And if 2019 saw the largest single order ever placed in EMEA for these machines, the Italian e-commerce operation offering CNC and 3D online machining is reaching the European record for the number of systems installed.
Not only that but Weerg is one of the first companies in the world to implement the innovative automatic unpacking system developed by HP with the German company Rösler AM Solutions within its 3D printing production line. In fact, the Italian service has collaborated as a beta tester in the development of this exclusive solution, which will be presented as a world premiere during the digital edition of the Formnext exhibition.
Says company founder Matteo Rigamonti: “In the last year, we have seen an exponential growth in the demand for 3D-printing, especially for large print volumes, to the point that it now represents around 70% of our production activity.” This increase completely overturns the balance between CNC machining and 3D-printing, which the entrepreneur attributes to the increasingly appreciated advantages of additive production, such as extreme practicality and production rate. “At a slightly higher price, 3D-printing makes it possible to obtain large quantities of parts extremely quickly, avoiding the design limitations that characterise traditional processes such as injection printing,” he confirms.
Hence the doubling of capacity by adding yet more HP systems, which are capable of offering precision, repeatability and high rate production up to thousands of pieces, the company states.
| Read Machinery's January 2019 lead feature about Weerg |
“The industrial performance of the HP Jet Fusion 5210 has been further enhanced by the use of the new Automatic Unpacking Station, which we had the opportunity to test for three months and which is already in operation at our facility in Gardigiano,” Rigamonti explains. This solution automates the process of removing dust from moulded parts. A process that was previously carried out manually by operators that was a waste of time and resources. “The cleaning process carried out by the machine guarantees excellent performance, in terms of quality, speed and safety, even for small and delicate parts,” the company founder adds. In addition, the automatic unpacking system developed by HP allows Weerg to recover more of the dust that can be returned to the system.
Davide Ferrulli, country manager for 3D Printing at HP Italy, says: “We are proud of this partnership with Weerg. Its growth has been constant and the number of pieces printed monthly has tripled in the last 12 months. The additional machines, two of which have already been installed, and the remaining four that will arrive at the end of the year, will be able to support this growth and also allow us to offer customers the production of new materials.” In fact, among the new products available at weerg.com is 3D-printing on polypropylene, an extremely versatile material that will complement the well-known Nylon PA12, further expanding the application possibilities of this technology.”
