ROCK HILL, S.C., July 11, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- 3D Systems
(NYSE: DDD) today announced it has been awarded a $15 million contract by the Combat Capabilities
Development Command Army Research Laboratory, also known as ARL, to
create the world's largest, fastest, most precise metal 3D printer.
This printer will revolutionize key supply chains associated with
long-range munitions, next-generation combat vehicles, helicopters,
and air and missile defense capabilities. 3D Systems and the
National Center for Manufacturing Sciences (NCMS) were awarded
funding to create this revolutionary printer and will partner with
ARL and the Advanced Manufacturing, Materials, and Processes (AMMP)
Program to advance the leadership and innovation of the world's
strongest military.
According to the U.S. Army Additive Manufacturing Implementation
Plan, the Army has been using additive manufacturing (AM) for two
decades to refurbish worn parts and create custom tools. Once
developed, the Army will leverage its manufacturing experience by
placing the new large-scale systems in its depots and labs.
Subsequently, 3D Systems and its partners plan to make the new 3D
printer technology available to leading aerospace and defense
suppliers for development of futuristic Army platforms.
In each of these cases, the planned printer's unprecedented
large scale and precision will enable more efficient design and
production of long-term durable parts with reduced material usage,
as well as faster time to market with parts going into the field.
The printer's build envelope is planned to be 1000mm x 1000mm x
600mm, with ability to build minimum wall thickness of 100µm and
layer thickness of 30µm. This is a significant increase over
current large-scale metal 3D printers with a build envelope of
500mm x 500mm x 500mm.
"The Army is increasing readiness by strengthening its
relationships and interoperability with business partners, like 3D
Systems, who advance warfighter requirements at the best value to
the taxpayer," said Dr. Joseph
South, ARL's program manager for Science of Additive
Manufacturing for Next Generation Munitions. "Up until now, powder
bed laser 3D printers have been too small, too slow, and too
imprecise to produce major ground combat subsystems at scale. Our
goal is to tackle this issue head-on with the support of allies and
partners who aid the Army in executing security cooperation
activities in support of common national interests, and who help
enable new capabilities for critical national security supply
chains."
In addition to bringing a new metal AM solution to the Army, 3D
Systems will also evaluate the feasibility of integrating the new
technologies and processes into its existing portfolio of 3D
printer technologies.
"Through this project, we're looking forward to delivering a
working manufacturing system like no other," said Chuck Hull, co-founder and chief technology
officer, 3D Systems. "From the early years of 3D Systems, our
desire to innovate has been fueled by our customers' drive to be
leaders in their respective industries. The solutions we develop
have complemented many manufacturers' processes to help maintain
their competitive advantage. ARL has already realized the power of
AM to transform its operations. We look forward to collaborating
with them to scale and expand these capabilities by delivering
first-to-market processes, materials, and technologies."
"What 3D Systems is doing currently is nothing short of
pioneering," said Lisa Strama,
president and CEO, NCMS. "As the capstone project of the AMMP
Program, it will lead to critical breakthroughs for our members and
partners, enhancing performance and speeding innovations to market.
This technology will be not only transformational for supporting
our warfighter, but also across the supply chain."
Co-founded by industry pioneer, Chuck
Hull, who patented stereolithography in 1986, 3D Systems has
a broad portfolio of polymer and metal as well as 3D printing
tools. Recently, the company expanded its platform-centric
approach by announcing the DMP Factory 500, DMP Factory 350 and DMP
Flex 350 in collaboration with GF Machining Solutions. These
solutions are some of the first to combine scalable additive and
subtractive technologies.
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements made in
this release that are not statements of historical or current facts
are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking
statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other
factors that may cause the actual results, performance or
achievements of the company to be materially different from
historical results or from any future results or projections
expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. In many
cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by terms such
as "believes," "belief," "expects," "may," "will," "estimates,"
"intends," "anticipates" or "plans" or the negative of these terms
or other comparable terminology. Forward-looking statements are
based upon management's beliefs, assumptions, and current
expectations and may include comments as to the company's beliefs
and expectations as to future events and trends affecting its
business and are necessarily subject to uncertainties, many of
which are outside the control of the company. The factors described
under the headings "Forward-Looking Statements" and "Risk Factors"
in the company's periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange
Commission, as well as other factors, could cause actual results to
differ materially from those reflected or predicted in
forward-looking statements. Although management believes that the
expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are
reasonable, forward-looking statements are not, and should not be
relied upon as a guarantee of future performance or results, nor
will they necessarily prove to be accurate indications of the times
at which such performance or results will be achieved. The
forward-looking statements included are made only as of the date of
the statement. 3D Systems undertakes no obligation to update or
review any forward-looking statements made by management or on its
behalf, whether as a result of future developments, subsequent
events or circumstances or otherwise.
About 3D Systems
More than 30 years ago, 3D
Systems brought the innovation of 3D printing to the manufacturing
industry. Today, as the leading AM solutions company, it empowers
manufacturers to create products and business models never before
possible through transformed workflows. This is achieved with the
Company's best-of-breed digital manufacturing ecosystem - comprised
of plastic and metal 3D printers, print materials, on-demand
manufacturing services and a portfolio of end-to-end manufacturing
software. Each solution is powered by the expertise of the
company's application engineers who collaborate with customers to
transform manufacturing environments. 3D Systems' solutions address
a variety of advanced applications for prototyping through
production in markets such as aerospace, automotive, medical,
dental and consumer goods. More information on the company is
available at www.3dsystems.com.
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SOURCE 3D Systems