The chemical company ALTANA has announced the sale of a controlling stake of dp polar, a manufacturer of 3D printers, to 3D Systems. dp polar was founded in 2014 in Karlsruhe, Germany. It designs and supplies 3D printing systems for additive mass production for industry and healthcare. It uses its own patented rotary spraying process of resins onto the worktable (HSR), achieving unprecedented efficiency. The purchase price has not been disclosed, and the transaction is expected to be formally closed in the fourth quarter of 2022.
ALTANA invested in dp polar in 2017 and has since been working with a start-up to develop AMpolar i1 and i2 3D printing systems equipped with continuously rotating printing platforms. This approach speeds up component production and minimizes wear and vibration associated with traditional printhead movement. This means that the rotating platform can work with a variety of printing technologies and can handle pick-and-place robotic systems that can embed electronics or other functions into the component body during operation.
The dp polar printing platforms are designed for both prototyping and serial production, offering a print area of 1 to 2 square meters and can print layers with a thickness of 4 to 25 µm. The company announced in 2020 that it was using Xaar 1003 print heads to spray materials to produce parts such as electronic power plugs in the automotive space.
With the acquisition of dp fleece, 3D Systems will use its range of polymer materials as well as Oqton software technology to bring fast, mass additive manufacturing to a wide range of industries such as aerospace, automotive, foundry, consumer goods and healthcare.
Source: www.3dsystems.com
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