Dressler Group on the Importance of Contract Grinding for Additive Manufacturing

When it comes to the quality of additively manufactured components, one thing above all makes a difference: the material used. For binder jetting, HP’s Multi-Jet Fusion technology or selective laser sintering (SLS), this means that the powders used are critical for the 3D-printed results. For example, the grain size used must be adapted to the specific process. For this reason, it is possible to find experts on the market who specialize in the grinding and refining of plastics and who can advise manufacturers with their know-how. Dressler Group (DG), a family-owned company based in Germany, is one of these contract grinders. The German company has succeeded in establishing itself with international customers as a “grinding authority” in the grinding and refining of high-performance engineering plastics. The ready-to-use powders are used in a wide range of industries – including pharmaceuticals, medical technology, 3D printing and other specialties. We spoke to company owner Jan Dressler to find out more about contract grinding and the importance of additive manufacturing for this sector.

3DN: Can you briefly introduce the Dressler Group and its connection to 3D printing?

CEO Jan Dressler (photo credits: Hartmut Nägele)

Here at Dressler Group, innovation has been part of the company DNA from the very beginning. Our father set standards with his pioneering powder production under cold grinding conditions. The modern adaptation of this idea is the now patented Spherical Powder Technology (SPT), with allows powders to be produced from high-performance polymers (PEEK, PEKK, PEI) that could not previously be pulverized. In both theory and practice, we have found that as well as the particle size, the particle shape and the overall powder design are crucial in additive manufacturing processes such as 3D printing. Printing only produces truly satisfactory results when everything is precisely tuned to the specific processes, machines and applications. This is especially true when it comes to industrial-scale production. In addition, the topic of sustainability and recycling management is gaining in importance. So there is an extra dimension to the stringent demands of our customers: the powders must be made from recycled material, for example, or must themselves be recyclable.

3DN: What are your customers’ most common powder requirements?

Our customers are usually looking to open up new markets or expand their market position. We are often asked to support objectives such as lightweight construction, robust custom moulds, mixed materials, recyclable powders and so on. We still do the actual grinding work, but we create the most value with individual “plug and play” solutions that deliver seamless batch-to-batch quality thanks to our powder design.