Additive Manufacturing
AEIP has developed and now licenses breakthrough additive manufacturing technology with capabilities considerably in advance of any other thermoplastics-based 3D printing system currently available.
The story of the VTPM additive manufacturing system
In 2017, an international group of highly successful inventors, entrepreneurs and investors began
research on overcoming the limitations of thermoplastics additive manufacturing and its role in
industry.
The technology they developed, working with highly skilled engineers and specialists, is called
Versatile Thermoplastics Particle Manufacturing (VTPM).
Based on VTPM technology a large-format pellet additive manufacturing system was developed in
stealth mode – a solution to many of the challenges faced by those wishing to explore and take
advantage of the benefits of thermoplastics-based 3D printing in their research, development and
production. The challenge was to successfully accomplish what was considered at the time to be
impossible.
The VTPM AM system was not “another step in the evolution” of existing thermoplastics 3D printing. It was developed without relying on pre-existing additive manufacturing technologies, building off what industry really needed.
START
2018
The engineers were selected through a closed competition. Meetings and discussions began in 2018. The team that was selected already had a 3D pellet printer of their own design which they had used to print the Hoversurf flying motorcycle “Hoverbike” among other products. Now they were steered in the direction of Versatile Thermoplastics Particle Manufacturing (VTPM).
2018
PROTOTYPE Model 3
The first full size prototype was produced in late 2018. It was able to print large objects
but tests showed that the machine had to be significantly larger and heavier to print at high
speeds.
The prototype had three printing heads: two to print two different materials in a single layer;
the third to print support with easily detachable material.
This was revolutionary at the time. We later found that we could achieve the same results with two
heads which are now standard on the VTPM AM system.
PROTOTYPE Model 4
2019
Working closely with industry after successful testing of the 2018 full-size prototype
showed the kind of additive manufacturing systems that businesses desperately needed.
At the same time, it demonstrated which areas of additive technology itself remained unclear to
them and the services they needed. It was then that the work went in several directions - the
creation of in-demand equipment, a set of services united by a common ecosystem, and an adequate
business model.
Development in stealth mode was conducted simultaneously on two significantly different models to
increase the speed of results.
2019-2021
BREAKING NEW GROUND
Before VTPM and equipment with such parameters appeared on the scene, the necessary assemblies and
parts for machines of this level were not available anywhere in the world. They could not be
ordered or "off-the-shelf." We either designed and manufactured them ourselves or had them
designed and manufactured for us by a number of internationally-known manufacturers. Added to all this
was the difficulty of global supply during the pandemic 2019-2021.
All the components of the machine were built from scratch simply because nothing like what we were
developing existed.
Deeper research led to development of an entire ecosystem intended to serve anyone in the AM business
to make it easier to use this technology and produce higher quality products more rapidly and
cost-effectively.
COMMERCIAL SYSTEM
2020-2021
Our first commercial system was produced at this time and was in high demand.
The production machines were housed in a materials science test lab, where custom printing modes
with different materials were researched, creating a database of settings for industrial work with
a wide range of thermoplastics and composites.
At the same time, an on-demand service was launched, which produces custom-printed objects for
customers from all over the world.
2021
DUBAI EXPO 2020 AWARDS
In 2021, our developments were honored with two awards at the Dubai Expo 2020 world exhibition,
which opened a year later because of Covid-19. Our ecosystem won the Best Technology Award at the
Digital Leaders conference and the Best Hardware Award at the Time of Innovations 2021 conference.
During the award ceremony, we demonstrated the capabilities of our equipment by carrying out the
rapid 3D printing of a complex product via video link. The audience could see an object being
created before their eyes at an unprecedented speed.
SERIES OF TESTS
2021-2022
During testing, we found that both models worked very well. But we had to choose the best of each design to combine it into one cohesive additive manufacturing system. Tests of the new model showed that it met the VTPM requirements in terms of functionality and reliability. From this we went on to build a serialized AM system that met industry demands and surpassed industry standards.
2023-2024
NEW HORIZONS
Completion of work on a serial industrial VTPM 3D printer was followed by the establishment of the VTPM Center of Competence, which continued to test and expand the capabilities of this technology. High-speed printing modes with two different materials in one layer, two-layer products with different wall thicknesses, large products with high print quality, and other options were tested.
Negotiations were held with organizations on different continents interested in obtaining a license for production, service and sale of VTPM additive manufacturing technology. This is how the brands for EMEA - Gigaprinter™, for Asia-Pacific - Additive Factory™ and AnyForrm Technologies™ for North America were created and developed.
Find out more about the VTPM additive manufacturing solution by downloading and reading the White Paper.