(Provided by Markforged)
Markforged Holding Corp. has revealed what it’s calling the world’s first industrial printer that can print both metal filaments and composites with continuous fiber reinforcement. It comes in the form of the FX10 metal kit, a print engine for the FX10.
Markforged released the FX10 as a composite-only printer in November 2023. The FX10 was made with a modular architecture, allowing for upgrades such as the newly announced Metal Kit. At the same time, Markforged has released a new, 316L stainless steel metal filament of the FX10 Metal Kit. The company says users will also be able to print in 17-4PH with additional support for other Markforged metal filaments in the future.
A swappable print engine in the FX10 Metal Kit has a metal-specific printing head, material feed tubes, routing back and dual pre-extruders. The FX10 can switch from metal to composite as often as needed. Switching between the two takes about 15 minutes.
The FX10 Metal Kit will be on display at the IMTS Show in Chicago, Sept. 9-14 at booth 432305, where it will be printing in both continuous fiber reinforced composites and metal.
“Customers no longer have to choose between a metal and a composite printer,” Markforged CEO Shai Terem says in a release. “Years of R&D investment and field experience have come together to provide an all-in-one solution for 3D printing to provide immediate return on investment once installed on a factory floor. The FX10 supercharges other equipment on the factory floor to be better utilized and run more efficiently, increasing productivity and reducing potential line down events.”