Some may think, “It’s not as if that many technological innovations happen every year,” but when it comes to 3D printing technology, change is everywhere.
In particular, products and services have emerged that provide answers to the diversification of AM materials and the sense of practical challenges in terms of software.

Daiichi Ceramo Co.

Dai-ichi Ceramo, which has been developing materials for MIM for many years, developed metal and ceramic filaments that can be easily modeled on a low-cost MEX-type 3D printer at the Formnext Forum Tokyo, and unveiled them for the first time at the exhibition. This enables modeling using stainless steel, titanium, copper, alumina, zirconia, and other materials without the need to purchase an expensive metal 3D printer.

After modeling, the process of degreasing and sintering is required as usual. According to the developer, “We spent about two years developing materials so that there would be no problem in modeling thick-walled, thin-walled, and various shapes. I believe we have succeeded in achieving a stable shape after dewaxing and sintering,” he says confidently. The degreasing and sintering processes require degreasing and sintering equipment, which is expensive. Taking this into consideration, Dai-ichi Ceramo plans to expand demand in the future by undertaking the dewaxing and sintering processes on a contract basis.

UEL Corporation

UEL Corporation exhibited AMmeister, slice processing software for 3D printers, and POLYGONALmeister, polygon data editing software that supports the creation of output data (STL, etc.) for 3D printers. Although 3D scanners have been gaining popularity in recent years, the post-processing of measurement data to make it usable is a time-consuming and labor-intensive process. The company offers a number of functions that make it easy to correct the tediousness of data processing and other processes, and those who have actually done the work are likely to feel the time savings. These efforts to provide software support in areas that are difficult to handle without specialized workers are likely to lead to solutions to the problem of invisible costs.

Japan 3D Printer Co.

Chinese-made 3D printers, which are being introduced around the world, have overturned the image of cheap and inefficient printers of a decade ago, and have grown at an overwhelmingly rapid pace. Farsoon Technologies, a 3D printer equipment manufacturer that has been responsible for such growth in China, is the world’s fourth largest 3D printer manufacturer in terms of sales and produces the world’s largest SLS 3D printer.

Hottie Polymer Co.

An expert in rubber and resins, from general-purpose rubber and resins to high-performance rubber and super engineering plastics, HOTTY Polymer is a company that is often seen at trade shows. Since the Formnext Forum Tokyo is a specialized exhibition for advanced users of AM, equipment manufacturers’ exhibits did not stand out much, but HOTTY Polymer’s all-round exhibition booth, from equipment to materials and application examples, was crowded with visitors.

Shimoda Flange

Shimoda Flange Corporation, a comprehensive manufacturer of castings, has been working on metal AM for two years. The company has installed a total of two metal 3D printers of the WAAM method from MX3D and Gefertec, and has been studying what can be done. In the course of repeated tests for practical use, the high quality standards of manufacturers have been a hurdle, but the company has also found new business opportunities, such as a major general contractor that is considering using metal AM joint parts when constructing a high-rise building using wood materials.

The bottleneck to widespread use is price. In Japan, which has advanced metal processing technology, it is essential to add value through unique design in order to achieve a cost advantage with AM products. The key to the future will be to form partnerships, starting from development, with companies that are familiar with conventional processing and have accumulated knowledge with AM machines from early on. Only by continuing such efforts will a blue ocean be created in a few years’ time.

Mitsubishi Chemical Corporation

The 3D printer has a high degree of freedom in modeling, which makes it compatible with these efforts. In the future, we plan to work on flame-retardant materials that comply with building codes. Mr. Oka’s office has its own robot arm. Mr. Oka’s office has introduced its own robot-armed 3D printer to continue these efforts, and the materials used in this booth were from Mitsubishi Chemical Corporation.

Mitsubishi Chemical has been working on the practical application of materials demanded by customers, and is expanding the range of material pellets for pellet-type 3D printers to accommodate transparent materials, soft materials, and weather-resistant materials. When we asked the person in charge about the difference from existing pellets for injection molding, he answered, “3D printers have three major processes: ‘melting,’ ‘flowing,’ and ‘solidification,’ and we have formulated the pellets especially for ‘flowing’ and ‘solidification. We hear that pellet-type 3D printers have a high degree of difficulty in developing parameters, and it is likely that there are difficulties in making adjustments in these areas. It seems that AM-compatible materials from the material manufacturer side can be expected to lower these hurdles.

SCSK Corporation

SCSK exhibited its “ToffeeX” software for topology optimization and fluid analysis. The company’s software is also used by leading companies in the AM industry to develop their own simulation software.

Solize has already been used in Japan, and a demonstration exhibit of heat exchange parts showed its effectiveness in an easy-to-understand manner. The importance of this kind of simulation software is sure to attract more and more attention in the future, as repeated simulations before the actual modeling and verification can lead to significant cost reductions and time savings.

CTC

CTC exhibited a commissioned simulation service centered on “QuesTek,” a material composition simulation software developed by an overseas university venture. This was the first time for CTC to exhibit at an AM-related exhibition.

It is a well-known fact that material technology will be a key to the full-scale use of AM in the future. It is a well-known fact that material technology will be a major key to the full-scale utilization of AM in the future, and I have a feeling that DX will be a guidepost for the Japanese manufacturing industry, which has a competitive edge in material technology for conventional construction methods, to utilize DX in their efforts that cannot be avoided.