Formlabs Nylon 12 White, Nylon 12 Tough and Open Material Mode for the Formlab Fuse 1+

We are excited to announce some advancements to the Formlabs Fuse SLS ecosystem: two new advanced Nylon 12 powders for the Formlabs Fuse 1+ and the opening of the Fuse 1 and Fuse 1+ 30W through Open Material Mode. The new Formlabs Nylon 12 White Powder and Nylon 12 Tough Powder expand the capabilities of the Fuse 1+ 30W SLS 3D printer. The Formlabs Nylon 12 White Powder enables easy post-processing workflows for colored or painted photo-ready parts. This allows them to match your brand aesthetic or is ideal for medical applications where color contrast is required. The Nylon 12 Tough Powder for the Fuse 1+ 30 W is characterized by its high ductility and low refresh rate. This makes tough parts more affordable for the end user than ever before.

In addition to the new Formlabs powders, it is now possible to open up the SLS ecosystem. With the purchase of the Open Material Mode, the Fuse series can be operated with powders from third-party suppliers and the print settings can be adjusted using the Print Settings Editor.

Formlabs Nylon 12 White Powder: Proven properties for new applications

The popularity of SLS 3D printing has grown steadily in recent years. There are more Fuse Series SLS 3D printers installed worldwide than any other powder bed fusion 3D printing technology. Due to its ease of use, scalable footprint and affordable price, the Fuse Series is the ideal choice for companies looking to bring their functional prototyping capabilities in-house. They are also used for solving problems on the factory floor with on-demand manufacturing tools or for serial production of end-use parts via 3D printing.

Formlabs’ best-selling multi-purpose SLS material is Nylon 12 Powder. Its strength and dimensional stability make it an excellent all-purpose material. However, its dark grey color makes it less suitable for some applications. As part of the final approval of the prototyping process, many companies need parts that fit their brand and design system. Switching from one manufacturing technology to another for final stage parts to achieve the right color is extremely critical. It can take days of lead time or lead to small changes in the print result. This negates the work that has been done to achieve dimensional accuracy and consistency.

Thanks to Formlabs Nylon 12 White Powder, the same technology can be used throughout the entire process, from the initial design to the finished part in the respective color. Nylon 12 White Powder offers product designers consistent material properties and is easy to coat, paint and color. Its pure white color ensures that products perfectly match the final injection molded products during the final design review phase.

Biocompatibility and surgical cutting guidance

Formlabs’ first biocompatible materials for 3D printing were resins for the Form series stereolithography 3D printers. In addition, Fuse Series materials such as Formlabs Nylon 12 Powder have also been certified biocompatible for years and are used by medical device manufacturers and point-of-care providers for cutting guides, among other applications. However, the industry standard for surgical cutting guides is white parts. This is because they offer the best contrast to human skin and the surgical site.

The new Formlabs Nylon 12 White Powder meets the same biocompatibility standard as the dark gray Nylon 12 Powder. This makes it the ideal choice for manufacturers of cutting templates. Those who have been reluctant to introduce SLS 3D printing in-house due to the high price of conventional machines can now expand their operations with the Fuse 1+ and Nylon 12 White Powder. They will receive the industry-standard color range and the same material properties.

Because Nylon 12 White Powder meets the biocompatibility standard of Nylon 12 Powder, it is an affordable, accessible option for companies. They can either expand their surgical cutting guide offering or finally bring manufacturing in-house.

Biocompatibility certification is currently underway – contact our team to ensure you have all the necessary certifications at the time of use.

Formlabs Nylon 12 Tough Powder: Improved ductility and accuracy with lower refeed rate

By far the most popular material among Formlabs Fuse series customers is Nylon 12 powder. The all-rounder among the Formlabs SLS powders. Nevertheless, everyone is aware that nothing is perfect. The countless, completely different workpieces made of Nylon 12 Powder from our customers have shown us that there is still room for improvement. The dimensional accuracy and ductility of this popular material in particular could be even better. The solution is the new Formlabs Nylon 12 Tough Powder. Thanks to its improved ductility, it can match the mechanical properties of materials used in large-format industrial 3D printers.

At 18.8%, Formlabs Nylon 12 Tough Powder has a 64% higher elongation at break in the XY axis than Formlabs Nylon 12 Powder. We have always known that long, thin components can warp during the sintering process. The higher elongation at break of Formlabs Nylon 12 Tough Powder counteracts the factors that lead to warpage. As a result, long, thin parts retain their structural integrity.

In addition, the lower refeed rate of Nylon 12 Tough Powder enables lower unit costs. This is because the refeed rate of 20% makes it easier to use all the unsintered powder from previous prints, preventing material from being wasted.

Improved resistance with every application

Additional strength improves the functional testing process for functional prototypes of all geometries. Throughout the entire process, manufacturers developing prototypes for climbing equipment, ski and snowboard bindings or consumer goods, for example, must be able to rely on a single material. This is the only way they can concentrate on design changes and not have to deal with changing material properties.

To ensure smooth operation, production aids and spare parts must meet their tolerances so that they can be integrated into existing machines and also withstand numerous cycles without deformation. More durable, stronger materials give manufacturers the confidence that their machines will continue to run smoothly.

The Formlabs Nylon 12 powder is used by many customers for end applications. Brose, for example, uses its three Fuse series printers to print automotive end-use applications for customers such as BMW and Mercedes. With the new Formlabs Nylon 12 Tough Powder, you will be able to produce end-use parts that can withstand even higher loads and longer wear.

Formlabs opens the Fuse series

With the Fuse series, Formlabs launched the first truly affordable industrial SLS 3D printer on the market. The powerful Fuse 1 and Fuse 1+ 30W printers enabled even small companies to use this industrial 3D printing process in-house. Larger manufacturers were able to scale their 3D printing operations without major investment costs or infrastructure adjustments. While the Fuse series is still the only truly accessible, reliable, industrial-grade SLS 3D printer on the market, Formlabs recognizes that our customers are capable of getting even more out of the machines. For this reason, Formlabs is opening up the Fuse Series and the Formlabs ecosystem.

Open Material Mode for the Formlabs Fuse series

From now on, customers of the Fuse series can use any 1064 nm powder on their Fuse 1 or Fuse 1+ 30W printer for a one-time license fee per printer.

Open Material Mode (OMM) gives companies and educational institutions the opportunity to break new ground on a proven, high-quality system. Researchers and innovators can experiment with OMM on Fuse Series printers and push the boundaries of a proven system. Because they can rely on consistent machines, conclusions can be drawn from the results. This allows them to make iterative changes to their designs or materials more quickly.

The use of third-party powders can open up new manufacturing options for specialized research applications and unique workflows. For production workflows that meet all the requirements – design, material, customer – and just need an affordable, ready-to-use production system, the Fuse series can be the right solution. It can produce hundreds of thousands of parts at a lower cost (and in less time) compared to other available methods.

We offer even better conditions for educational institutions. Contact us for a corresponding offer.

Customize the printing process free of charge with the SLS print settings editor

Compared to SLA or FDM (fused deposition modeling) 3D printing, SLS 3D printing is often perceived as more complex. This may be due to the traditionally higher acquisition costs and the larger space requirements. The Fuse series has turned this perception on its head. As the first industrial printer that can be described as “plug and play”, it has become the widely used standard for powder 3D printing. We had spent years optimizing the settings to ensure consistency and ease of use. But many researchers and developers in the SLS industry are ready to go one step further.

Based on a number of proven parameters, experienced users can now use the print settings editor to customize the printing process to their needs. For example, they can now adjust and optimize parameters such as exposure, layer thickness, X-, Y- and Z-axis, scaling correction factors, heating elements, recoater speed, etc.

The use of SLS printing has increased rapidly and the areas of application for the Fuse series are becoming more diverse every day. For this reason, a standard solution no longer makes sense. For the growing number of customers who go beyond iterative prototyping, fine-tuning the printing process is a valuable tool. For production customers printing tens of thousands of the same part, changing a single parameter can mean the difference between meeting or missing a delivery deadline. For a researcher, changing the layer thickness can enable a new geometry that drives development. Without compromising the consistency, reliability and ease of use of the Fuse series, the print settings editor puts more options in the hands of customers.

Further development in the world of SLS 3D printing

With two additional materials and the Open Material Mode, the Fuse Ecosystem opens up new possibilities in SLS 3D printing. From now on, the industrial performance and accessibility of the Fuse series can be combined with the creativity and innovative spirit of users. Optimizing the printing process, trying out new materials, changing the existing to create something new – that’s what drives us forward.

If you would like to find out more about Fuse, visit our website or make an appointment to visit our showroom. If you would like to see the quality of Nylon 12 White Powder or Nylon 12 Tough Powder for yourself, request a sample.