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EOS M4 ONYX: Exploring a customer-led path to scaling series metal Additive Manufacturing Ahead of its Formnext launch, Metal AM was invited to EOS’s facilities near Munich, Germany, for an exclusive preview of the new EOS M4 ONYX and in-depth discussions with the developers, product managers, and senior leadership behind it. What emerges is a development story shaped by customer priorities: not a departure into record-breaking extremes, but a focused evolution designed to deliver what production users value most. Dr Martin McMahon, Nick Williams, and Emma Lawn examine the technical priorities behind this response – process stability and repeatability, scan-field strategy, powder and waste handling, and the software controls supporting qualified series production.
Over the past two to three years, the metal Additive Manufacturing industry has been approaching a strategic crossroads: pursue ever larger and more complex builds, or focus on improving productivity and accelerating wider industrial adoption. While some argue that progress can be achieved simply by scaling machines through additional lasers and increased build volumes, the reality is considerably more nuanced. EOS, a long-standing leader in industrial Laser Beam Powder Bed Fusion (PBF-LB), is at the centre of this crossroads, advancing along the path that most directly supports industrial maturity and customer demand. Rather than chasing the largest build volumes or the most lasers, EOS’s latest machine development reflects a purposeful, production-focused evolution of its established technology. This strategy prioritises operational efficiency, long-term sustainability, and engineering discipline, underlining the importance of customer feedback and reliable performance
Vol. 11 No. 4 © 2025 Inovar Communications Ltd
over headline-grabbing scale. While others increasingly move towards ever larger, multi-laser machines and double-digit laser counts, EOS’s new machine will not set records for photon usage; instead, it signals the growing maturity and real-world
expectations of industrial AM. Of course, the wider EOS group includes AMCM, which is more than familiar with larger format AM, but with a focus on lower volumes of customised machines rather than fleets of industry workhorses.
Fig. 1 The EOS M4 ONYX was revealed to the public at Formnext 2025 (Courtesy EOS)
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