3D Systems to Return to the Extrusion Market Thanks to Two New Acquisitions

Only two months into the year and the additive manufacturing industry continues to show its vitality and growth. Already, we have seen launches and more from leading companies in the sector and we now have a new one to add to the list. 3D Systems, one of the original 3D printer manufacturers as well as the creators of the first 3D printing technology, SLA, has announced that it will be expanding today through two new acquisitions: Titan Additive LLC (Titan Robotics) and Kumovis. These new additions will help the company to not only return to the extrusion market but also solidify 3D Systems’ position in the healthcare field allowing it to produce 3D printed medical devices using PEEK.

Last year, the 3D printing saw a huge amount of acquisitions and mergers over the course of the year. But by contrast, 3D Systems was less active, choosing instead to actually sell parts of its company. Rest assured however, this was part of the long-term plan of the company to move more towards developing their capabilities for industrial-scale additive manufacturing, as can be seen with this latest move. However it is also reflective of the company’s behavior in previous years, begging the question is 3D Systems officially back in acquisition mode?

3D Systems has announced two new acquisition including Titan Additive (photo credits: Titan Robotics)

A Return to Extrusion Technologies

Though 3D Systems previously had extrusion solutions in its portfolio, namely through its acquisition of Cubify back in 2012, the FDM printers are no longer available. Thus, through both Titan Robotics and Kumovis, these acquisitions are marking a return for 3D Systems back into the extrusion world. Titan Robotics especially is interesting as the company is known to be a manufacturer of large-format, industrial 3D printers using pellet-based extrusion.