3D Printing: The Stories We Missed This Week — November 19, 2016

On this week’s edition of “3D Printing: The Stories We Missed This Week,” we’ve got a whole array of stories from around the industry, from pizza-delivering drones to startup challenge winners. For starters, the Chinese global technology company Shining 3D became an official supporter of MyMiniFactory’s “Scan the World” initiative. Sigma Labs entered a partnership with Sweden-based Siemens Industrial Turbomachinery AB to install and evaluate PrintRite3D INSPECT on a metal 3D printer. At the start of the month, 3D printing service provider Paragon showcased the capabilities of their new NEOS 800 SLA machine at the UK-based Advanced Engineering Show. Belgium-based company Materialise has partnered with AddUp to develop a Build Processor that will run in the AddUp Manager software solution. The beloved 3D printed drone Flirtey is now delivering pizzas to customers across New Zealand. ZVerse was recently awarded the 2016 Technology Development Award for the development of their turnkey 3D printing platform LAYR. Lastly, 3D printing software solutions startup 3YOURMIND was the winner of the Start-up Challenge at this week’s formnext 2016 exhibition in Frankfurt, Germany.

Shining 3D Becomes Official Supporter of MyMiniFactory’s “Scan the World” Initiative

After launching their “Save the World ART” project earlier this year, Chinese global technology company Shining 3D is expanding their mission by becoming an official supporter of MyMiniFactory’s similarly styled “Scan the World” initiative. The 3D printing marketplace launched the project last year, aiming to create the world’s largest 3D printable museum. Currently, MyMiniFactory has accumulated over five thousand freely downloadable 3D models of well known statues and sculptures from all 5 continents, from the Venus de Milo at the Louvre Museum in Paris to the bust of Nefertiti at the Neues Museum in Berlin. Known for their own range of 3D scanning technology, Shining 3D has recently announced their support for the Scan the World project. The collaboration will build upon past joint events, such as when Shining 3D’s EinScan Pro 3D scanner was utilized at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. Sharing the similar goal of making the world’s finest art and artifacts digitally accessible, Shining 3D will aim to expand MyMiniFactory’s project with their 3D scanning technology.

Romain Kidd, CEO of MyMiniFactory, celebrated the sponsorship: “MyMiniFactory is excited to welcome Shining 3D as a sponsor. This partnership will confirm Scan the World as the leading source of quality 3D printable art. We are only at the beginning of this vision for building the museum of the future. Shining 3D, through its 3D scanning technology, will help give access to the increasing number of 3D printer owners around the to world famous and unique art pieces.”

Sigma Labs to Supply PrintRite3D Software to Siemens Industrial Turbomachinery AB

Leading the way in developing process control and quality assurance software for additive manufacturing, Sigma Labs has quickly become a household name for commercial 3D printing. After releasing their latest version of PrintRite3D INSPECT software back in August, Sigma Labs has now struck up a promising deal with the Finspång, Sweden-based Siemens Industrial Turbomachinery AB, a unit of the major tech giant Siemens AG that provides gas turbines and sustainable gas turbine solutions. The agreement will lead to having PrintRite3D INSPECT installed on a metal 3D printer for evaluation and testing purposes. Though additional terms of the agreement have not been disclosed, Sigma Labs President and CEO Mark Cola has confirmed that their software will be used to provide statistical process control and part quality assurance for burner repairs.

“Siemens plays a leading role in applying additive manufacturing across its highly-demanding gas turbine operations. We are proud to assist them in providing the highest quality 3D printed components for such technology applications, where Siemens is continuously working on further process improvements. We look forward to a close and beneficial partnership together,” said Cola.

Paragon Showcases NEOS 800 at Advanced Engineering Show in UK

After unveiling their new professional-grade NEOS 800 SLA 3D printer at TCT Show back in September, UK-based 3D printing company RP Support had their new printer integrated into the prototyping facility of manufacturing service provider Paragon Rapid Technologies. To promote the addition of this new machine, Paragon showcased the capabilities of the NEOS 800 at the Advanced Engineering Show at the NEC in Birmingham. The event is the UK’s largest gathering of manufacturing experts and professionals in the sectors of aerospace, automotive, and transportation. With one of the largest build platforms available from any UK-based service bureau, the large frame NEOS 800 build display impressed attendees throughout the event. Paragon was featured in the Automotive Engineering section of the show, where they discussed the prototyping opportunities provided by their latest SLA machine. Alongside other exhibitors, such as the North East Automotive Alliance (NEAA) and the Niche Vehicle Network, Paragon clearly established themselves as pioneers in the UK’s automotive industry.

Materialise and AddUp Join Forces to Develop Build Processor for Software Solution

Last year, the two major industrial groups Fives and Michelin joined forces to start Fives Michelin Additive Solutions, a joint venture aimed at developing and marketing metal 3D printing machines and production lines. This collaborative effort has led to the creation of their AddUp brand, which was started to provide industrial metal 3D printing solutions throughout the world. To take a step in that proposed direction, Fives Michelin Additive Solutions recently struck up a partnership with Belgium-based 3D printing service provider Materialise NV to create a Build Processor for their AddUp software. Their AddUp Manager is now powered by components of Materialise’s Build Processor software, providing users with proven slicing and scan path generation algorithms. This software was already up and running on the AddUp FormUp 350 machine that was displayed this past week at formnext 2016. All in all, Materialise’s Build Processor will allow AddUp’s users to have more control of the metal 3D printing process.

“There is a need in the Additive Manufacturing ecosystem for process control and quality standards. Without solid partnerships between several players in the industry, 3D printing technology will not reach its full potential. It is because of this that we are proud to announce our partnership with AddUp by Fives Michelin Additive Solutions, who are tapping into Materialise’s backbone of software solutions to give their users more control over the metal print process,” states Stefaan Motte, Vice President of Software at Materialise.

Flirtey Drone Delivers Domino’s Pizza to New Zealand Customers

Last year, the drone manufacturer Flirtey made a name for itself by completing the first-ever FAA approved drone delivery. Since then, the 3D printed Flirtey drone has helped deliver medical supplies and even 7-Eleven Slurpees, bringing us one step closer to a world where even package delivery is completely automated. A few months ago, Flirtey delivered the world’s first drone-delivered pizza to a lucky New Zealand customer, and now the 3D printed pizza drone is branching out across the country. This past week, the drone began autonomous delivery from Domino’s Pizza to select New Zealand homes. The drone manufacturer was able to ensure safety with their advanced autonomous technology, complex safety systems, and specialized packaging, all of which make Flirtey capable of withstanding different weather conditions and flight paths. According to a recent customer poll conducted by Domino’s Pizza, 70% of their customers would use the 3D printed DRU Drone for their deliveries. Flirtey’s drone is designed to accommodate the pizza chain’s current delivery fleet, and is also being fully integrated into online ordering and GPS systems.

“We are moving closer and closer to widespread store-to-door drone delivery,” said Matthew Sweeny, CEO of Flirtey. “To conduct these deliveries in an urban environment while delivering a hot, fresh pizza, is a ­­­validation of our delivery system that assures Flirtey is prepared for mass market deliveries around the globe.”

ZVerse Wins 2016 InnoVision Technology Development Award For LAYR Platform

This past week, the 3D printing solutions startup ZVerse was awarded the 2016 Technology Development Award at the InnoVision Awards dinner, which was held in Greenville, South Carolina. Recognized as a finalist for the accolade alongside Milliken and Clemson University, ZVerse was awarded for the development of LAYR, their turnkey 3D printing platform. The patent pending technology provides individual users and companies with the optimal path from an idea to a 3D printed object. LAYR was built to serve a wide range of industries, such as healthcare, manufacturing, architecture, education, and commercial printing industries. Their 3D printing solutions suite features modules for 3D content automation, an advanced user interface, access to ZVerse customer acquisition tools, 2D-to-3D automation, and workflow management. The InnoVision Awards event has been used to recognize innovative businesses in South Carolina since 1999, making this acknowledgment of innovation an extremely proud moment for the ZVerse team.

“Our team was proud just to be recognized as a finalist along with Milliken and Clemson University for the Technology Development Award. We are honored to have won against such incredible competition,” said John Carrington, CEO at ZVerse.

3YOURMIND Wins Start-Up Challenge at formnext 2016

As you probably know by now, 3DPrint.com has spent this week supplying in-depth coverage of the formnext 2016 exhibition in Frankfurt, Germany. There was a lot happening at the renowned tradeshow, including the second annual formnext Start-up Challenge, a competition between 3D printing companies that are younger than 5 years old. Though the competition was fierce, the Berlin-based 3D printing startup 3YOURMIND ended up winning the challenge. The company develops software solutions for industrial 3D printing, providing a comprehensive platform capable of analyzing 3D models, as well as comparing different materials and pricing. Their software is currently being used by businesses across the world, helping to streamline production workflows for a number of customers. With their victory in the Start-up Challenge, 3YOURMIND was awarded with a fully-equipped exhibition booth at the event, as well as integration into the marketing and communication activities of formnext 2016.

“Formnext enables us to connect our 3D printing software solutions with industry professionals and 3D-printing service providers from around the world. The award ensures that we are visible to leading companies so that we can reinvent additive manufacturing together,” said Stephan Kühr, Founder and CEO, 3YOURMIND.

Discuss in the Stories We Missed forum at 3DPB.com.