#3DStartup: SphereCube and Its Sustainable, Composite 3D Printing

Italian startup SphereCube made a name for itself last year thanks to the Formnext Startup Challenge where it was one of the winners of the annual competition. The startup, which came out of the Marche Polytechnic University, has made its technology its focus: it can produce high-performance composite components without using molds and with less environmental impact. SphereCube thus responds to two needs felt by the additive manufacturing, and more generally, by the composite materials, markets: the need for a more efficient and, at the same time, more sustainable production process. So we chose them as the 3D startup of the month for February and interviewed them to learn more about their innovative technology!

3DN: Could you introduce yourself and SphereCube?

SphereCube is an innovative startup and spin-off of the Marche Polytechnic University. It was through their common attendance at the university that the team members got to know each other and joined forces on the project. The production process we have developed, thermal laser curing, allows for the creation of high performance composite products in a fully automatic way, without any geometrical limitations. Currently, the production of high-performance composites is done by hand, which subsequently leads to issues in terms of repeatability and flexibility. In addition, due to the high number of process steps and the use of molds (even for unit production), the entire production process is slow, costly and has high design constraints. With our technology, we want to solve the problems associated with the production of composite materials and increase the productivity of these fantastic materials.

A part of the SphereCube team (photo credits: SphereCube)

3DN: How did your startup come about?

The idea for SphereCube was born when Valerio Di Pompeo, the current CEO and then a student at the Marche Polytechnic University, met Alessio Vita, who was one of the professors of a specialization course. They agreed that there were no industrially validated technologies using the most common raw materials in the world of composite material production (such as thermosetting epoxy resins and long fiber reinforcements). As they began discussing possible solutions, the first sketches of what is now the heart of the SphereCube 3D printer were born: the extrusion head. Valerio and Alessio then got the rest of the team involved, and the team is still growing.