Collaboration Includes Integration in CO-AM Software Platform and Investment in New Automated Powder Removal Solution
BUFFALO, NY, USA – November 16, 2022 – PostProcess announces its partnership with Materialise, a global leader in 3D printing solutions, substantiated today by the integration of the PostProcess CONNECT3D® Software Platform into the Materialise CO-AM Platform. CONNECT3D was the first software platform to link the finishing, or post-processing, of a 3D printed part to its digital thread for an intelligent and automated additive manufacturing workflow. CONNECT3D leverages native CAD files, or 3D sliced files, and applies intelligence to define the necessary requirements to deliver optimal post-processing results and maximize customer value.
CO-AM’s open software platform manages the additive manufacturing (AM) production process more efficiently, giving manufacturers cloud-based access to software tools that allow them to plan, manage and optimize their 3D printing operations. With this CO-AM integration, CONNECT3D users now have the ability to seamlessly launch straight from within activities they’re performing in the CO-AM platform, offering convenience to both users and IT staff. Users can easily manage, organize and coordinate all PostProcess solutions from a unified system to fulfill project requirements. This ultimately helps reduce production errors, minimize downtime and improve efficiency with end-to-end visibility and control over the production process.
In addition to this important software integration milestone, Materialise recently chose PostProcess’ patent-pending Variable Acoustic Displacement™ (VAD) technology for automated powder removal. VAD leverages software intelligence to optimize mechanical energy and closed-loop thermal and displacement techniques for unmatched bulk de-powdering results. The powder removal and recovery achieved with VAD enables full process chain automation, providing customers like Materialise with enhanced sustainability and employee safety, repeatability and productivity, and lower overall operating costs.
Materialise selected the comprehensive VAD solution to automate the gross de-powdering of their production parts printed with SLS technology. VAD will enable a scalable and more sustainable manufacturing workflow, connecting the additive digital thread by leveraging the CONNECT3D platform and providing seamless integration with the Materialise production environment.
“We are excited to partner with Materialise to provide AM users everywhere with the automation they have been seeking for a long time,” commented Jeff Mize, CEO at PostProcess. “Materialise shares our vision for a more connected and sustainable additive manufacturing future, which is further evidenced by our collaboration on CO-AM and our VAD technology.”
“At Materialise, we value meaningful innovation, and we remain steadfast in our mission to innovate product development and manufacturing in ways that result in a better, safer and healthier world,” said Bart Van Der Schueren, CTO and EVP at Materialise. “Our collaborations with PostProcess to integrate our platforms and achieve an automated, sustainable post-processing solution in VAD directly support this mission.”