To say it’s tough in the world of metal 3D printing might be a bit of an understatement. Almost a decade ago, Desktop Metal was one of the early darlings of accessible metal 3D printing. The company raised nearly half a billion in VC funding. Since then, the company has had one hell of a journey. Last year, Stratasys tried to merge with Desktop Metal in a $1.8 billion deal, but the deal fell through, and these days, Desktop Metal is worth less than $210 million.
Enter Peter Schmitt, the lead designer at Desktop Metal for the first half of that company’s life, who thinks he has a better idea. In June 2020, he divorced and started his own – Fluent Metal — which follows a different technological path than Desktop Metal technology. There are no lasers here, and the company claims its technology is less wasteful and more efficient overall.
“Drop-on-demand technology is an elegant approach to creating complex metal parts,” said Peter Schmitt, CEO of Fluent Metal, in a statement to TechCrunch. “Whether it’s prototype iterations of a concept or series production of a single part, Fluent Metal will offer customers great operational and material flexibility. This freedom will unlock new creativity and problem-solving abilities in all industries.”
Fluent Metal has made a grand entrance from stealth mode, backed by an injection of venture capital funding. The company raised an additional $3.2 million led by E15 with participation from Pillar VC and industry angels, bringing the total funding to $5.5 million.
The company claims its technology unlocks high levels of performance, flexibility and customization, setting a new benchmark for what is possible in metal fabrication. It achieves this through liquid metal printing technology, which it hopes will set a new standard in additive manufacturing. At the core of this innovation is the proprietary drop-on-demand approach, a method distinguished by its high precision, adaptability and compatibility with a wide range of metals. It precisely deposits molten metal, drop by drop, onto a substrate in a controlled manner. This allows the creation of complex metal parts with high levels of detail and structural integrity. Unlike traditional methods that often involve complex processes and significant waste of materials, Fluent Metal claims its approach streamlines the manufacturing process, making it simpler, more efficient and less resource-intensive.
What sets Fluent Metal apart is its broad compatibility with various metals. This flexibility opens up a wide range of possibilities for industries ranging from aerospace to medical devices, where the properties of the material used are critical to the performance and reliability of the final product. It claims to be able to switch between different metals and adjust print parameters on the fly, allowing manufacturers to tailor their products to specific requirements without the need for extensive rework or process adjustments.
The company particularly pushes sustainability messages, positioning itself as a greener alternative to conventional metal manufacturing processes.
“As the manufacturing industry evolves to meet the changing needs of global supply chains and sustainability requirements, we need new approaches to foster creativity and expand our collective understanding of what’s possible,” said Philip Liang, managing partner, E15 , in a statement to TechCrunch. “For the foreseeable future, Fluent Metal will ignite the imaginations of designers, engineers and technologists to consider how rapid, on-demand production of custom metal parts could transform their capabilities. At scale, this approach will revolutionize the entire footprint and direction of industrial production.”
Definitely one to watch as additive manufacturing processes continue to evolve.
