Altana AG (Wesel, Germany) has successfully scaled up the production of ultraviolet (UV)-curing resins for industrial additive serial production. At the same time, the company has started manufacturing and supplying UV-curing resins from the Cubic Ink 3D printing material family to a medical technology company in the U.S..
“The first delivery of our 3D printing resins is on its way to the U.S. West Coast,” explains Dr. Max Röttger, Head of Cubic Ink. “Our customer proximity was crucial to the successful implementation of the project. We are on site and understand the challenges of our customers. This enables us to grow together and quickly develop individual product solutions. This is especially true for innovative technologies such as 3D printing.”
The first high-volume batch of a UV-curing 3D printing resin by Cubic Ink was produced together with Altana’s ACTEGA division at its Cinnaminson site in New Jersey. ACTEGA is a leading global supplier of specialty coatings, inks, adhesives and sealants with a focus on the packaging and printing industry and plastic compounds for the healthcare industry.
The successful scaling process is also showing that Cubic Ink customers benefit not only from the high level of solution expertise, but also from Altana’s extensive global production capacities. Thanks to state-of-the-art production technology and careful quality control, ALTANA is capable of supplying 3D printing materials in the quality and quantity required for industrial additive series production. Customers also benefit from reliable supply chains with short delivery times.
The current scaling of a Cubic Ink material also demonstrates the rapidly increasing expansion of large-volume applications in resin-based 3D printing for additive manufacturing. Due to its comprehensive range of 3D printing materials, Cubic Ink is well positioned for this development. The production range includes the resin-based portfolio for use on all open printing systems, for example: The property profiles of these materials are designed for end-use applications – with a particular focus on aging and chemical resistance. The resins’ low viscosity allows for reliable in-time processing and cost-efficient printing processes for high performance. In addition, depending on the printer and costumer requirements, printing properties and processes can be individually adapted.
Cubic Ink has thus strengthened its position as a manufacturer-independent, system-open material supplier for DLP, LCD and SLA applications, but also in the form of inks for material jetting. In the future, industrial users in the automotive, aerospace and medical industries (audiology, dentistry and orthopedics), in particular will enjoy completely new opportunities for the manufacturing of their products.