NUBURU delivers first units to Essentium for blue laser metal 3D printing & announces GE Additive partnership

NUBURU and Essentium announced the multi-year partnership in May 2022.

by Oliver Johnson

1 June 2023

15:07

NUBURU

NUBURU industrial blue laser technology

NUBURU, a specialist in high-power and high-brightness industrial blue laser technology, has announced that it has delivered multiple units to Essentium. NUBURU and Essentium jointly announced a multi-year, multi-million-dollar agreement to develop and manufacture a blue laser-based 3D printing platform in May 2022.

The companies say the deliveries that have been announced signify the execution of this agreement. Essentium says it expects strong growth across new applications and markets as a result of this technology integration.

Essentium has now begun to integrate NUBURU's proprietary blue laser technology with its High Speed Extrusion (HSE) 3D printing technology. The new platform is designed to deliver breakthrough throughput for ‘extremely high part quality’ and broad scale use in major industrial markets such as automotive, aerospace, and defence according to NUBURU.

"We are excited to have delivered our first units to Essentium, and we look forward to delivering additional units over the course of 2023 and the coming years," said Dr. Mark Zediker, CEO and Co-Founder of NUBURU.

Essentium launched Essentium Parts on Demand (EPOD), an in-house production service using its HSE 3D printing technology in March 2023. The company says the service offers fast and cost-effective production of parts at scale and access to Essentium's open AM ecosystem of solutions.

Elisa Teipel, Ph.D., Chief Technology Officer and Co-Founder of Essentium added: "NUBURU's unparalleled expertise and leadership in blue laser technology have been instrumental in advancing our cutting-edge 3D printing platform. The arrival of the latest units this year and our partnership with NUBURU will help us continue to drive innovation in the AM industry."

Essentium is also leveraging access to NUBURU's intellectual property related blue laser technology, including patents granted in the United States, Japan, China, and South Korea.

NUBURU has also announced the signing of a joint development agreement with GE Additive, to explore the speed, accuracy, and commercial benefits of blue laser-based metal 3D printing.

Zediker commented: "As we continue to advance our proprietary blue laser technology, we have further increased both power and brightness to open up new applications. We’ve achieved key performance milestones that open new possibilities for significant advances in metal 3D printing. Working with GE Additive, and their expertise in metal additive manufacturing, will allow us to rapidly optimise our innovative area printing approach. That will accelerate the further expansion of our pioneering blue laser into innovative metal 3D printing solutions which have the potential to change the landscape of military logistics, aerospace manufacturing, medical device fabrication, and beyond."

Chris Schuppe, General Manager, Engineering & Technology of GE Additive said: "As an industry leader in metal 3D printing and having been on the leading edge of qualifying parts in regulated industries, we’re excited to evaluate NUBURU blue industrial laser technology and its benefits."

The joint development agreement is in addition to NUBURU's agreement with GE Additive to support the company's previously announced AFWERX Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II contract awarded to NUBURU in 2022.

NUBURU's novel 3D printing approach is built on the foundation of blue light absorption by metals, which the company says is a fundamental physical advantage that offers the highest efficiency laser-based melting for a range of industrially important metals.

Through the combination of the blue laser module and an innovative optical conditioning system, the NUBURU light engine is at the heart of the expected performance improvements according to the company. GE Additive will provide a powder bed system and expertise in the integration and characterisation of the next-gen prototype light engine, to quantify the performance improvements over existing technology.

by Oliver Johnson

1 June 2023

15:07

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