Henkel discusses 3D printing material development, and more

Founded in 1876, Henkel is a multinational company active both in the consumer and industrial sectors. While the company is headquartered in Düsseldorf, Germany, more than 80 percent of its employees work outside of Germany. In 2016 the company entered the additive manufacturing field and has since developed several innovative solutions, mostly focusing on 3D printing material development. Today, Henkel is one of the leading suppliers of high-impact additive materials. Not so long ago, the company, together with a manufacturer of ultrafast stereolithography 3D printers, Nexa3D, launched a new polymer called xMED412. Following this news, we decided to find out more about Henkel’s activity on the AM arena; therefore, we discussed with the conglomerate’s Global Head of Marketing, Cindy Deekitwong, to learn more.

Can you present yourself and tell us about your relationship with 3D printing?

My name is Cindy Deekitwong and I am the Global Head of Marketing for Incubator Businesses including 3D Printing at Henkel. My primary objective is to grow new revenue and gain market share for the company‘s 3D printing division and our other incubators. During my career I had the opportunity to hold various leadership roles in different countries and in different positions, such as in the electronics market, supply chain, operations, key account management, supplier innovation and strategic program management. Since 2018 I am responsible for the Global Marketing of 3D Printing and additionally, established an expert platform to share experiences with Additive Manufacturing in my broadcast. I am passionate about 3D printing as it provides huge opportunities, such as shortened supply chains, cost reductions, design freedom and others. When you are working within this field you are experiencing a lot of change and a lot of freedom – these two characteristics are also reflected in my personal career.

Henkel entered the AM market in 2016. What advances have been made over this 4-year period?

As with many new business opportunities Henkel started its 3D printing business with an idea. During a new business development screening 3D printing has been evaluated as a new search field to expand our material capabilities. The idea of being active in the 3D printing field evolved from a single person scouting a new market to a whole business incubator, responsible for technology and business development. We developed a diverse and broad material portfolio of high performance photopolymers, established more than 20 different partnerships with different leading companies in the 3D printing world and expanded our in-house capabilities for parts production to a new AM facility in Richmond, USA, to provide printed parts to automotive and industrial customers. This way we are able to help all our clients – regardless if they want to make a 3D printed part or buy a manufactured one.