KraussMaffei has announced the launch of two polymer additive manufacturing systems at the K show.
The German manufacturer of injection moulding equipment teased its entry into the 3D printing market back in June, as reported by TCT’s sister publication Interplas Insights, and with today's debut in Dusseldorf, KraussMaffei CEO Dr. Michael Ruf says it is “opening up additive manufacturing technology for industrial production.”
Dr. Ruf said: "Using our expertise gleaned from series production of plastic parts, we are designing efficient system concepts and appropriate solutions for every component, regardless of the technology. For us, this is about taking our capacity for productivity, quality and efficiency in industrial plastics processing and applying it to additive manufacturing solutions."
The two machines, powerPrint and precisionPrint, are based on plastic granulate and resin-based 3D printing processes and aimed at applications in medical, construction and foundry markets.
Rolf Mack, Head of Additive Manufacturing, commented: "The advantage for customers is two-fold: optimum component properties are achieved at favourable material costs; and short setup times and the use of common software solutions for print preparation also enable rapid implementation from component design to printing. In developing this, our goal was optimal application-specific processing of thermoplastic materials to ensure production according to industrial standards."
precisionPrint from KraussMaffei
The powerPrint leverages an extrusion-based technology to process thermoplastic granulates, including fibre-reinforced plastics, for the production of near-net-shape components up to 10 m³ which can be printed and then milled. KraussMaffei says the system promises high discharge rates at fast printing speeds.
The second system, the precisionPrint, is built on stereolithography technology and targeted towards ‘industrial-scale automated production’ due to its high throughput rates, surface quality and high resolution.
Mack added: "Production with almost no material loss and great design possibilities – we bring these additive manufacturing advantages from prototyping to industrial series production of plastic components. Together with our customers, we rethink plant concepts and find efficient additive manufacturing solutions for a wide range of application areas."
The company says it will enter beta testing with customers next year before launching the machines onto the market.
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