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EOS headquarters in Krailling near Munich/Germany.
Industrial, powder-based 3D printing build process.
The special 3D printing honeycomb structure of the Hexr helmet. Photo: © Hexr
Hexr’s custom-fit bicycle helmet. Photo: © Hexr
A visionary in industrial 3D printing Industrial 3D printing has only really started to appear in the public eye in the past five to ten years. But did you know that some visionary thinkers, like the German company EOS, have been developing and innovating in this field for the past 30 years?
pressure hydraulic block for the airbus A380, which offers the same performance as the conventional component, while being 35 per cent lighter.
TEXT: NANE STEINHOFF I PHOTOS: EOS
Future outlooks
EOS is one of the world-leading innovators in powder-based 3D printing, processing a variety of polymers and metals. Their high-end additive manufacturing solutions enable customers from many sectors to design and manufacture a variety of products. While the topic of 3D printing has today become omnipresent, EOS now celebrates its 30th anniversary, which marks the family-owned company’s impressive transformation from start-up to global player. Behind the company’s unprecedented success stands the visionary founder Dr. Hans J. Langer, who recognised future market trends at an early stage. Already in 1989, when EOS was founded in Munich’s outskirts, Dr. Langer had a clear goal in sight: to create physical components from digital data. He was convinced that this technology would enable an entirely new world of manufacturing. And he was right!
Benefits for businesses In the first 20 years of its history, EOS primarily focused on using 3D printing to accelerate product development and go to market - as such going far beyond what conventional manufacturing technologies could offer. Over the last few years, EOS’ 3D-printing technology has truly arrived in serial manufacturing and is one of digitisation’s big impulse generators. In this context, 3D printing plays a pivotal role because it connects the digital and the material world. The benefits: clients can shorten research and development times, reduce production costs and foster lightweight constructions, amongst other things. Many companies already work with EOS and are showcasing what is already possible in the field today. For example, the start-up Hexr works with EOS technologies to produce custom-fit bicycle helmets, while in the aerospace sector, Liebherr used the technology to build a high-
Today, the goal for many companies is to develop manufacturing towards digitisation. While businesses stand under increasing pressure to develop new products quicker than their competitors, they are sometimes slow in adopting additive manufacturing (AM) and integrating it into their organisation because the needed expertise is still hard to find. EOS offers relief with its Additive Minds consulting division, as it supports customer to speed up their AM learning curves, minimising investment risk, adding extra value and as such enabling them to enjoy the full potential of AM. All in all, EOS has 30 years of experience under its belt, offers industry-specific 3Dprinting solutions and supports businesses from their introduction to the technology through to the development of entire manufacturing facilities. We think it’s high time to embrace industry 4.0 with EOS! www.eos.info Issue 78 | September 2019 | 67