Additive manufacturing is getting interesting.

HP announces a plastic laser sintering system for between $130,000 and $155,000.

Then, Prodways, a subsidiary of Groupe Gorgé, presents its industrial laser-sintering printer, the ProMaker P1000 (for less than €100,000, less than $90,000) and announces a strategic partnership with leading chemical company, BASF, for the marketing of their new PA6 laser sintering powder.

The development of this printer is the result of the purchase of Norge Systems in March 2015 combined with the Prodways R&D teams’ expertise in powder sintering technology. It extends the current “Prodways powered by Farsoon” range in the industrial segment.

ProMaker P1000 demonstrates Prodways’ ambition to make industrial plastic powder laser sintering performance accessible to a wider market to facilitate innovation and the development of new applications.

The ProMaker P1000 printer has a wide manufacturing platform for printing large items. It offers thermal stability through its smart temperature control system. The printer also has a very fine laser for high-resolution items with optimal mechanical properties.

New features developed specially for this printer include: a completely new modular coating system, for optimal control of the powder distribution and more even layers using all types of material, as well as a touchscreen, making it easy for users to operate.

The ProMaker P1000 benefits from Prodways’ range of materials with high recyclability rates, as well as the strategy of being open to other materials, which Prodways applies to its full range of printers.

Thanks to this partnership, Prodways integrates the PA6 polymer powder – announced at the end of 2015 and developed by BASF jointly with LSS, Hunan Farsoon Tech Ltd and Varia 3D – into its portfolio of laser sintering materials.

BASF’s development of this PA6 material for 3D printing laser sintering technology is a major breakthrough for the industrial sector. It offers new possibilities for the series production of parts, for example functional components, with more complex structures and more custom designs, but with the similar mechanical resistance, hardness and thermal stability properties as parts produced today in PA6 through traditional injection techniques.

PA6 is a widely used material today, in particular in the automotive and electronics industries, where it can replace metal to produce lighter-weight parts and reduce production costs for massive parts, hot engine parts and electronic components. This new material meets the requirements of applications in all areas of industry for a range of components and machine parts.

Specifically developed to treat high performance materials such as PA6, the Prodways ProMaker P2000 HT laser sintering printer “powered by Farsoon” operates at a temperature of 220°C, guaranteeing all the mechanical properties expected from BASF’s high-end PA6 powder range.