Henkel Fortify
A 3D printed tool by Fortify which is used to mould an automotive part.
Fortify has announced a collaboration with Henkel that will focus on the development and supply of materials for use on its Digital Composite Manufacturing (DCM) 3D printing technology.
Henkel offers a range of durable, high temperature and high modulus 3D printing resins which can be harnessed with a number of 3D printing platforms on the market. As Fortify prepares to carry out field beta testing on its 3D printing platform in the spring of next year, it has sought to align itself with a provider of high-performance materials.
The resins supplied by Henkel will be mixed with reinforcing fibres in Fortify’s DCM platform, which are aligned by a magnetic field to ensure optimum strength of the printed parts. With this process, Fortify is targeting industrial applications from the production of end use parts to injection moulding inserts which replace metal tooling. The company believes the capabilities of its DCM technology teamed with the reinforced material options enabled by Henkel will bring a ‘step change in performance’ for this application area, in particular.
“When prototyping or producing parts in small runs, tooling cost and time are major barriers,” offered Karlo Delos Reyes, Vice President of Applications and co-founder at Fortify. “With our 3D printed moulds that utilise Henkel’s resin, we have proved the viability of these tools for low production runs. As we help injection moulders reduce the expense and time involved with producing moulds, they can quickly react to new opportunities.”
“Our strong, data-driven approach to material innovation continues to unlock the power of additive manufacturing. Fortify is focused on delivering value in industries where part performance is mission critical. Together, we’re making it happen,” added Ken Kishner, Innovation Lead for 3D printing at Henkel and founder of Molecule, which was acquired by Henkel earlier this year. “We’re excited about the benefits Fortify’s technology can offer our industrial customers. As new applications are unearthed, our development team is working quickly to help qualify and validate them. We have a wide range of materials in our portfolio and we’re committed to leveraging our knowledge and technology, in partnership with customers and companies like Fortify, to accelerate the growth of additive manufacturing.”
Henkel has joined DSM in becoming a partner of Fortify through its Fiber Platform, which has been designed to leverage materials from a number of specialist companies. Fortify was founded in 2016 and has begun to gain traction during the last 12 months after exhibiting at Formnext last year and raising over $12m in venture funding. Next year, its machines will be put into the hands of industrial partners for the first time.
“The Fortify platform enables our customers to leverage materials that weren’t conceivable, yet along practical on other platforms,” said Joshua Martin, CEO and co-founder at Fortify. “With Henkel’s assistance, we are pushing this technology forward and solving the customer problems we expected as well as discovering exciting new opportunities.”
