placed on a baseplate. Ready-made blocks should help children link shapes to music parameters.

The role of the teacher/tutor is key as they assist in 3D design and 3D printing, guiding the young users, and challenging them to learn.

“Examples of didactic activities may include the recognition of musical instruments and their subparts, the exploration of sound generation techniques, the design and fabrication of sounding objects, and the investigation of alternative forms of music notation,” said the authors.

“For future work, we are planning to further investigate these proposals and implement them as learning practices to be experimented and assessed in preschool and out-of-classroom contexts.”

The momentum 3D printing has in education today is fascinating—not only due to the enthusiasm obviously experienced within the classroom, from innovations being created like prosthetics to online learning for 3D metal printing, to vocational schools engaged in SLS printing.

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Researchers Yongsan An and Woon-Ryeol Yu explore improved 3D printing through the study of alternative materials. In the recently published ‘Three-dimensional printing of continuous carbon fiber-reinforced shape memory polymer composites,’ the authors discuss challenges with mechanical properties that plague many industrial users.

In this study, they experiment with continuous carbon fiber reinforced shape memory polymer composites (SMPC), in FDM 3D printing—using both thermoplastics and thermosets.

Mechanical properties of continuous fiber-reinforced polymer composites, short fiber reinforced polymer composites, and polymer matrix fabricated by FDM.

Parameters were tested, and samples were printed, as the researchers learned more about the benefits and limits of smart materials like SMPs—able to change with their environment and then morph back to their normal shape. This type of material borders on the 4D and allows users much greater flexibility in use—across a wide variety of applications. With the addition of carbon composites, the research team hoped to improve fabrication processes.

The team created a customized FDM 3D printer for the study, to fabricate continuous fiber-reinforced SMPC parts. For materials, two different types were chosen for evaluation: PLA and a polyurethane-type of SMP filaments (as the thermoplastic matrices) and an SMP epoxy as the thermoset matrix. The team then added the continuous carbon fibers for reinforcement to the filament.

Schematic diagram of the 3D printing system of continuous carbon fiber-reinforced polymer composites for (a) thermoplastics and (b) thermosets.

They experimented with differences in temperature and print speed in printing out samples to be tested. Mechanical and shape memory properties were then assessed by the team.

3D printing of CF and PLA composites. (a) only PLA, (b) 1.5 mm-diameter nozzle, and (c) 2 mm- diameter nozzle.

“The storage modulus (G’), loss modulus (G’’), and the viscosity of the PLA were decreased around its melting point. The storage modulus was decreased at a larger rate than the loss modulus, resulting in more liquid-like properties of PLA. Therefore, the PLA could be easily extruded from the nozzle of which temperature was 180℃,” the researchers wrote.

“The PLA filament without CF was smoothly extruded from a nozzle whether its diameter was larger than the fusion area or not. However, for a nozzle with 1.5 mm diameter, the PLA matrix was extruded like wrapping the CF helically. It was due to a fact that the PLA was extruded more than the CF because the CF was not stretched during extrusion. In addition, harsh temperature and different extrusion speed caused CF to fail during 3D printing. On the other hand, for a nozzle with 2 mm diameter, the PLA and CF were extruded straightly because their extrusion speeds were synchronized.”

There were numerous challenges—such as the CF not coated completely with PLA. The researchers created an improved printhead for better optimization in terms of supplying speed of PLA and CF and the structure and fusion time of the materials. They also added calendar rolls and a proper tension device.

“The printed SMPC showed good mechanical properties compared to those of conventionally 3D printed polymer in the fiber direction,” stated the researchers.

Strength and stability in mechanical properties are a constant challenge in 3D printing—but there are constant improvements as researchers are determined to perfect the materials and processes of progressive fabrication techniques from testing carbon lattices, to titanium, to examining issues in biocompatibility.

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Spatial structure systems, like lattices, are efficient load-bearing structures that are easy to adapt geometrically and well-suited for column-free, long-spanning constructions, such as hangars and terminals, and in creating free-form geometries. As these structures have to bear both compressive and tensile forces, they are often constructed out of isotropic materials like aluminum and steel. Reinforced concrete is another option, but even with the help of more recent advancements, it’s less common due to high costs and the “heavy” look concrete structures have.

Researchers Norman Hack, Hendrik Lindemann, and Harald Kloft from the Technical University Braunschweig published a paper, titled “Adaptive Modular Spatial Structures for Shotcrete 3D Printing,” about their work developing a “modular, digital construction system” for making lightweight spatial structures out of reinforced concrete.

The abstract reads, “For design and fabrication, a digital workflow is presented, which includes the rationalization of a freeform geometry into adaptive spatial modules made up entirely of planar components. For fast and precise fabrication, these components are 3D printed using a novel 3D concrete printing technology called “Shotcrete 3D Printing”. The ongoing research is demonstrated by an initial real-scale prototype of one exemplary spatial module.”

The goal was to create an “integrative digital construction system for adaptive modular spatial structures,” using reinforced concrete, that considers construction site logistics, economic and ecological aspects, fabrication constraints, material properties, and structural performance.

“In view of that, this paper describes a digital construction system and a digital workflow, in which a freeform geometry is first rationalized into planar panels, secondly developed into spatial modules, and which can finally be fabricated rapidly and without causing construction waste using 3D concrete printing technology,” the researchers explained.

Contemporary examples for spatial structures in reinforced concrete: (a), Hedracrete; (b) Opticut; (c) XTree column in Aix-en-Provence.

Several other research groups have looked into using reinforced concrete for creating geometrically complex and structurally optimized lattice constructions, including:

• The Hedracrete Pavilion, which looked at spatially complex polyhedral structures developed on 3D static graphics
• The Opticut project, which explored how to efficiently make topologically optimized structures with robotic abrasive wire cutting
• XTree, which used four segments of 3D printed concrete to make the formwork and temporary support structure for a truss-like column

The TU Braunschweig team referenced a different project – that of Pier Luigi Nervi, who developed aircraft hangers for the Italian Air Force that were based on a lattice shell system of pre-made, spatial truss girders. He created a system of planar, prefabricated concrete trusses that, when assembled, formed a vault structure shaped like a diamond. Then, the trusses were monolithically joined by casting concrete into the gaps.

Prefabricated Air Force hangars, Pier Luigi Nervi, Orvieto, 1939: (a) interior view of the lattice shell before the planking; (b) prefabricated truss girders during assem-bly; (c) detail of the joint before casting.

This method, which saved Nervi time, weight, and material, inspired the researchers in their efforts to create a spatial structural system with identical components.

Their construction system concept is based on a digital workflow that starts with rationalizing a freeform geometry into spatial modules of planar components. Next, these modules are digitally unfolded so fabrication paths can be generated, and the components are then 3D printed as planar elements.

Because all the elements in the structure had to be planar, the workflow needed to rationalize “a given freeform NURBS surface into spatial modules” of quadrilateral planar components. At the last stage, the planar quadrilaterals are transferred into a spatial lattice structure that’s been adapted to a specific loading condition. Then, the coordinates and tool speed are translated into G-code that can be used with Siemens Sinumeric.

Module generation: (a) initial surface subdivided into double curved quadrilaterals with colours indicating the double curvature; (b) planarized quadrilateral grid with double curved surfaces providing structural depth (c) planarized quadrilateral grid with planar spatial structure, the single colour indicates planarity.

Final geometry: (a) Planar and structurally adapted structure with thicker parts marked in orange and more slender members in blue; (b) top-view of the structure and digitally unrolled modules.

Robotic setup was completed at the university’s Digital Building Fabrication Laboratory: a robotic fabrication facility that uses both additive and subtractive manufacturing methods to produce large-scale structures. The team installed a planar wooden baseplate in the workspace, and then uploaded the fabrication data for each module component, before starting the concrete mixing process.

The researchers used their novel Shotcrete 3D printing (SC3DP) technology, which doesn’t just extrude the material but also sprays it with pressure to build a 3D structure. This method offers superior layer adhesion, can integrate reinforcements, and offers “the potential to spray against vertical surfaces and overhangs.”

Fabrication: (a) Spraying of the elements; (b) cutting the edges in the concrete’s green state; (c) smoothing the mitered surface-edge.

Each of the module’s three components were 3D printed separately. After the first two layers were printed, 8 x 100 cm strips from a carbon fiber reinforcement grid were placed on top, and the final layer was printed and sprayed on to embed it.

After green post-processing and two days of curing, the 60 kg planar elements were detached from the baseplate. The final 2.2 x 1.5 x 1 m prototype, printed in just 25 minutes with 12 minutes of spraying and eight minutes of post-processing, is part of a larger structure that was assembled in just five minutes.

Assembling one module: (a) assembly with three people; (b) assembled element; (c) positioning using a crane.

“Spraying resulted in good compaction, was fast and offered consistent height control. However, the starting and stopping procedures of the spraying process are not yet precisely controlled, requiring to extend the starting and ending point of the contour,” the researchers wrote. “With regards to the reinforcement, it became apparent, that using pre-cut strips of carbon fiber mats is an effective measure to reduce the structural thickness of the elements. However, the manual placement did not prove to be not sufficiently precise, causing collision conflicts during the cutting of the edges during post-processing…Due to the low weight of the components, the assembly was possible with only three persons. As no connection mechanisms were integrated in this first prototype, lashing belts were used to connect the components.”

The researchers concluded that more investigation is required, such as further developing the computational workflow and module fabrication. The next stage will be to “realize larger spatial structures” made with several modules and perform a structural test.

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In the recently published ‘Development of 3D printer for functionally graded material using fused deposition modelling method,’ researchers discuss current obstacles in the fabrication of parts and prototypes as users are so often restricted to the use of one material—making it difficult to 3D print functionally graded material (FGM). Here, the research team explains how the issue can be overcome with FDM 3D printing customizations. Using a specialized extrusion screw, the team has been able to blend the polymer matrix and filler continually during 3D printing.

This research was performed in response to a restricted number of options in materials, although metal 3D printing is a relative newcomer in terms of popularity for industrial companies around the world, featuring a wide range of composites like:

• Aluminum oxide
• Iron
• Copper
• Ceramics
• Silicon carbide
• Fibers

Mechanical properties of polymers can be greatly improved with Kevlar, along with glass and continuous carbon fiber; in fact, the researchers state the tensile strength can be increased by 6.3 times with the addition of carbon or glass.

“Similarly, tensile strength and modulus of ABS can be reinforced with carbon fiber which yielded the increase of 115% and 700% respectively. Conductive material can be formed with polypropylene (PP)-based thermoplastic composites. This material can be formed by heating and blending homopolypropylene (SCG) with carbon black using a single-screw extruder,” state the researchers.

Electrical characteristics of PP-based composite filaments vs weight percentage of carbon black

The concept graduates further to include an FGM, a unique material as it can change according to volume—even transforming in a controllable direction, with the simplest form made up of one that changes into a continuous form, and the other into a stepwise graded structure.

(a) Continuous structure (b) stepwise graded structure.

“One of the famous FGM examples was compositionally graded from metal to ceramic,” stated the researchers. “Some of the useful properties of ceramics and metals can be incorporated into the FGM to achieve good wear resistance, oxidation and heat resistance, toughness, machinability and able to reduce the internal thermal stress.”

Along with the prestige of being used in reusable rocket engines, FGM is also suitable for many different applications, to include:

• Biomaterials
• Optics
• Nuclear energy
• Engineering
• Aerospace
• Chemical plant
• Electronics
• Energy conversion
• Commodities

FGM are not easy to produce through conventional methods, but 3D printing offers the perfect route via the ability to print in layers. Flexibility is still an issue though; to combat that problem, the research team built an FDM 3D printer with the flexibility to customize mixing using an embedded screw extruder, allowing the printer to use two or more materials at the same time during 3D printing, controlled through a programmable logic computer (PLC).

“In the near future, all newly developed materials can be directly used in the printing process without any issues associated to the availability of such feedstock’s filament. These changes will enable designer to perform complicated design without constraint by the manufacturing process. Biomimicry design could soon be realized with this new printing method as most of the biomimicry design such as bones, bamboos are similar to FGM,” concluded the researchers.

“Additionally, this concept is scalable as it is design based on the PLC platform used by the industry, which can be easily scaled to a larger size to accommodate large printing volumes. Overall, development of 3D printer to process FGM will be the turning point to widen the application of AM technology.”

As 3D printing processes continue to progress, there are a wide variety of new techniques for FDM 3D printing to include better speeds, along so many different composites, from carbon fiber to wood and more. What do you think of this news? Let us know your thoughts! Join the discussion of this and other 3D printing topics at 3DPrintBoard.com.

Design simulation of the (a) mixing index and (b) local shear rate at the metering
zone for polymer flow within a single screw extrusion

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In ‘Applying Neural-Network-Based Machine Learning to Additive Manufacturing: Current Applications, Challenges, and Future Perspectives,’ authors Xinbo Qi, Guofeng Chen, Yong Li, Xuan Cheng, and Changpeng Li investigate how machine learning (ML) and neural network algorithms (NN) can be applied to additive manufacturing.

While the many benefits of AM processes continue to be uncovered, availing themselves to countless industries today, there are still numerous drawbacks and scenarios for defects which continue to challenge users around the world—from porosity to anisotropic microstructures, to distortion, and more.

Application of an NN model to predict the deformation of an AM structure. (a) Specimens, which are manufactured and tested under controlled loading conditions; (b) the FEM, whose simulation results are validated by specimens; (c) the NN, which is trained by the data generated by the FEM, and then used to predict the deformation history in a faster way than the FEM. FC: Fully-connected layers. Reproduced from Ref. [31] with permission of Elsevier, © 2018.

Prototypes may not always require perfection as simple models, however, parts meant for true functional, industrial use must be strong and produced without threat to their overall integrity. The authors point out the importance of understanding the following:

• Powder’s metallurgical parameters
• 3D printing process
• Microstructure
• Mechanical properties of AM parts

In machine learning, the NN algorithm is only increasing in popularity for use and is currently under ‘rapid development,’ most often employed in computer vision, voice recognition, language processing, and self-driving vehicles. It is a supervised type of ML, operating with labeled data, and within additive manufacturing is showing good suitability for ‘agile manufacturing’ in industry.

“The NN has exerted a deep and wide impact on all value chain innovation in industry—from product design, manufacturing, and qualification to delivery—and it is believed that the impact of NN will be increasingly intensive,” state the researchers.

The most common types of NNs are:

• Multilayer perceptron (MLP)
• Convolutional neural network (CNN)
• Recurrent neural network (RNN)

Scheme of the AM quality monitoring and analyzing system. The workflow is as follows: An acoustic signal is emitted during the AM process, and then captured by sensors; an SCNN model is finally applied to the recorded data in order to distinguish whether the quality of the printed layer is adequate or not. Reproduced from Ref. [35] with permission of Elsevier, © 2018.

In design for additive manufacturing, the engineers create a CAD model which was then applied in analytical software for AM simulation. Many deviations are found, however, when comparing the models to the actual 3D prints—often due to stress during production and resulting distortion. The researchers state that they usually perform compensation for better accuracy.

Sensors have been created for the hardware and software, and a variety of different sensors can be used for in situ measurements too.

“The scope of this work covers many variants of NNs in various application scenarios, including: a traditional MLP for linking the AM process, properties, and performance; a convolutional NN for AM melt pool recognition; LSTM for reproducing finite-element simulation results; and the variational autoencoder for data augmentation. However, as they say, ‘every coin has two sides.’”

“It is difficult to control the quality of AM parts, while NNs rely strongly on data collection. Thus, some challenges remain in this interdisciplinary area. We have proposed potential corresponding solutions to these challenges and outlined our thoughts on future trends in this field,” concluded the researchers.

Machine Learning is often connected with 3D printing, from varying monitoring methods and smarter metal additive manufacturing, to construction. What do you think of this news? Let us know your thoughts! Join the discussion of this and other 3D printing topics at 3DPrintBoard.com.

Scheme of the SLM process monitoring configuration. A high-speed camera is used to capture sequential images of the built process; a CNN model is applied to identify quality anomalies. ROI: region of interest. Reproduced from Ref. [37] with permission of Elsevier, © 2018.

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Fortify, known for their next-generation composites and Digital Composite Technology (DCM), has just completed a $10M Series A funding led by Accel. The Boston-headquartered additive manufacturing start-up also received funding from Neotribe, Prelude Ventures, and Mainspring Capital Partners. Following a previous seed round this year also, yielding $2.5M, this latest funding will support the Fortify’s Discovery Partner Program and further growth of the Fortify team as they continue to create technology to be used in applications like aerospace, manufacturing, and automotive—with end-use parts in electrical connectors, impellers, mixers, and specialty drones.

Fortify is known for their use of magnetics (Fluxprint technology) and digital light processing 3D printing, allowing them to fabricate parts made with composites, therefore imbued with high-performance mechanical properties. Composite research was performed at Northeastern University by Dr. Randall Erb and Dr. Joshua Martin. The company has already seen huge growth this year, with its staff doubling, and new office space required for its overall expansion.

“Now more than ever before, it’s vital that the U.S. economy has a strong manufacturing ecosystem,” said Eric Wolford, venture partner at Accel. “Fortify is uniquely positioned to help lead the resurgence of American manufacturing by using tech to produce best-in-class parts for the digital age. We’re thrilled to support the entire Fortify team as they continue to set a new standard in manufacturing.”

Fluxprint

The Discovery Partner Program gives a select number of Fortify customers earlier access to DCM. Currently, Fortify has noted ‘dramatic improvements’ for users 3D printing with the DCM platform. Fortify says that users also report up 10-100x in improvements, when comparing to 3D prints of other types. Molds are being supplied for customers right now, with beta machines going out in early 2020. Their new Fortify Fiber Platform has just been rolled out also, as the company continues to work with companies like DSM and BASF.

 “Material properties are the dominant factor driving adoption of Additive Manufacturing across industries,” said Ben Arnold, Fortify VP of Business Development. “Our open materials platform leverages the world’s leading polymer chemists as they continually innovate. We reinforce these base resin with fiber as we print to gain significantly higher levels of performance. It’s quite exciting that even in this early stage of the company, we have customers buying parts for use in production applications”

“We’ve achieved so much since our founding, and we’re eager to expand on our platform capabilities,” said Josh Martin, CEO and founder of Fortify. “With the support of our investors, we will focus on innovation, bring our technology to new partners, and grow our product offerings.”

Notable new hires include industry veteran Ben Arnold as VP Business Development, most recently of Desktop Metal and Dave Colucci, formerly of Soft Robotics, as their new Embedded Systems Lead Engineer.  

Researchers around the world are involved in the realm of 3D printing materials, from biomaterials to self-healing capsules, and even soft materials for robotics. What do you think of this news? Let us know your thoughts! Join the discussion of this and other 3D printing topics at 3DPrintBoard.com.

Digital composite manufacturing

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