Foundations for Growth: AM News Roundup for December 5-16

ICYMI: As 2022 comes to a close, several additive manufacturing organizations are establishing foundations for growth and reaching milestones. Investments and collaboration with Lockheed Martin were announced by Sintavia and Fortify. SyBridge Technology will acquire assets from Radius. Hexagon invested in Divergent for a new automotive vehicle production process. Fortius Metals, and Continuum raised millions in funding to expand production. Collaborations between Mott and Conflux for 3D printed thermal solutions, and between ABCorp and BATS-TOI additively manufacture smart multisport headgear were announced.  3D Systems, GE Additive, and Velo3D have new executives. Milestones include Desktop Metal’s installations surpassing 1,100 units and OssDsgn’s updated patient data on their patient-specific cranial implant. Looking to 2023 an beyond, the additive manufacturing community will have access to new materials from Belena, Essent Biologics, and Uniformity Labs, as well as software from Authentise.

Here’s a quick look at these stories and more.

Fortius Metals Raises Seed Round of $2M from AM Ventures to Bring Advanced Metal 3D Printing to the Aerospace Industry: Fortius Metals, Inc. has closed on a priced seed financing round with AM Ventures. The $2M round will be used to scale manufacturing capacity, grow the company and accelerate its go-to-market strategy focused on large format metal 3D printing. READ MORE

Desktop Metal Installations of Additive Manufacturing Systems for Metal Parts Now Surpass 1,100 Units Worldwide: Desktop Metal announced the company has installed more than 1,100 3D printing systems for metal components worldwide. More than 80% of installed systems worldwide are direct metal 3D printing systems. READ MORE

Lockheed Martin and Sintavia Team Up to Advance Metal Additive Manufacturing:  Lockheed Martin Corporation and Sintavia announced a collaboration to expand research of metal additive manufacturing (AM) opportunities as an alternative to castings and forgings. READ MORE

Balena Steps Out with 100% Biodegradable Footwear: Balena announced the debut of its eco-chic BioCir Slides, made of its proprietary, 100% biodegradable plastic. The biodegradable material can be treated like any other and used in regular injection molding processes as well as 3D printing. READ MORE

3D Systems Names Dr. Joe Zuiker and Dr. Brent Stucker as Executive Leaders: 3D Systems announced that Dr. Joe Zuiker will join the company as Executive Vice President, Engineering and Operations, effective December 12, 2022. In addition, industry veteran Dr. Brent Stucker is appointed Chief Technology Officer – Additive Manufacturing. READ MORE

SyBridge Technologies to Acquire Certain Assets of Fast Radius: SyBridge Digital Solutions will acquire certain assets of Fast Radius. The sale is subject to bankruptcy court approval and is expected to close before the end of 2022. SyBridge is acquiring most of the operating assets of Fast Radius, and intends to make offers of employment to a majority of current employees. READ MORE

Velo3D to Transform its Production Operations With the Hiring of Brad Kreger as Executive Vice President of Operations: Velo3D has appointed Brad Kreger as Executive Vice President of Operations to support the company’s goals in production growth, quality standards, and cost reduction. READ MORE

Authentise announces Flows & FlowsAM: Authentise released its rebranded workflow management suite for both additive and non-additive applications. Flows is the product of a decade of experience building data-driven solutions for the world’s most agile operations at Boeing, Danfoss, and Ricoh, among others. READ MORE

Fortify Receives Strategic Investment From Lockheed Martin Ventures: Fortify has received a strategic investment from Lockheed Martin Ventures, the venture capital arm of Lockheed Martin Corporation. The funds will be used for process and material development of additive manufacturing of RF (radio frequency) devices. READ MORE

Essent Biologics Launches Micronized Bone Matrix for 3D Bioprinting and Tissue Engineering Applications: Essent Biologics™ announced availability of its Micronized Bone Matrix (MBM) for 3D bioprinting and tissue engineering applications. Essent Biologics will provide a mineralized allograft bone matrix derived from human ground cortical bone that contains native proteins, such as Collagen Type I, and native elements and minerals, such as calcium and phosphorus. READ MORE

Continuum™ Secures $36 Million in Funding Led by Ara Partners to Support Rapid Advancement of the Circular Metals Economy: Continuum^™ announced it has raised a total of $36 million in funding led by Ara Partners. The investment will fund accelerated expansion of 100% recycled commercial metal powder production to meet growing customer demand for sustainable materials. READ MORE

Boom Supersonic announces Symphony™, the sustainable and cost-efficient engine for Overture: Boom Supersonic announced Symphony, a new propulsion system designed and optimized for its Overture supersonic airliner. Boom also announced that it will be teaming with three industry leaders to develop Symphony including Florida Turbine Technologies (FTT) for engine design, GE Additive for additive technology design consulting, and StandardAero for maintenance. READ MORE

Australian-US Advanced Manufacturers Collaborate on Novel Thermal Solutions in North America: Mott and Conflux announced a partnership to bring Conflux’s 3D printed thermal solutions to North American markets. Conflux’s additively manufactured heat exchangers improve thermal management of critical components across a multitude of industries, including for advanced aircrafts. READ MORE

Uniformity Labs Ultra-Low Porosity UniFuse™ 316L 90um Stainless Steel Powder Delivers Improved Mechanical Properties at Much Higher Throughput for Laser Powder Bed Fusion: Uniformity Labs announced the availability of its UniFuse™ 316L ultra-low porosity stainless steel powder. The UniFuse™ 316L powder and optimized print processes have been used to create various parts in various industries with great success. READ MORE

GE Additive appoints Alexander Schmitz as CEO: GE announced today that Alexander Schmitz has been appointed as CEO of GE Additive, effective January 16, 2023. Based in Munich, Germany, Schmitz will report into GE Additive’s current chief executive, Riccardo Procacci, who takes on an expanded leadership role at GE Aerospace. READ MORE

Post-Market Surveillance Continues to Show Low Observed Complication Rates with OssDsign Cranial PSI: OssDsign AB announced updated complaints data from a long-term follow-up of the company’s innovative product OssDsign Cranial PSI, which is used in the treatment of cranial bone defects. The data, based on 1,995 surgeries, shows that the frequency of infections leading to implant removal was 1.4% after an average follow-up time of 21 months. READ MORE

ABCorp and BATS-TOI Partner to Manufacture Next Generation Smart Multisport Headgear with 3D Printing: ABCorp announced the partnership with sport technology startup BATS-TOI to manufacture The Mercado, advanced multisport headgear using 3D print technology. Initially designed to protect wrestlers against head injuries, The Mercado has evolved into a next-generation smart multisport headgear. READ MOREHexagon Invests $100 M in Autonomous and Sustainable Manufacturing through Divergent:  Hexagon AB announced a $100 M investment in Divergent Technologies Inc. Divergent has developed an alternative production process to traditional vehicle manufacturing called DAPS®, combining AI-optimized generative design software, additive manufacturing (3D printing) and automated assembly to build lightweight automotive parts and frames. READ MORE

Hear discussion on some of these stories during the next episode of AM News LIVE on January 9.