Protolabs upgrades seven HP systems to the Jet Fusion 4210 3D printing platform in the U.S. and Germany offering customers truly global digital production services
At the HP Innovation Summit in Barcelona, Spain, HP expanded installations of its HP Jet Fusion 3D printing solutions with digital manufacturing innovators Protolabs, Materialise, and ZiggZagg. As a leader in helping the world take advantage of digital technologies in the 4th Industrial Revolution, HP also showcased its collaboration with the International Additive Manufacturing (IAM) 3D Hub and highlighted numerous applications of 3D printing in action, including new lighter-weight helmets for the Pontifical Swiss Guard, custom merchandising for PepsiCo, airflow manifolds for high-performance auto racing, industrial machinery used in the construction of skyscrapers, and orthosis devices improving the quality of life for patients, amongst others.
“The digital transformation of the $12 trillion manufacturing industry is changing the game for the world’s designers, product developers, manufacturing and supply chain professionals, creating massive opportunity for the 3D printing ecosystem,” said Ramon Pastor, general manager of Multi Jet Fusion, HP Inc. “In collaboration with our customers, we are proud to reinvent the way the world designs and manufacturers and to drive innovative new applications made possible with HP Multi Jet Fusion. Whether it’s helping the Swiss Guard protect the Vatican or reinventing what can be done for an entire industry like orthopedics, the possibilities are endless.”
The HP Multi Jet Fusion platform enables the design and production of previously inconceivable applications. In addition to the innovative applications from Protolabs, Materialise, and ZiggZagg, as part of the HP Innovation Summit, HP showcased a variety of additional 3D printing applications across industries including:
- Custom designed helmets for the Pontifical Swiss Guard, who have been responsible for providing security to The Vatican, including protecting the Pope and the papal residence, since 1506. These state-of-the-art trained Swiss security professionals are clothed in the traditional renaissance uniform, and have begun wearing much lighter weight helmets 3D printed with HP Multi Jet Fusion.
- The ability to produce a 20 percent lighter bike helmet using Multi Jet Fusion is a tremendous advantage for Syncro Innovation, an industrial design firm located in Quebec, Canada. Printed by Sculpteo, a manufacturing service provider based in France, Syncro selected Multi Jet Fusion services for their consistent quality and cost effectiveness. Sculpteo recently added the HP Jet Fusion 4210 3D printer to its existing portfolio of Jet Fusion 4200 3D printers to support increased demand from customers including Syncro.
- daVINCI Painting Line Arm by FICEP Steel Surface Systems (FICEP Ss), an industrial engineering company specialized in Additive Manufacturing, Design, and R+D. FICEP S3 is using MultiJet Fusion to reduce the weight and further optimize over 40 percent of the daVINCI’s final production parts allowing for faster acceleration, deceleration and position control, with geometries that could not be machined or molded. This new machine is an evolution of the machines used in the structural steel industry to protect the steel used in buildings like the Freedom Tower in New York City or the Shard in London.
- Ankle Foot Orthosis by Crispin Orthotics, a UK-based specialist in modern orthotics. The capabilities of Multi Jet Fusion have the potential to completely reinvent the orthotics industry by enabling the creation of individualized, precise and more cosmetic options for patients. In addition to these advantages, Crispin’s dynamic ankle foot orthosis is printed on Multi Jet Fusion for 50 percent less than a comparable carbon fibre product.
- Industrial applications including a gripper for robots and mounting fixtures produced by Stern 3D, a leading digital manufacturer in Germany with 10 HP Jet Fusion 4200 3D systems. Known for conventional manufacturing for medical and automotive customers, Stern will now be offering customers the ability to quickly produce new parts with Multi Jet Fusion.
