Sascha Wenzler, Vice President of Formnext, is with us on the 3DPOD again. He’s now in a much more relaxed frame of mind, now that we have a complete trade show taking place with significant visitors and exhibitors and free from pandemic fears. We talk to Sascha about the trends at Formnext 2022, what kind of stands we will be seeing, what companies are doing to promote themselves, and what kinds of activities will be taking place. Sascha also discusses the types of lectures, courses, and presentations we can expect. All in all, it was a lovely conversation that really has us looking forward to Formnext!

CEO of Evolve Additive Joe Allison got started with 3D printing in 1987. After working for 3D Systems, he started Solid Concepts, which would grow to become one of the world’s largest additive manufacturing service bureaus before its ultimate purchase by Stratasys. In turn, Joe served as the CEO of Stratasys Direct Manufacturing. What’s more, it would pioneer parts on commercial aircraft, drones, and in all sorts of applications. Joe tells us of his pioneering role in the industry and what he is doing now at Evolve Additive, where he was appointed CEO this past summer. Really exciting episode that covers a lot of things that you may not know.

Neal Orringer worked in a number of roles in the U.S. government and with 3D Systems before leading ASTRO America as its president. There, he’s trying to wrangle large companies like Boeing and Honeywell into spreading 3D printing across their industrial base. Orringer also trying to lead the charge in hypersonics and make 3D printing useful for land vehicles. We hope you find our conversation with Orringer as entertaining as we did.  If you want to hear more from Neal, please register for our (Free!) AM Investment Strategies online leadership roundtable, November 10, 2022.

Stephen Holmes is the Editor in Chief of DEVELOP3D, a publication with its own voice dedicated to product development, design, and CAD. The outlet also offers stories related to 3D printing, as well as product reviews on peripherals and computers. Additionally, the team behind DEVELOP3D hosts its own live event, DEVELOP3D Live, on November 1. We really enjoyed Stephen´s opinionated clear take on 3D printing and the promise of our industry.

After working in aerospace, engineer Dale Swarts went into the orthopedics industry, where he worked at Zimmer for many years, rising to the status of director. Later, he became the Applied Research Director at Pipeline Orthopedics. When that firm was taken over by Mako, he took the position of director before becoming the Chief Engineer at Stryker when it acquired Mako. Dale knows an awful lot about 3D printing orthopedics. Now semi-retired, but advising such firms as Oxford Performance Materials and VulcanForms, he’s able to clearly explain the intersection of additive and orthopedics.

AM Ventures portfolio company Incus is developing a method to use lithography metal manufacturing to make small accurate metal parts. What kind of applications work for its technology? How is the company going to grow its business? How do they stack up against binder jet, bound metal, and powder bed fusion? We have an open conversation with Dr. Gerald Mitteramskogler, Incus CEO and founder, about all of this. We also discuss his journey in 3D printing and the future of his firm.

Quantica Co-Founder and Chief Product Officer Ben Hartkopp invented a method of inkjetting extremely viscous, high-performance materials. Moreover, the startup’s print heads and materials can provide voxel-level control over a printed part’s properties, potentially revolutionizing the dental, medical, printed electronics, bioprinting markets and more.

Quantica is producing its own inkjetting technology itself, which is a huge challenge. Not only will the company have to commercialize a novel piezoelectric process, but it has to do so with an overwhelming world of possibility. The opportunities for Quantica are enormous and we discuss with Ben which ones the firm is tackling first and how.

Kris Binon is at the helm of Flam3D, an organization that began by connecting the Belgian region of Flanders via 3D printing. Later, Flam3D grew to represent research institutes and companies throughout Belgium and, now, the Netherlands. In this episode of the 3DPOD, we talk about how to educate people about 3D printing, as well as how to work with governments and other stakeholders to spread 3D printing around the world.

Charles Bibas worked in the barcode industry for many years, until he discovered a method that could revolutionize 3D printing. With a small team, he created a better optics package for 3D printing. Rather than going for a salvo, Charles’s company Tecnica uses a Lens Free Optical Scanner (LFOS or Ogon) to obtain better results for selective laser sintering (SLS). A labor of love for Charles, Tecnica still had a go-to-market strategy. We talk to him about his plans to take this product to market.

When Daghan Cam founded AI Build, the firm’s technology was a made up of a single 3D printer attached to a robotic arm for large scale polymer parts. The team did an about face and now focuses on developing the software that controls robotic arm 3D printers, including polymer, composites, concrete and metal. Makers of wire arc additive manufacturing, extrusion, and construction systems are all talking to AI Build now to create their software. With a recent injection of $3.2 million in funding, AI Build is a very exciting company and Daghan tells us its story so far.