Ultimaker, a ‘global leader in professional 3-D printing’, has announced that it will be adding the PVA Removal Station to its Ultimaker platform.
In conjunction with the company’s printers, software, materials and customer support, the PVA Removal Station means that ‘3-D printers can develop prototypes faster, and that users will be able to bring their products to market more quickly, speeding up the overall product development process.’
3-D printers that use PVA (poly-vinyl alcohol) as a support material require post-processing to remove it. This is generally achieved by dissolving the PVA for a long period of time in water. Depending on the size, complexity of the design and density of the support structure, this process can take more than a day to complete. Ultimaker’s PVA Removal Station reduces this time by up to 75%. It also reduces the operating time, as operators no longer have to remove PVA manually or need to check the dissolving process.
Jürgen von Hollen, Ultimaker’s CEO, said: “Ultimaker is always looking for ways to remove barriers to 3-D printing. We know that organisations are challenged to bring more complex products to market faster; here, our new PVA Removal Station is the missing link in our end-to-end solution platform, helping designers, engineers, architects, and educators to drive in-house innovation.
“Our entire 3-D printing platform, now including the PVA Removal Station, will allow them to speed up the prototyping and product development processes, enabling safe, quick, and effective PVA removal from even the most complex designs and geometries.”
The Ultimaker PVA Removal Station is easy to use, clean, and maintain. Filled with 13.5 litres of water to dissolve PVA, its circulation direction changes automatically and the speed can be adjusted as needed. It comes with a basket and divider to fix prints and to keep them submerged.
“The saturation indicator shows if water needs changing, and the transparent container allows for a quick view on the dissolving process. The PVA Removal Station will be available in the first half of next year.”