Ultimaker PVA Removal Station
Ultimaker has announced customers in the UK will be among the first to gain access to its new PVA Removal Station ahead of its official launch this summer.
The post-processing unit, which was unveiled at the Ultimaker Showcase back in October, will be available for limited pre-sale via UK and Ireland reseller 3DGBIRE before it launches to the global market in July. Ultimaker says the product will ‘further enhance user experiences’ and enable ‘efficient post-processing with peace of mind.’
The PVA Removal Station has been developed for simplified removal of PVA support material from parts produced on Ultimaker’s polymer extrusion-based 3D printers. The process is chemical free and uses water to dissolve support material in a matter of hours. Water is circulated using a magnetic rotor and changes direction every two minutes to remove supports from hard to reach cavities at a speed that’s said to be four times faster when compared to support removal using still water. The station promises a clean workflow with minimal operator intervention and comes equipped with a basket and divider to keep prints in place and fully submerged.
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Speaking during the product's unveiling last year, Ultimaker CEO Jürgen von Hollen said: “Our entire 3D printing platform, now including the PVA Removal Station, will allow them to speed up the prototyping and product development processes, enabling safe, quick, and effective PVA removal from even the most complex designs and geometries. It allows teams to visualise quicker approval processes so organisations can run smoother and be smarter.”
Ultimaker, which celebrated its 10-year anniversary in 2021, has been steadily building out its 3D printing ecosystem with new software products, materials, and partnerships. Last week, the company also announced a collaboration with CASTOR which will see the integration of CASTOR's 3D printed part screening software with Ultimaker's Digital Factory platform.
