HP Inc. showcased its commitment to sustainable manufacturing, including new innovations, materials, tools, and expanded software capabilities to accelerate the journey from adoption to scale for polymer and metal 3D printing.
‘HP is pushing the boundaries of 3D printing with new innovation, expanded capabilities, and a relentless drive to help our partners and customers develop and grow opportunities for more sustainable manufacturing,’ stated Savi Baveja, President of Personalisation and 3D Printing and Chief Incubation Officer, HP Inc. ‘We are proud to empower industries to create a greener, more agile future. Our commitment to sustainability is at the core of our vision.’
HP solutions showcased at Formnext (held from 7-10 November in Frankfurt), included:
HP’s new 5600 Series offers greater repeatability, reliability and customisation to help reduce development and validation costs. Customers including Prototal and Protolabs are already producing parts using the new solution.
The HP 5000 solution is designed to lower the entry barrier for Multi Jet Fusion technology adoption, catering to new customers looking to assess production volume as well as R&D organisations, and small industrial or healthcare businesses currently outsourcing final part production.
Also included is a new partnership with Materialise to drive volume 3D printing to integrate HP’s Multi Jet Fusion and Metal Jet technology into the Materialise CO-AM software platform. This integration offers optimised 3D print job management, real-time machine monitoring, and data preparation, allowing manufacturers to create workflows that improve traceability, quality control and machine utilisation.
Another announcement is the collaboration with Autodesk to bundle Autodesk Fusion with HP Multi Jet Fusion and Metal Jet printers to provide integrated design and manufacturing solutions.
Live demonstrations of HP’s automation proof-of-concept with Siemens are now available for companies looking to streamline production, increase efficiency and minimise downtime. HP continues its momentum in 3D metals, having announced new partnerships with INDO-MIM, Sandvik, and Elnik, and additional metals materials with long standing partner GKN Additive.
Commitment To Sustainable Manufacturing
HP’s commitment to enabling sustainability within its 3D printing business was underscored by a three-pillar approach on display at Formnext this year: reducing carbon footprint, enabling circularity, and sharing knowledge for more impactful results.
‘We have three core areas of focus across HP’s 3D printing solutions, capabilities, and materials to help advance more sustainable manufacturing,’ said François Minec, Global Head of 3D Polymers, HP Inc. ‘From high-reusability materials to help brands reduce net zero waste and minimise carbon footprint to offering take-back programmes and new tools to calculate carbon footprint, we want to help our customers make choices that help our planet and our people.’
A notable example includes HP’s long-standing collaboration with mobility leader BMW Group as they look to advance sustainable design, materials, production, and automation of applications using a variety of HP 3D printing solutions. Jens Ertel, Head of Additive Manufacturing at BMW Group, emphasised the shared vision: ‘We evaluate every part of our production process, continuously improving our operations to minimise our CO2 footprint. HP prioritises environmental responsibility by offering CO2 reduced materials without additional costs, making it easy to adopt.’
The adoption of HP Multi Jet Fusion technology at BMW Group has led to faster development, shorter lead times, and a flexible, cost-effective approach to manufacturing. To help meet sustainability goals while reducing costs, BMW Group uses the HP Jet Fusion 3D Automation Accessory. The solution is designed to minimise idle time, reduce labor costs associated with additive manufacturing, and open new opportunities in series production. Ertel emphasised, ‘Within our working model HP’s Automation Accessory allows us to double the output with the same printer, which is helpful in projects with short lead times. With cost savings in 3D printing and new business cases, adoption will accelerate, and the demand for 3D printed parts will grow.’
HP is working with materials partners to develop more sustainable, high reusability materials. Together with Arkema, HP is developing bio-based materials made with renewable castor oil and using biomethane to further reduce carbon footprint. With Evonik, HP is doubling down on sustainability by developing the 3D High Reusability PA12. Made using renewable energy during production, the material can help reduce the carbon footprint of commonly used PA12 material by 49% without altering its properties (based on results of the September 2023 Evonik Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) for HP 3D High Reusability PA12 material).
HP is launching a groundbreaking Carbon Footprint Calculator tool, an innovative software that will allow customers to get a calculation of the carbon footprint of specific printed parts. This tool empowers industries to make informed decisions regarding the environmental impact of their additive manufacturing practices.
HP
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