This week, more than 32,000 visitors will converge on Frankfurt to attend Formnext 2024, Europe’s leading additive manufacturing trade show. It starts today and goes until this Friday, November 22nd, and we’ve already seen plenty of announcements ahead of the event. We’ll summarize several more for you here!

BCN3D Secures Investment Round, Unveils New Factory

Barcelona-based 3D printing solutions manufacturer BCN3D announced that it’s secured an important new investment round, which will help drive its growth in the light industrial 3D printing market. The investment is backed by established Spanish companies from traditional industrial sectors. The announcement aligns with BCN3D’s move to a new production facility, which, after a ramp-up phase, is now fully operational. Additionally, the funding coincides with the one-year anniversary of its flagship industrial FFF 3D printer, the Omega I60, designed for production tooling and durable prototypes. The 60-liter printer has been adopted by companies in many key sectors, especially in manufacturing and engineering industries. That’s because features like a heated chamber and materials operation system for spool recovery and humidity control make the printer a good option for users interested in scaling up.

“Our ambitions have always been bold, but we recognize that a focused approach is essential to deliver outstanding results for our customers. By concentrating on light industrial additive manufacturing, we can allocate resources where they drive the greatest impact,” said Pol Domenech, General Manager of BCN3D. “Supported by our new facility and recent investment, this strategic direction positions BCN3D to meet the evolving needs of the 3D printing market and drive innovation forward.”

BCN3D will be at Formnext booth B120, Hall 12.1, exhibiting its entire recalibrated product lineup, including customer applications and the new Omega Impact ABS material for the Omega I60.

AMAZEMET Introduces Powder2Powder Atomization System

Schematic diagram of novel Powder2Powder technology

At Formnext, Warsaw University of Technology spinoff AMAZEMET will unveil its new Powder2Powder (P2P) atomization system, which can both recycle metal powders and produce custom pre-alloy powders. Ultrasonic atomization and plasma processing are combined to transform oversized or irregular particles into satellite-free, spherical ones that are optimized for 3D printing. The system can handle a wide range of metal powders, and minimizes waste by converting powders that would normally be unusable into AM-ready material. The company ran numerous trials of the P2P system with +200 μm oversize and irregular Ti alloy powders, and reported excellent results, including precisely controlled particle size distribution (PSD), and nearly 97% of the resulting powder was suited for AM processes, including EBM, LPBF, and DED. The patented technology can also process elemental powder blends, which enables the creation of pre-alloyed materials tailored to specific chemical compositions.

“The Powder2Powder system goes beyond recycling. It gives manufacturers the ability to customize powder compositions, improve powder sphericity, and optimize particle size distribution, solving critical issues in the AM industry,” said Łukasz Żrodowski, inventor and CEO of AMAZEMET. “We’re excited to debut this at Formnext 2024, where we’ll showcase how it can enhance the efficiency and sustainability of powder-based manufacturing.”

The P2P atomization system is set for release in Q1 2025, but you can see it for yourself this week at AMAZEMET’s Booth E61, Hall 12.0.

EOS Adds Two Nickel-based Superalloys for Industrial 3D Printing

EOS IN738 turbine blades

EOS announced an expansion of its metal material portfolio by adding two new nickel-based superalloys for industrial 3D printing. The first one is EOS NickelAlloy IN738, meant for high-stress energy and turbomachinery applications. Featuring 4.5 elongation and a tensile strength of 1,265 MPa, this material combines heat resistance and high strength. In comparison to conventionally manufactured superalloys, EOS IN738 is able to withstand higher-temperature environments, showing much less deterioration in high-stress applications like turbine blades. Canadian company Precision ADM provided an early use case for this material, 3D printing turbine blades for an energy customer dealing with supply chain and spare part inventory shortages.

EOS K500 pump housing

Developed at the request of a major space launch organization, the new EOS K500 nickel-based superalloy is cost-effective and corrosion-resistant. Thanks also to its strength and moderate thermal conductivity, this material can bridge the performance of copper alloys and nickel alloys, making it great for chemical, maritime, and space applications, like thrusts, nozzles, and chemical processors making valves and pumps. Both EOS IN738 and EOS K500 will be commercially available for all M 290 family platforms next month, and for the M 400-4 in the first half of 2025. You can hear more about these new nickel-based superalloys at the EOS Booth D41, Hall 11.1, at Formnext this week.

Xenia Introduces New Line of 3DF Materials For Filament-Based FDM

Materials company Xenia has plenty of expertise with thermoplastic materials, and initially developed and produced high-performing, fiber-reinforced thermoplastic composites for injection molding. But at Formnext 2023, the Italian firm launched a 3DP Materials business, developed after optimizing its fiber-reinforced formulations for large-scale pellet-based AM extrusion systems. At this year’s event, Xenia will introduce a new line of materials from its recently created 3DF Materials division for filament-based FDM 3D printing solutions. The company says its materials provide “exceptional properties, including lightweight design, robust strength, superior chemical resistance and sustainability.” As such, this new line includes materials that meet the technical demands of many challenging projects in a range of industries, such as defense, aerospace, automotive, consumer goods, automotive and motorsports, and oil & gas.

There are four filaments in this new line:

• XECARB SL 3DF, a super-light, structural, PLA-based material, reinforced with 15% carbon fiber
• XELIGHT 3DF, an ultralight, flexible material with impact resistance and a Peba polymer base
• XECARB 45 3DF, a high-performance material made from structurally modified PVDF and reinforced with 10% carbon fiber
• XEGREEN 23 3DF, a 100% recycled thermoplastic composite, reinforced with 20% carbon fiber

Xenia will introduce its new 3DF Materials line at its Formnext Booth G48, Hall 12.1.