We became interested in 3DP with the RepRap movement and its unique proposition to manufacture locally at low cost. Innovations in the desktop printing arena allowed us to look at driving the technology in education. Over time, we saw the need for industrial companies to save time and money by replacing traditional subtractive manufacturing techniques with AM. We founded the company to help the UK and Ireland’s Industry adopt additive manufacturing and we have done this by offering a complete 360-degree service from purchase, to installation, training, applications development and technical support/service contracts.
Our initial thoughts on the market would be that companies would take on the machines to replace traditional methods of manufacturing. Whilst we have seen a slight shift towards producing final parts with AM, we have seen a huge growth of ‘Rapid Prototyping’ and a second bubble of growth in companies producing manufacturing aids. We still believe that AM will take over traditional process in some instances but we are finding now that technologies are beginning to converge with hybrid machines potentially being the stepping stone to full additive manufacturing.
This industry is unique and certainly not ‘mature’ yet, so the pace of development in all areas of AM is great to be a part of. The feeling that anything can be achieved when people approach a problem with positivity and a solutions-mindset is inspiring. In most industries, it takes years to see progress, but we see innovations happen on a daily/weekly basis.
We wake up every day with a smile on our faces, eager to work in a friendly environment where the feeling of progress is with us at every turn. Our customers are engineers looking at new approaches for solving problems and come up with interesting ways to apply AM technologies in a manner that blows our minds. We would like to thank our customers for always keeping us on our toes and who are always pushing us and our manufacturers to go beyond what is currently possible. Keep pushing.