Desktop Metal now shipping Studio System across Europe

Desktop Metal has just announced it has started to ship its Studio System 3D printer to customers and resellers across Europe. The office-friendly metal 3D printer, which was first introduced in 2017, has already seen broad adoption across the United States by influential companies such as Ford, Stanley Black and Decker, Goodyear, Owens Corning, Google’s ATAP and John Zink Hamworthy Combustion.

The Burlington-based company is now ready to launch its metal AM system on the European market following the Studio System’s CE certification for international compatibility. The company says the 3D printer is being installed for customers across Europe, including in France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Portugal, Spain, the Netherlands and the UK.

“When Desktop Metal first launched, we set forth a mission to fundamentally change how the world designs and produces metal additively manufactured parts, from functional prototyping to mass manufacturing,” commented Ric Fulop, CEO and Co-Founder of Desktop Metal. “We have been delivering on that vision throughout the U.S. and Canada, and are now ready to step onto the global stage to further accelerate our business expansion and answer the impressive demand of the European market.”

Early customer highlights

Leading up to the shipment announcement, Desktop Metal has been working closely with a number of strategic customers across Europe, which have acted as early stage evaluators for its metal AM platform. These partners, operating in a range of different industries, have provided vital feedback to Desktop Metal about benchmark parts, materials, training and system usage.

Among the main benefits of the Studio System highlighted by the early stage evaluator companies were its size (the platform offers a 10 times larger sintering volume than competitive systems, enabling low-volume production for metal parts), part quality (the printer produces parts with good mechanical, material and surface qualities as well as high dimensional accuracy), and its safety (the system prevents exposure to solvents and does not require external ventilation, making it suitable for in-office use).

The Politecnico di Milano in Italy was an early adopter of the technology in the area of Mechanical, Aeronautical and Manufacturing Engineering—for which it ranks 7th globally. Bianca Maria Colosimo, PhD Professor and Deputy Head of the Department of Mechanical Engineering for Research, commented on the technology, saying:

“The Studio System completes the range of metal Additive Manufacturing solutions in our state-of-the-art AddMe lab. With the Studio System, we will be carrying out several types of research to explore novel solutions for additive manufacturing, including process modeling and optimization, benchmarking with other existing or newly-developed processes, in-situ monitoring and more.”

In France, industrial 3D printing service Edalis, precision engineering and AM expert Soprofame and boilerwork and welding company MSA have all reported positive early impressions of the Studio System.

“We decided to invest in the Desktop Metal Studio System in order to provide our customers a complementary solution to our machining expertise,” said Jean-Baptiste Frenel, Director at Soprofame. “This innovative technology will allow us to answer our customer needs with more effectivity and reactivity, bringing a real value added to our know-how and a differentiating offer in an ever-changing market.”

Other companies and groups, including BMW Group in Germany; Additive Italia srl (Add+It) in Italy; EGIBIDE and Centro Avanzado de Fabricación (IMH) in Spain; Weir Group and the city of Sheffield in the UK; Jade Groupe of Portugal; and BAZIGOS of Greece, are among the first customers to utilize Desktop Metal’s Studio System in Europe.

Bringing the Studio System to the world

Desktop Metal’s Studio System was developed with the aim of making metal additive manufacturing more accessible. The technology—which consists of a three-part solution including a 3D printer, debinder and furnace—has achieved this goal by enabling faster print rates for metal parts as well as eliminating the need for special facilities, expensive tooling and highly skilled operators.

With the Studio System, the whole metal AM process is automated thanks to Desktop Metal’s cloud-based software, providing a seamless workflow for the production of complex metal components.

According to Desktop Metal, Studio Systems around the globe have produced over 10,000 metal parts for various applications, including the functional prototyping of extruder nozzles and shock absorber pistons, jigs and fixtures, robotic end effectors, smartphone fixtures, tooling for zipper mold inserts, extrusion dies and low volume production of gears and motor mounts. In some cases, the Studio System has enabled drastic cost savings of up to 90% compared to machining and SLM.

With shipments underway in the U.S., Canada and Europe, Desktop Metal is also taking reservations for its Studio System in 48 countries, including in the Asia Pacific region, EMEA and Mexico. The company has a network of 85 sales partners and resellers across the world which are supporting its continue global growth.

Recently, Desktop Metal announced that it had shipped and installed the first Production System 3D printer for an undisclosed Fortune 500 company.