Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/110653
Business Trends This unique guitar by Designer Olaf Diegel was inspired by biomimicry and output using a 3D Systems Cubify printer. Image courtesy 3D Systems. vide haptic feedback, giving the user the feeling of actually sculpting forms. The Larger Picture The vision, however, is bigger than any piece of the puzzle. The acquisitions that have been going on throughout the industry represent the efforts of companies in 3D design and engineering to find their best opportunities in what is shaping up to be a huge industry. On the hardware side, the major competitors in the 3D print field include 3D Systems, Stratasys, and EOS. All three companies are staking out their preferred areas of expertise and influence. At this stage of the game, there's still plenty of room for the competitors to grow. Stratasys has been concentrating on machines and materials, EOS is an expert in metal materials and structures, and 3D Systems is looking at the business from the point of view of content-to-print. All three companies, however, have to keep an eye on the entire pipeline, and all three companies are competing mightily with one another. In these early stages of the deal between Geomagic and 3D Systems, Fu has the luxury of looking at the big picture, and she still has a slightly removed view. She is excited about the potential of 3D printing and her role in the industry, and she isn't thinking so much about the competitive side as much as the collaborative side. When the technologist talks about the fast-growing Bavarian printer company EOS, for example, she says the firm has the ability to build geometric structures within metal shapes—"they can create entirely new materials"—and, as a result, are enabling manufacturers to build cars that are lighter and more fuel-efficient and use materials that are as light as carbon fiber but less expensive. Impressively, EOS made approximately $124 million in 2011. Fu also expresses admiration for Stratasys' work in materials. Stratasys has a prize in its recently acquired Objet Geometries, a 3D printing company based in Israel. Objet's unique technology enables printers to use multiple materials in the same print. Together, Stratasys and Objet can provide a broad range of print technologies and materials. Stratasys CEO Scott Crump says the companies can now offer their customers the right process and the right materials for any job. With the announcement of the merger between Stratasys and Objet, Stratasys contends that the combined companies made $277 million 2011. 3D Systems reported $138.94 million in 2011. Like 3D Systems, Stratasys now has a broad product range of printers from low-cost to highend. In particular, 3D Systems has more offerings on the low end, while Stratasys has more on the high end. Family History Stratasys was founded in 1989. It was a family operation then, and it still sometimes seems like a small company with big machines. CEO Scott Crump is the founder, and he's very visible at conferences and trade shows. Crump and his team invented Stratasys' core technology—Fused Deposition Modeling. With the Objet merger, Stratasys has become a larger company, and it has acquired Object's Polyjet technology that enables different materials to be combined on the same model. Objet's David Reis has come on board as CEO, while Crump is moving to chairman. At the Annual Needham & Company Growth Stock Conference in January, in a presentation around 3D print opportunities, Crump stated, "We take ideas into reality." The company maintains that its strategy will be to build on its strengths in 3D design/MCAD, jewelry design, and healthcare, says Crump—areas where the company holds a strong leadership position. The firm also has a business making parts on demand for other companies. Stratasys maintains big banks of machines, enabling it to turn out hundreds of parts and ship them in short cycles. So, for the near future, Stratasys is looking at expanding its traditional business. 3D Systems, meanwhile, was founded earlier in 1986 by Charles Hull, who invented one of the base technologies of the industry: stereolithography. The company holds significant patents in the field of additive manufac- ture. After Abe Reichental came on as CEO in 2003, Hull became the chief technology officer and executive VP. After spending a long time in the middle between the companies offering capture technologies and those selling design and build, Fu sees a broad landscape where innovation can happen. She says 3D Systems' Reichental has focused on content as the fuel to grow the industry. "I think I can learn a lot from him," she says. Additionally, 3D Systems and Sensable have a long history of collaboration. The teams put together low-cost 3D printing packages, including the Cubify printers from 3D Systems and Geomagic's Sensable sculpting tools, for use in grade schools. "It's like digital Play-Doh," says Fu, "and the students are learning science, mechanics, and force feedback." This is one of the areas that interests Fu when she begins at 3D Systems. She refers to applications like this one going into schools as "STEAM"—the STEM disciplines (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) with the addition of an A for Art. Fu also sees the next generation of education using art along with STEM classes as a way to encourage more creative scientists and more innovative artists. Using haptics-enabled Geomagic Freeform, artists can sculpt more freely and build more complex, organic shapes. Geomagic acquired the Freeform technology when it bought Sensable in April 2012. January/February 2013 CGW0113-PingFu2pfin.indd 29 n n n n 29 1/31/13 5:05 PM