An interesting partnership has just been formed by ultrafast polymer 3D printing OEM Nexa3D and Headmade Materials, the developer of ColdMetalFusion. By making Headmade Materials’ feedstock technology compatible with its QLS lineup of SLS 3D printers, Nexa3D will enable its customers to produce sinter-based metal 3D printed parts.

The announcement seems to be line with the company’s acquisition of XYZPrinting – announced during the first quarter of this year. Indeed, this may be an opportunity to extend this compatibility to XYZPrinting’s SLS technology, expanding this way production options for Nexa3D customers.

As a reminder, ColdMetalFusion is a sinter-based 3D printing process that combines the advantages of polymer laser sintering with established powder metallurgy processes for debinding and sintering.

 Christian Staudigel, one of the cofounders of Headmade Materials, once explained 3D Adept Media that in this process, a feedstock material, consisting of metal powder and binder, is processed on laser sintering machines for polymer to obtain a green part. Afterwards the greenpart is debinded and sintered to complex metal parts in standard Powder metallurgical processes.

Together with Headmade, Nexa3D will leverage the ecosystem around ColdMetalFusion and provide its customers access to decades of experience in sintering and traditional industrial manufacturing. Together the companies will be able to offer services, equipment, materials, software, and know-how to customers in the metal manufacturing industry. This makes Nexa3D a perfect fit as a new member of the metal manufacturing industry, bringing its passion for sustainable digitization of supply chains to the metals space, a press release says.

Nexa3D customers could now produce production metal components with the QLS 230, QLS 236 and QLS 820 high-throughput SLS printers.

Providing a 24-hour cycle speed using a single 30-Watt CO2 laser, the QLS 230 can produce metal parts with reliable metal injection molding-like properties. In fact, MIMplus Technologies GmbH has been using the QLS 230 in combination with ColdMetalFusion technology to successfully print industrial cutting tools, achieving exponential production savings when compared to traditional manufacturing methods, Nexa3D explains.

The QLS series printers offer the most flexible industrial SLS platform for polymer and metal parts production.

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