KraussMaffei enters additive manufacturing market

The powerPrint machine. Photo Credit: KraussMaffei Technologies GmbH

Germany-based plastics machinery manufacturer KraussMaffei Technologies GmbH has entered the additive manufacturing equipment market by unveiling two industrial 3D printers at the K 2022 trade show in Dusseldorf.

The new, room-sized powerPrint is targeted at large-format industrial additive manufacturing, while the smaller precisionPrint machines are designed for industrial scale automated production.

powerPrint is an extruder-based system for processing thermoplastic granulates. The precisionPrint, meanwhile, can handle objects up to 10 cubic meters in size, and offers high discharge rates at fast printing speeds, enabling short throughput times for large components. Splitting printing and milling allows maximum flexibility and system utilisation at favourable investment costs, company officials said; a wide variety of fibre-reinforced plastics and compounds can be processed.

KraussMaffei first hinted about entering the additive manufacturing space at a pre-K show event in June, and the two systems were officially unveiled at the company’s K 2022 booth during a staged event on Oct. 19.

“For us, this is about taking our capacity for productivity, quality and efficiency in industrial plastics processing and applying it to additive manufacturing solutions,” KraussMaffei CEO Dr. Michael Ruf said.

“The advantage for customers is two-fold: optimum component properties are achieved at favorable material costs; and short setup times and the use of common software solutions for print preparation also enable rapid implementation from component design to printing,” Rolf Mack, head of additive manufacturing, added. “In developing this, our goal was optimal application-specific processing of thermoplastic materials to ensure production according to industrial standards.”