FELIXprinters capped off its busy show season (which included exhibiting at TCT 2019 in Birmingham, U.K.) with a hugely successful four days at the flagship Formnext exhibition at the end of November in Frankfurt.
FELIXprinters had working examples of its range of industrially-oriented additive manufacturing (AM) platforms, and reinforced its position as perhaps the key supplier of industry’s most affordable, accurate, repeatable, easy-to-use, and upgradeable AM platforms.
Front and centre on the booth at Formnext were the company’s Pro L and Pro XL larger build envelope machines which were independently reviewed in 2019 as being the only commercially available AM platforms that can rival the industry-standard Ultimaker machines. The machines were both working at the show, and visitors were shown an impressive array of complex industrial builds for which the FELIX technology platforms are ideally suited.
The Pro L and Pro XL machines are respected throughout industry due to their strength, robustness, and quality of build, and today can be seen to out-perform alternatives in all important areas and for an array of exacting industrial applications. FELIXprinters’ AM platforms are synonymous with exceptional quality, and all shipped platforms are subject to a stringent 24-hour quality test before delivery to its customers.
A real show-stopper at Formnext, however, was the newly introduced FELIX BIO platform that was for the first time available for pre-order for shipping at the beginning of 2020.
Co-owner Wilgo Feliksdal says, “The FELIX BIO printer is based on the same chassis as the whole FELIXprinters product line, and is characterized by key features that are specifically designed for medical, scientific, and research applications, including syringe cooling, print bed cooling and heating, a dual head system, easy syringe positioning (ergonomic access to the machine supports researchers in their work), and automatic bed levelling.”
At the heart of the FELIX BIO is the source control system which enables the user to use standard slicing software and make changes themselves if needed. Syringes are not restricted to expensive brand-specific or in-house produced products that essentially drive up operating costs. The machine instead has been designed to use a standard 5ml syringe, and standardized petri dishes and culture plates, so there are no limitations on auxiliary parts and materials.
The FELIX BIO has some unique characteristics which include retraction capability, impossible on alternative air pressure systems. This is vital for optimized dosage of materials and accurate material flow. The FELIX BIO is also designed so that the print heads are easily sterilizable, and they are also modular units that can be changed easily. In addition, the FELIX BIO has a unique probing system which results in a perfect first layer the foundation of precise and accurate printing results.
Guillaume Feliksdal, co-owner sums up by saying, “Being present at events such as Formnext is vital for us. Not only does it provide us with an obvious opportunity to demonstrate our machines and prove their accuracy and robustness in industrial applications, but it also means we can discuss specific applications with our customers. This is central to everything that we do at FELIX. We do not sell AM boxes, we sell AM solutions, and central to everything that we do is to supply solutions that are ideally suited to customer requirements. As such, we are unique in the lower cost high accuracy area of 3D printing in offering truly customized solutions. This plays to the disquiet that everyone understands that many vendors are purely motivated by hitting sales targets rather than providing optimized customer solutions.”
