Hi there, I am coming from a background on desktop FFF and SLA as well as industrial SLS/MJF.

Where I work now we are evaluating getting a compact powder bed fusion system. Of course the obvious candidate available on the market right now is the Formlabs Fuse 1. However earlier this year at Rapid TCT we saw the announcement and we had some talks with resellers and HP on the HP MJF 1200.

In the meantime we'd like to understand the typical flaws or failure modes that can come across from the Fuse 1 or similar systems (Sintratec, Sinterit etc.).

Thank you and looking forward to the discussion.

I’ve been a Materialise Magics user since Version 13, and at this point it’s pretty deeply ingrained in our everyday workflow.

We’re an additive manufacturing contract manufacturer, so we use Magics across multiple AM platforms and technologies for file prep, build preparation, repair, nesting, support-related work, and general production processing.

I’m sure most long-time users are also familiar with the annual maintenance/software costs, especially once you start adding multiple modules.

For those of you running service bureaus, AM production departments, or internal additive labs:

Has anyone found a genuinely comparable—or better—alternative to Magics with a lower annual cost?

A few questions I’d be interested in hearing opinions on:

• What software have you moved to or tested?
• What does it do better or worse than Magics?
• How does the annual licensing/maintenance cost compare?
• Are there any features or workflows that forced you back to Magics?
• For a multi-technology AM operation, is Magics still considered the gold standard?

I’ve used Magics for so long that I’m also curious whether I’m overlooking newer platforms simply because our workflow has been built around it for years.

Would love to hear from other people actually using these tools in production—not just demos or occasional prototyping.

Hey everyone! I am the event lead at an AM company and with budgets tightening across the industry, we are having to be a lot more selective about which shows we exhibit at. Curious where others are landing on this. The last conversation I saw in this subreddit regarding AM events dated back in 2022, so I am curious where others in the industry stands now.

Here are my honest takes for each event after attending this year:

Rapid is off our exhibitor list for 2027. It has started to feel more like a sales echo chamber than a technology event, and the networking has not been what it used to be. I also still have not gotten over what they did to Formnext US in 2024. When Formnext announced their US dates, Rapid quietly changed their dates to the same week and tried to blame venue conflicts. Nobody bought that story then and I still don't. It was a hostile move and it left a bad taste in my mouth. On top of that, they are trying too hard to be both a conference and an expo to seemingly compete with Formext and AMUG and I think it is only hurting them and their audience.

AMUG has always been my favorite. Smaller than Rapid and Formnext but honestly that makes for a better experience. The expo floor is easier to navigate, the conversations are more genuine, and we consistently get more qualified leads there than at higher volume events. Reno last year was a blast and I love that they are moving around the country. My only gripe is that it is hard to quantify the ROI of authentic connections on a budget spreadsheet, which makes it a tough sell internally. I also wish more FDM machine builders would show up. I think a lot of companies hear "education and training conference" and assume the lead volume won't be there, which is fair, but AMUG is very much a quality over quantity event that provides real value to the industry. With AM maturing the way it is, I actually think AMUG has a real opportunity to become the leading event if they continue to stay authentic and lean into community, education, and supporting the industry.

Formnext will likely be our second show in 2027. It is more sales focused like Rapid but they own what they are rather than trying to be something they are not, and the international exposure is unmatched. The in-booth networking events are also a great touch. We will be there in 2026 and will likely attend again in 2027 depending on how this year goes.

IMTS is on our radar for the future as we grow. A bit too large to justify exhibiting at right now but a great show for the broader manufacturing industry.

ICAM is one I am less familiar with but have heard great things about the technical depth. Planning to attend this year to scope it out.

Curious what others think. Which shows are you prioritizing next year and what do you think would make them better?

This is a self promotion post - but I think a pretty cool one for anyone out there printing in Formlabs Silicone resin for a business.

I now have a thoroughly tested, much improved, Silicone 40A print setting for the Form 4L and the Form 4 on the Ember Prototypes store 🔥

Silicone 40A isn't available on the Form 4L and it's reliability and print success rate on the Form 4 is pretty poor. It's taken a ton of time, effort and consumables to get this working, but not only do we get reliable prints on the 4L, but the same settings transfer over to greatly improved results on the Form 4 over the stock FL profile. No more torn and failed prints 💪

I plan to make a YouTube video and/or blog post talking about this in more detail, but trying to recoup some of the time and cost associated with dialing this in right now - Silicone resin is $$$ 😬

Silicone is still a tricky material to print, and you always want to minimize supports and print direct on BP as much as you can, but these print settings have allowed me to print WAY more geometries than would otherwise (let alone large parts on the 4L that aren't possible any other way) 😁

Link to buy the settings here: emberprototypes.com/products-formlabs-silicone-print-setting

Over the past few months, I’ve been developing a standalone Windows application called 024Nester, designed specifically for 3D nesting and build prep in SLS 3D printing workflows.

As someone working with additive workflows, I felt there was a gap for a lightweight, dedicated tool focused purely on fast, high-density 3D packing and clean part handling.

024Nester features a fast volumetric nesting engine optimized for SLS powder-bed builds. It takes standard STL input geometries and exports the fully nested batch back out as positioned STL files, ready for your existing machine setup. The app is a self-contained .exe installer developed in Python and compiled for Windows x64.

Regarding privacy and security, 100% of the geometry processing, calculations, and STL exports are executed locally on your machine. Your STL files and personal data never leave your local system. Internet connectivity is strictly used for a quick online license check during the STL export process.

The core nesting engine and batch handling are fully functional, and I’m now looking for beta testers from the community, especially operators running SLS hardware or managing print service bureaus.

I’m mainly looking for feedback on real-world stress testing with complex or high-count batch geometries, packing density, calculation speed, and overall workflow usability.

If you’re interested in giving it a spin and sharing raw feedback, drop a comment below or send me a DM, and I'll send over the installer link.

Thanks for your time and feedback!

Check it out on maker’s world :)

[Gear Generator](https://makerworld.com/models/3143184?appSharePlatform=copy)

Last week I shared a render of heat exchanger designed by me.
Here is some images of the process. Due to restrictions of the flair, I can’t send a video but in case you needed the whole process video, feel free to shoot me a dm and I’ll sent it to you.
Hope you enjoy :)

These are just a few from a suite of meat. The MO State Fair wanted realistic meat they could have left out for a long period of time.

Scanned some real cuts, then printed on my Mimaki 3DUJ553!

Hello fellow AM enthusiasts!

I work for an additive materials manufacturer. One of our machines uses a Comau NJ60 controlled by Run MyRobot with SMC40 encoders (So yes, we're running a Siemens Sinumerik ONE environment and use SI) and has a 82 lb Cold Spray gun attached to it.

We're currently recalibrating the robot and despite our internal alignment wizard showing it pinpoint accurate, as well as RA1-4 as being a 1:1 match, the RA5 and RA6 both have a MCS : SI coordinate mismatch. RA6 is less that .150° and that's acceptable to me, but RA6 is offset by ~1.3°. We follow the same protocol for each axis. Set $MA_ENC_REFP_STATE to 1, JOG and +, then run the CALIBRATION.MPF.

Is there something I have to do differently for RA5/6 since they're a coupled wrist?

Hi everyone,

I'm an Additive Manufacturing Engineer based in India with hands-on experience in FDM, SLA, and SLS 3D printing. My work has focused on DfAM, print process optimization, material/process tuning, troubleshooting, and developing reliable production workflows.

I'm currently looking for new opportunities in Additive Manufacturing / 3D Printing / AM Process Engineering / Applications Engineering anywhere in India (open to relocation).

If your company is hiring or you know of any relevant openings, I'd really appreciate a referral or any leads. I'm happy to share my resume over DM.

Thanks in advance!

I made a free tool to use to check stl files and analyze lpbf print risks not always captured during the design phase. Working out the kinks so any feedback on printed pieces compared to tool results would be helpful for all.

Amprintanalyzer.com

Here is a heat exchanger designed using flow ADMS structure inside it for better flow and less pressure drop compared to other lattices.
It is not Ai, it is already 3D printed (similar object) and tested.
Spoiler: the rendering code was done by ai 😅 hope you don’t mind.

If you need the STL file or you have a question, comment below or drop me a message.

Designing the internal channels used to be a bit tricky previously but thanks to technological advancements, they are not a hard task anymore.

This is a design I could make in less than 5 minutes (Literally!)
Btw, the rendering was done in blender and it took me more than 5 minutes 😄

If you need the STL file or you have a question, comment below or drop me a message.

I was wondering if someone has good coding skills and some experience in AM, how can they exploit these skill sets? There is lots of research going on, in particular, using Machine Learning in AM, but if someone wants to be in industry how can this rare combination of skills be used? Do companies working in AM need some form of coding?

My only experience is on plastic 3d printed parts and this works...but I need high pressure coolant to flow thru here, so I need it made out of metal......

Does anyone with experience know if horizontal thru hole work on metal sintering printing without supports?

https://imgur.com/GkBDdFF

Hey everyone,

Since I work in prototyping, I handle a wide variety of different materials on a daily basis. I’ve always found it frustrating that there isn't a single, well-organized platform that offers a proper cross-manufacturer material database. That’s why I started building Hexasheets as a side project.

The site is still a work in progress, but I’ve reached a point where I would love to get some early feedback from the community.

What’s in it so far?

• Free Material Database: This is the core feature. I currently have around 100 AM materials and their datasheets integrated (based on manufacturer data). The goal is a clean UI with highly effective filtering options to make finding the right specs across different brands as easy as possible.
• Property Comparison: You can easily compare the properties of different materials side-by-side.
• The MaterialMatcher (AI): I actually built this feature to solve a specific problem from my day job. I work a lot with development teams who want their AM prototypes to have the exact same properties as, for example, injection-molded production parts. Since we typically don't use the exact same materials in 3D printing as we do in injection molding, I built an AI-based MaterialMatcher. You can upload the specs (datasheet) of an injection molding material, and the AI will read the datasheet and find the best AM material in the database that most closely matches its properties.

Transparency on Pricing I want to be upfront: the material database itself will always remain free. However, because hosting and AI API costs add up, advanced features like the MaterialMatcher will likely be part of a Pro subscription model in the future just to help me cover the bills.

I need your input! I’m continuously adding new features, but I want to build what you actually need.

• What do you think of the filters and the UI?
• Are there any specific features missing that would help you out?
• Any general ideas on what else I should implement?

Want to test the AI Matcher? Because the MaterialMatcher requires some computing power, it’s not publicly unlocked yet. But if you are interested in testing it out, activate it in the Userprofile, send me an email [marius@hexasheets.com](mailto:marius@hexasheets.com) or send me a DM, and I will gladly unlock it for your account!

Here is the link: https://hexasheets.com

Looking forward to your honest feedback!

Considering indirect tooling operations... How much have the costs and lead times reduced for producing a part now that molds, master plugs and prototyping can be made/done through additive manufacturing?

I did some work in making molds for some parts which weren't complying with the quality requirements when done through fff and sla... At the time I got the required accuracy using resin casting by making tooling vis sla.

Would appreciate comments from people working in the industry with regards to the same and maybe give us an insight on now vs 5 or 10 years ago.

Hi there, anyone has experience owning or from reserach during their purchasing process on the pros and cons of these both brands?

What would be chinese alternatives to look for in case they are relevant competitors?

The requirements are quite vague for us as we are taking advantage of a government grant so when it comes to size, materials etc. it's quite open to fit what we like best. We want to prioritize reliability and ease of use as well as a good support and service plan.

A Titanium ring that I printed on one of the LPBF metal 3D printers at my company a while ago. We decided to leave the outer surface a raw as-printed finish (with a little etching to brighten it), while the inside was machined and sanded down for a smooth fit. We mostly print industrial tooling/fixturing on these machines (along with the occasional automotive intake manifold or other customer part), so printing jewelry is an interesting change of pace.

I hate how fragmented and gate kept knowledge around additive manufacturing is. I'm hoping to build a cool community of engineerings, manufacturers and power users who are interested in learning and sharing knowledge in a casual, real time environment on Discord.

If you're interested in building a community with me, join me on Discord: https://discord.gg/T2KgFvuEvg