Additive manufacturing: ALSO distributes BASF Ultrasint® TPU01

ALSO is cooperating with one of the world’s leading manufacturers of 3D printing materials, BASF, which is marketing its Ultrasint® TPU01 product under the Forward AM brand. The material is especially suitable for manufacturing the tough, abrasion-resistant and flexible elastic parts required for sports and leisure footwear and by the automobile industry. The new thermoplastic material can be ordered from ALSO with immediate effect throughout Europe. It was specially developed for the HP Jet Fusion 5200 series, a 3D printer family that ALSO already has in its product range.

«Additive manufacturing will only become a genuine production process alternative once the choice of materials is right and the result is convincing», says Gustavo Möller-Hergt, CEO of ALSO Holding AG (SIX: ALSN). «With the BASF material we are expanding our 3D printing portfolio to include an extremely high-quality product that can be used in the production of a wide range of goods and components – from sports shoes to automobiles».

Ultrasint® TPU01 was specially developed by BASF for HP’s new Jet Fusion 5200 series. Combined with suitable lattice structures the thermoplastic material opens up totally new geometry options for developers and designers – especially in areas requiring flexible structures and shock absorption. That is why examples of uses to which it can be put are so wide-ranging – from sport, leisure and footwear to mechanical engineering and carmaking. Ultrasint® TPU01’s properties make the product an ideal material for prototyping and manufacturing applications such as small batch production of protective casings and coverings, complex pipe networks, grippers and gaskets or shoes.

In addition Forward AM offers material and service solutions along the entire value chain from product idea to production. From powder bed fusion via plastic and metal filaments to photopolymers, Forward AM is positioned in the market with the widest product range in the 3D printing industry.

For ALSO this is a further step toward expanding its 3D printing portfolio. The technology provider’s product range currently comprises 3D printers of different sizes and for different uses – from entry-level models to up-market industrial and dental printers – along with consumables and accessories such as industrial vacuum cleaners and lifting devices. Resellers and users also benefit from the expertise that is bundled at the ALSO Centre of Competence for Additive Manufacturing, which offers complete single-source solutions.

Direct link to media release: https://www2.also.com/press/20200228en.pdf

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