Desktop Metal: Pioneering the Next Generation of Cost-Effective Metal 3D Printing and Additive Manufacturing

The landscape of industrial manufacturing is undergoing a significant transformation, with additive metal production emerging as a pivotal technology for market players seeking to enhance quality while simultaneously driving down production costs. As 3D printer manufacturers continuously innovate to provide more accessible and professional solutions – exemplified by companies such as Xact Metal and Markforged – other visionaries are actively developing advanced methods to make metal 3D printing even more economically efficient and widely adopted. Among these trailblazers is American startup Desktop Metal, a rapidly ascending force in the metal additive manufacturing sector. Established in October 2015, this dynamic company is singularly focused on a clear objective: to deliver low-cost metal 3D printing solutions that facilitate the rapid production of high-quality metal parts. In an insightful conversation with CTO and co-founder Jonah Myerberg, we delved deeper into Desktop Metal’s ambitious goals and their comprehensive vision for the future of metal additive manufacturing.

The Genesis of Desktop Metal: Addressing Industry Challenges in Metal 3D Printing

3DN: Can you introduce us to Desktop Metal and tell us a little bit about how Desktop Metal came to be?

The advent of metal 3D printing, also widely recognized as additive manufacturing, has long held the promise of fundamentally reshaping global product manufacturing processes. Despite this immense potential, contemporary metal 3D printing options have, until recently, struggled to fully deliver on that promise. Existing methods are often characterized by prohibitive costs and industrial complexities, rendering them unsuitable for rapid prototyping iterations. Furthermore, they frequently lack the necessary speed and cost-effectiveness required for large-scale, high-volume mass production. This fundamental disconnect between promise and reality underscored a critical need for fundamentally different approaches to propel metal 3D printing beyond its existing limitations, effectively addressing both the design iteration and the mass manufacturing requirements of modern industry.

The core mission for Desktop Metal was ignited by a significant challenge: to make metal 3D printing truly accessible for a broader spectrum of engineering teams, not just specialized industrial facilities. Recognizing this unmet need, in 2013, our CEO Ric Fulop initiated collaborations with a consortium of world-leading experts spanning materials science, advanced engineering, and cutting-edge 3D printing technologies. Driven by a spirit of invention and a profound understanding of industry demands, this founding team embarked on a quest to accelerate the widespread adoption of metal 3D printing in manufacturing. Their strategy revolved around the creation of innovative, proprietary technology capable of producing complex metal parts with remarkable scalability, efficiency, and quality, thereby overcoming the traditional barriers that had historically limited its use.

Innovating Metal 3D Printing: The Studio System and Production System

3DN: Can you tell us what the main uses of the DM Metal Studio and the DM Production System are?

The Studio System^TM: Bringing Metal 3D Printing to the Office Floor

The Studio System^TM stands as a revolutionary advancement, being the world’s first truly office-friendly system specifically engineered to bring robust metal 3D printing capabilities directly to the engineering office or shop floor environment. This innovative system is designed to be approximately 10 times less expensive than conventional industrial metal 3D printing solutions, democratizing access for a wider range of engineering and design teams. By thoughtfully eliminating the use of hazardous lasers and loose metal powders, the Studio System ensures a safer operational environment, making it suitable for virtually any facility without requiring specialized external ventilation or safety infrastructure typically associated with traditional metal additive processes. As a comprehensive, end-to-end solution, the Studio System seamlessly integrates a fully automated, office-friendly sintering furnace. This furnace boasts rapid cycle times and can reach a peak temperature of 1400°C, enabling the sintering of an extensive variety of metals to achieve desired material properties. Through the sophisticated integration of software intelligence, advanced hardware design, and cutting-edge materials science innovations, our metal 3D printer and companion furnace work in concert to significantly simplify both the printing process and the subsequent post-processing steps, allowing for faster iterations and greater accessibility.

The Production System^TM: Mass Manufacturing with Speed and Precision

Complementing the Studio System, the Production System^TM represents another monumental leap forward, being the first metal 3D printing system genuinely engineered for mass production. It delivers the unprecedented speed, precision accuracy, and critical per-part cost reduction necessary to effectively compete with, and in many cases surpass, traditional manufacturing methodologies. This system is founded on a radically new approach to metal 3D printing known as Single Pass Jetting (SPJ), which allows it to build intricate metal parts in mere minutes, a stark contrast to the hours typically required by conventional methods. Operating at an astonishing 100 times the speed of today’s fastest laser-based additive systems, the Production System dramatically improves throughput capabilities, achieving an impressive output of up to 500 cubic inches per hour. This unparalleled speed and efficiency unlock new possibilities for on-demand manufacturing and high-volume production of complex metal components, positioning additive manufacturing as a true contender for industrial-scale applications.

Unveiling Single Pass Jetting (SPJ): A Breakthrough in Speed and Efficiency

3DN: Can you tell us a little bit about the new Single Pass Jetting process?

At the heart of the Production System’s extraordinary capabilities lies its innovative approach to metal 3D printing: Single Pass Jetting (SPJ). This groundbreaking technology was conceived and developed by pioneers in the field of binder jetting and single-pass inkjet processes – specifically, Ely Sachs, who is a co-founder of Desktop Metal, and Paul Hoisington, our Chief Scientist for Inkjet Systems. Their expertise culminated in SPJ, a method that empowers the Production System to fabricate complex metal parts in a matter of minutes, significantly reducing the lengthy build times that have historically plagued metal additive manufacturing.

The fundamental innovation of Single Pass Jetting is its bi-directional nature and its highly integrated process. We have meticulously combined all the essential steps required for printing into a single, highly efficient operation. This means that whenever there is movement across the build area, there is continuous printing occurring. The system features two full-width print bars, each equipped with over 32,000 individual jets. These advanced print bars work in precise conjunction with sophisticated powder spreaders to uniformly distribute metal powder and simultaneously jet millions of droplets per second, all within a single, rapid pass across the entire build area. This simultaneous action of powder spreading and binder jetting in both directions dramatically increases efficiency, enabling unparalleled print speeds and precision previously unattainable in metal additive manufacturing, thereby redefining throughput expectations for industrial 3D printing.

Targeting Key Industries: Automotive, Manufacturing, and Consumer Products

3DN: What sectors are you focusing on currently?

Desktop Metal is steadfastly committed to accelerating the profound transformation of global manufacturing. We achieve this by providing comprehensive, end-to-end metal 3D printing solutions explicitly designed to overcome the long-standing challenges of speed, cost, and quality. Our ultimate goal is to firmly establish metal 3D printing as an indispensable tool for engineers and manufacturers across the globe. By addressing these critical pain points, we empower industries to innovate faster and produce more efficiently.

We anticipate significant interest in the Studio System from a diverse range of industries, including the dynamic automotive sector, broad manufacturing industries, and consumer product developers. Its design makes it an ideal choice for rapid prototyping needs and low-volume production runs of metal components. The ability to quickly and cost-effectively produce functional metal prototypes allows these sectors to iterate on designs with unprecedented agility, significantly shortening development cycles and reducing costs associated with traditional prototyping methods.

Conversely, the Production System is exceptionally well-suited for the manufacturing of complex, high-performance metal parts at truly high volumes. Given that no costly and time-consuming tooling is required, the Production System can often outperform conventional manufacturing processes, such as metal casting, in terms of both speed and economic viability for intricate geometries. Furthermore, it introduces significant benefits inherent to additive manufacturing, such as the ability to implement just-in-time production strategies and to facilitate mass customization. This means manufacturers can produce parts precisely when and where they are needed, reducing inventory costs, and can tailor products to individual customer specifications without the prohibitive expenses typically associated with custom tooling, opening up new avenues for product innovation and market responsiveness.

The Future of Additive Manufacturing: A Transformative Shift

3DN: How do you envision the future of additive manufacturing in the coming years?

The feedback we have garnered since the successful launch of our Desktop Metal systems has been overwhelmingly positive, indicating a strong market resonance with our innovative approach. We’ve observed tremendous enthusiasm among our early customers, who are eager to integrate our cutting-edge technology into their operations. We firmly believe that metal additive manufacturing technologies hold real, transformative potential, particularly in their ability to dramatically reduce the cost-per-part when benchmarked against today’s more expensive, laser-based systems. This cost efficiency is a game-changer for widespread adoption. Moreover, there is significant and growing interest in the market for the capability to prototype with the exact same materials that will eventually be used in mass production. This seamless transition from prototype to final product, using identical materials and processes, streamlines development, reduces risk, and accelerates time-to-market. We envision a future where additive manufacturing becomes a standard, indispensable tool throughout the entire product lifecycle, from initial concept to high-volume production.

Desktop Metal’s Commitment: Accessible and Innovative Metal 3D Printing

3DN: Any last words for our readers?

At Desktop Metal, our unwavering commitment is to make advanced metal 3D printing truly accessible and practical for both engineering design and industrial manufacturing. With our two pioneering, end-to-end metal 3D printing systems – the Studio System and the Production System – we are confident that this technology will usher in a fundamental and lasting shift in how products are conceived, developed, and ultimately brought to market. Both of these metal 3D printing systems are designed to redefine the rules of traditional metal manufacturing solutions. They achieve this through the advent of first-of-its-kind innovative approaches that collectively reduce operational costs, significantly increase production speed, enhance workplace safety by eliminating hazardous elements, and consistently improve print quality. This dual offering provides solutions for every stage of the product development and manufacturing pipeline, from agile prototyping to industrial-scale production, making metal additive manufacturing a truly viable and attractive alternative to conventional methods.

The Studio System, which includes the printer, debinder, and furnace, is currently available for reservation at a price of $120,000, with initial shipping commencing in September. The Production System is also currently available for reservation, with shipping scheduled to begin in 2018, opening up new horizons for high-volume metal part production.

Can Desktop Metal truly make additive metal fabrication more accessible and revolutionize the industry? Share your thoughts and let us know in a comment below or connect with us on our Facebook and Twitter pages. Don’t forget to sign up for our free weekly Newsletter to receive all the latest news in 3D printing delivered straight to your inbox, keeping you at the forefront of additive manufacturing innovations!