In parallel with this announcement, €64.5 bn turnover BASF has said it will invest US$25 million in Belgian company Materialise.
The companies are focusing on applications in the consumer goods, automotive and aviation industries. The agreement allows for systematic, wider scale testing and further optimisation by BASF of its materials using Materialise’ machines and infrastructure.
Says Volker Hammes, managing director of BASF 3D Printing Solutions GmbH. “Our two companies’ business areas complement each other very well and our cooperation will put us in an even better position to find and develop new business opportunities. With its 3D printer facilities in Leuven and innovative software solutions, Materialise has an outstanding infrastructure. Together, we can exploit our strengths even better to advance the 3D printing sector through the development of new products and technologies together with our partners and our customers.”
Responds Fried Vancraen, Materialise CEO: “To increase the adoption of 3D printing as a complementary manufacturing technology for final products, our industrial customers increasingly demand more control, more choice and ultimately lower cost. We are confident that this collaboration with a leading manufacturer of materials will help to accelerate the adoption of 3D-printing in existing vertical markets and create significant business opportunities in new markets.”
