Stratasys has announced a new spin-off, Vulcan Labs, Inc., designed to advance Powder-Bed Fusion (PBF) additive manufacturing
Located in Belton, TX Vulcan's solutions are aimed at overcoming challenges in productivity, quality, and certification in end-use applications, initially focusing on production-ready metals applications.
Originating from the 2014 acquisition of the service bureau Harvest Technologies, Vulcan Labs is collaborating with application partners to advance technology accessibility and meet the stringent requirements of production-ready applications.
Vulcan Labs' solutions are currently being developed to include:
- Optimised build environments and unique multi-laser scan strategies
- Closed loop melt pool quality control
- Detailed Data Logging and Integration to the factory floor
- Automated powder handling and in-situ powder quality characterisation
- Automated calibration and build set-up capabilities
"Together, we'll continue to explore unique solutions that strengthen the production
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ecosystem across additive manufacturing," said David K. Leigh, CEO of Vulcan Labs, Inc. "Our team will bring a unique perspective to solving many of the issues from an end-user perspective. We're looking forward to delivering new solutions for customers to take control of their applications, while having the tools in place to manage their own quality."
"Vulcan's best-in-class team has both the experience and technical know-how necessary to bring PBF into real-world production - a vision perfectly aligned and complementary to our other activities in this space, including Stratasys Direct Manufacturing and our investment in LPW," said Stratasys CEO, Ilan Levin. "To provide Vulcan with the best path to achieve its vision, we decided to form a new and independent entity, with Stratasys as an equity stakeholder. We are delighted to continue supporting this team and look forward to collaborating with them and their partners to achieve this vision."
The focus on metal AM builds on Stratasys' recent announcement of a new metal AM technology, a first for the 3D printing leader and set to be launched at RAPID + TCT. At last year's event, the company also signed a strategic partnership focussed on product distribution with Desktop Metal, a startup which Stratasys was an early investor in and since then has also invested over $20 million in metal AM powder manufacturer, LPW Technology.
In the coming months, Vulcan will engage with partners and customers to evaluate and further develop Vulcan's solutions. Parties interested in joint development opportunities are encouraged to contact Vulcan Labs.
