Formlabs introduces Alumina 4N Resin and Open Platform for Additive Manufacturing
Formlabs, based in Somerville, Massachusetts, USA, has relaesed Alumina 4N Resin for Additive Manufacturing as well as a new Open Platform option that allows for third-party materials, customisable build settings, and open material manufacturing. Additionally, the company is working to improve access to its Laser Beam Powder Bed Fusion (PBF-LB) AM ecosystem with the Fuse Starter Package, which includes the Fuse Depowdering Kit. This new material, along with Silicone 40A, was introduced at The Digital Factory Conference at SoWa Power Station in Boston, Massachusetts, on September 13, 2023.
“So much attention in the additive industry is focused on hardware, but materials are just as essential for delivering on our mission to create user-friendly, cost-effective 3D printing solutions so that anyone can make anything. That’s why we continue to innovate relentlessly in the material space, creating high-performance materials that unlock new possibilities in manufacturing, healthcare and other industries,” said Max Lobovsky, co-founder and CEO, Formlabs. “With Silicone 40A and Alumina 4N, we’re combining the flexibility and efficiency of 3D printing and the performance of silicones and ceramics, at a price point that anyone can afford. We’re thrilled to both expand our ecosystem and make our Fuse 3D printers more accessible so our customers and new users can truly create anything at an affordable price.”
Formlabs now offers forty-five proprietary resins, including Alumina 4N Resin. These high-performance materials are designed to meet the needs of automotive, manufacturing, and industrial applications.
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Alumina 4N Resin
As a technical ceramic with 98.6% relative density and 99.99% purity, Alumina 4N Resin is said to be reliable in extreme environments in manufacturing, defence, foundry, chemical, automotive, semiconductor, and other industries. By eliminating the need for expensive tooling, it reduces production costs and shortens development cycles.
“Alumina 4N Resin is remarkably easy to work with and plugs into our workflow seamlessly,” shared Benjamin Lam, Materials Research Engineer at the Air Force Research Laboratory. “It fits a need in the market, with a low barrier of entry that allows us to rapidly iterate on designs and produce parts at a comparably low cost.”
Open Platform expansion
Open Platform offers new solutions that are said to expand the capabilities of Formlabs’ Stereolithography, a Vat Photopolymerisation (VPP) Additive Manufacturing technology.
Certified Materials provides users with a curated selection of third-party resins, starting with resins from Kulzer GmbH to enable dental biocompatible applications for Formlabs’ customers in the APAC region. The Print Settings Editor is a new PreForm feature that allows advanced users to modify build settings to tailor their build performance.
Fuse Starter Package: SLS Additive Manufacturing
With the Fuse 1+ 30W at its core, the Starter Package is intended as a comprehensive solution which works to enable part production using high-performance materials. The Starter Kit includes the Fuse Depowdering Kit, which is an all-in-one depowdering solution for low-volume production and multiple materials. This grants access to a complete professional PBF-LB ecosystem for low-volume production at a low price point. Users can also add the Fuse Depowdering Kit to their operation to effortlessly switch between materials without the hassle of cleaning post-processing machinery.
