According to Avi Reichental, co-founder and executive chairman of Nexa3D, 3D printing is an unstoppable transformative force in every application area, and ultra-high-speed 3D printing is the next frontier in the field of additive manufacturing, and it is also an end user and strategic cooperation. Areas of high concern for partners, dealers and investors.
Recently, Nexa3D, a California-based SLA 3D printer manufacturer, announced that Nexa3D has joined Henkel ’s open materials platform, a leading global chemical company, and is working with Henkel to develop a series of co-branded photopolymer SLA resins. These materials will pass Nexa3D's global distribution channels.
New potential new business model combination
Through the newly established partnership, Nexa3D has now joined Henkel ’s material partner open platform. Both companies are committed to using their expertise in SLA 3D printing technology and high-performance resins to use Henkel materials to manufacture functional parts on NXE400 3D printers. The first material they collaborated with was optimized for the NXE 4003D printer and is an ABS 3D printing resin developed using Henkel Loctite material technology.
Henkel has a good track record in developing various 3D printing materials that overcome the shortcomings of conventional photopolymer resins used in 3D printing. Nexa3D has now developed a new 3843-xABS black material based on Henkel's Loctite material series. 3843-xABS black material has high bending and tensile physical properties, as well as high green strength and heat deformation temperature.
According to the market observations of 3D Science Valley, 3843-xABS black material is suitable for a variety of applications, including mechanical components for robots and automated machinery, brackets, levers and arms, and parts and components for transportation vehicles. It is also suitable for manufacturing such as drones product.
Henkel and Rapid Shape collaborated to develop novel 3D printing solutions, focusing on mass production of functional parts.
In addition to the jointly developed new materials, the two companies also plan to optimize Henkel ’s 3D printing resin product portfolio to Nexa3D`s NXE4003D printer platform to enable the creation of functional components in a wider range of applications.
The secret of Nexa3D's rapid printing is its Lubricant Sublayer Photo-curing (LSPc) technology, which is free from the process of slow curing from the bottom up, which is common in light curing technology. Another core technology is the patented structured light source matrix, which greatly shortens the 3D printing cycle of precision functional parts. From a few hours to a few minutes, the technology can combine high-speed and high-resolution 3D printing with convincing injection molding performance, size and scale manufacturing capabilities.
In addition to the characteristics of the device itself, Nexa3D launches customized solutions for different application fields and establishes strategic partnerships with partners in subdivided application fields. In the field of dentistry, Nexa3D has also established a strategic partnership with digital and traditional dental materials, 3D printers and service providers BEGO, which aims to transform the manufacturing status in the field of digital dentistry. Under the agreement, BEGO will sell high-speed Nexa3D dental printers. At the 2019 Cologne International Dental Exhibition (IDS), Nexa3D also introduced another new SLA system, Varseo XL, which was developed specifically for the dental industry. The cooperation between Nexa3D and BEGO makes the system compatible with BEGO's full range of dental resins.
In short, Nexa3D attaches great importance to each key node for high-speed production, materials, applications, sales network, manufacturing, etc. focus on leveraging force to establish partnerships with head companies on each key node, Compared with the more closed development mode, Nexa3D is similar to Android in the field of mobile phones, and adopts a comprehensive cooperation approach. Nexa3D hopes that this development strategy will create a unique competitive advantage for itself.