Category Archives: IMTS 2018

Industrial 3D Printing Uses Layers Like We’ve Never Seen Before

Posted on by

We’ve seen FDM printers lay down layers by extruding plastic in a line. We’ve seen printers use sintering and lithography to melt or cure one layer at a time before more print medium moves into place for the next layer. What we’ve never seen before is a printer like this that builds parts from distinct layers of substrate.

At the International Manufacturing Technology Show last week I spoke with Eric Povitz of Impossible Objects. The company is using a “sheet lamination process” that first prints each layer on carbon fiber or fiberglass, then uses a hydraulic press and an oven …read more

Continue reading Industrial 3D Printing Uses Layers Like We’ve Never Seen Before→

3D Printing in Metal: the Laser and Metal Powder Printers We Saw at IMTS

Posted on by

Last week I went to the International Manufacturing Technology Show (IMTS) and it was incredible. This is a toy store for machinists and showcases the best of industrial automation. But one of the coolest trends I found at the show are all the techniques used to 3D print in metal. The best part is that many of the huge machines on display are actually running!

It’s probably better to refer to this as additive manufacturing, because the actual methods can be significantly different from your 3D printer. Below you’ll find examples of three different approaches to this process. I had …read more

Continue reading 3D Printing in Metal: the Laser and Metal Powder Printers We Saw at IMTS→