Markforged Debuts Metal/Advanced Composite Industrial 3D Printer
New metal printing capability for the FX10 will boost adoption on the factory floor, company says.
With this kit, the FX10 is an industrial 3D printer that can print metal filaments and composites with continuous fiber reinforcement. Image courtesy of Markforged.
August 27, 2024
Markforged Holding Corp. unveils the FX10 Metal Kit, a print engine that brings metal printing capability to the FX10. With this kit, the FX10 is an industrial 3D printer that can print metal filaments and composites with continuous fiber reinforcement.
“The FX10 supercharges other equipment on the factory floor to be better utilized and run more efficiently, increasing productivity and reducing potential line down events,” says Shai Terem, CEO of Markforged.
The FX10, released in November 2023 as a composite-only printer, was designed to be a functional tool on the factory floor and has received feedback from early customers. With its modular architecture, upgrades like the Metal Kit enable customers of the FX10 to gain value from the machine after purchase.
Markforged also announced a new 316L stainless steel metal filament to be used with the FX10 Metal Kit. Users will also be able to print in 17-4PH with additional support for other Markforged metal filaments in the future.
“We designed the FX10 to be a modular platform, so that we are able to release new innovations and upgrades without customers having to purchase a new printer every year,” said Terem. “Along with new software capabilities we release regularly, the FX10 Metal Kit is poised to provide continuously growing value on factory floors for years to come.”
The FX10 Metal Kit consists of a swappable print engine that includes a metal-specific print head, material feed tubes, routing back, and dual pre-extruders. An FX10 can be swapped between metal and composite as many times as needed, and the swap takes about 15 minutes.
Similar to the 5th Generation Continuous Fiber Reinforcement (CFR) print system in the FX10 that prints nearly twice as fast as previous composite printers, the 2nd-generation Metal FFF engine, built on years of Markforged’s experience printing metal, prints faster than previous Markforged metal systems. FX10 combines faster print speed with a print volume twice as large compared to Markforged’s prior industrial metal printers.
Metal prints are built from the metal filament and a ceramic release filament. The ceramic release is extruded as an interface between the part and supports for ease of separation and removal. Once metal prints are complete, they must be washed and sintered in Markforged’s Wash-1 and Sinter-2 solutions. Eiger, Markforged’s slicer and print management software automates the process, including scaling parts to account for shrinkage during sinter.
The Digital Forge is the additive manufacturing platform that enables every aspect of the FX10 and is purpose-built to integrate into existing manufacturing ecosystems. With the Digital Forge, users can share parts across their organization, and monitor fleet performance from a central location.
Markforged will showcase the FX10 Metal Kit at the International Manufacturing Technology Show in Chicago, September 9-14, at booth 432305 where it will be printing in continuous fiber-reinforced composites and metal.
Sources: Press materials received from the company and additional information gleaned from the company’s website.
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