Last week seemed to be the moment for metal 3D printers, as several companies announced new models.
Metal 3D printing is one of the profitable segments in additive manufacturing, so it’s not a surprise that companies are spending effort to produce new equipment. Let’s take a quick look at each.
EOS M4 Onyx
EOS announced the M4 ONYX (image at top) and M4 ONYX FLX variant. These are large LBPF systems capable of making production metal parts in a range of materials. The M4 ONYX version includes six 400W lasers, up from four, meaning the system can potentially complete jobs 50% faster.
The ONYX FLX variant has “only” four 1kW lasers, but they are beam-shaping that allows for more flexibility when setting up complex print jobs.
EOS said the new ONYX systems can lower quality assurance expenses by 50%, and the system can achieve “more than 90% powder material recovery”. A new filtration system eliminates consumables and increases safety by neutralizing the condensate.
Farsoon FS1211M
Farsoon, one of the largest manufacturers of industrial 3D printers, announced a new machine, the FS1211M, an incredibly large metal 3D printer.
The FS1211M has a build volume of 1330 x 700 x 1700 mm, and is equipped with up to 16 lasers. Of note is that two of the build volume axes are greater than 1m, allowing for a new group of larger parts to be printed. Most other large systems have only one axis exceeding 1m in length.
Farsoon said that the 16 lasers enable the system to deposit up to 400 cubic cm of metal per hour, which is significant. That’s approximately 3.2kg of 316L steel per hour.
Colibrium Additive M Line 4 x 1 kW
Colibrium Additive (formerly GE Additive) upgraded their M Line with more powerful lasers. The M Line is designed for production applications, and includes all the necessary features to do so in a factory environment.
The upgraded machine moves the laser power from 400W to 1000W, theoretically speeding up print jobs by 2.5X. Materials available include Nickel X , Nickel 718, Ti6Al4V Grade 5, CoCrMo, and 316L stainless steel.
It’s good to see so many announcements. After the pandemic many companies slowed their R&D activities to conserve cash, and as a result there was a period where there were few announcements of significance. That period seems to be ending.
Via EOS, Farsoon and Colibrium Additive
