Aniwaa released an updated comprehensive chart of known 3D printer manufacturers.
This work must have taken an enormous amount of effort, as it includes some 614 manufacturers, all categorized into the type of material and process used by their equipment.
Fortunately, Aniwaa has the data: their service is a hugely comprehensive database of known 3D printers — and also 3D scanners and post-processing equipment. As of this writing, they have over 1900 machines in their database. And presumably 614 manufacturers, which are portrayed on the new chart.
Aniwaa founder Martin Lansard posted a version of the new chart on LinkedIn, explaining:
“For this big annual update, we mapped 614 manufacturers, incorporating 100+ modifications based on feedback from the AM community. This is a real collaborative effort, so thanks to everyone who contributed!
Something new: the infographic now includes a section dedicated to post-processing, highlighting 20 manufacturers offering solutions in this key area of the AM ecosystem.”
Lansard notes that the most popular material type — by manufacturer count — remain polymer, with metal machine manufacturers far behind. He also sees the number of metal DED equipment manufacturers increasing, and that’s not surprising given the advantages of that 3D printing process: it’s relatively simple and scalable compared to earlier LPBF processes.
Finally, the number of ceramic 3D printer manufacturers has increased by 30%, indicating significant interest in that highly useful material category.
The number of 3D printer manufacturers is quite impressive, but remember that there are many that disappeared before this chart was created. Some simply failed and went out of business, but many others were acquired by larger companies who adopted their tech. It may be that there have been well over 1000 3D printer manufacturers in existence over the few decades of this technology.
There will be many more to come. Each week I see fascinating research developments that could very easily be commercialized into new forms of 3D printing — and correspondingly new companies.
Lansard’s job making these charts is definitely not done yet.
Via LinkedIn
