Continuous Carbon Fiber 3D Printing Causes Growth At 9T Labs

9T Labs seems to be hiring quite a few new positions.

The Swiss company is one of only a few that offer the magic capability of 3D printing continuous carbon fiber. While there are many options for “carbon fiber” filament, these are really just a mix of chopped carbon fiber and a polymer binder. Sure, they’re a lot stronger than conventional polymers, but nowhere near as strong as actual, continuous carbon fiber prints, where molecular bonding travels continuously through each fiber.

While most continuous carbon fiber 3D printers simply add a fiber distributor that embeds fibers in a polymer 3D print, 9T Labs takes that concept a bit farther.

Their 3D prints are actually made of up to 60% pure carbon fiber, a very high ratio. But then they perform some magic after 3D printing completes with an unusual post-processing step.

In this finalization step, their 3D prints are subjected to tremendous heat at pressure. How much? It turns out it’s actually nine tonnes, hence their company name.

This step finalizes the print into an incredibly rigid part that is apparently as strong as aluminum, yet far lighter.

Their process sounds amazing, but is not without its boundaries: the pressure is provided by plates pressing the print, implying there are some limitations to the possible geometries with the process.

Nevertheless, their process will be of tremendous use to many companies seeking extremely strong and lightweight parts.

Now it appears they have caught the attention of many as they seem to be on a hiring spree. As of this writing they are recruiting for:

• Channel Sales Manager
• Intern Software Development – Production Software
• Junior Electronics Engineer
• Sales Engineer Aerospace
• Sales Engineer Consumer Products
• Sales Engineer General Industry
• Sales Engineer Leisure
• Sales Engineer Medical Instruments
• Sales Engineer R&D and Academia
• Tooling & Moulding Engineer
• Werkzeug Konstrukteur (Tool Designer)

That’s quite a few positions for a startup company. I don’t know their current staffing level, but it’s certainly below 50. This hiring suggests they are increasing their staff by at least 10%, and it might be much more than that.

It’s also quite interesting that the positions include six sales roles. That’s a sign they feel their technology is ready to be used by industry and they merely need to go out and get clients. And not only that, they are specializing in six different areas.

I suspect they are already into the R&D and academia areas based on their startup nature, but the remainder of the six areas are all very different industries. I’m surprised I don’t see “automotive” on their list, but then perhaps they already have someone in that sales role.

For readers in the Zürich area, these might be great roles to fill. 9T Labs is a small but evidently rapidly growing company in a fantastic industry, and this could be an opportunity to get in on the ground floor.

Via Join and 9T Labs