These 3-D Printing Companies Have Raised Millions During The Pandemic

It’s no secret that the economy isn’t at its best right now, about half a year into a pandemic that has closed businesses both temporarily and permanently. Many companies are feeling weighed down by the financial uncertainties of 2020 — but some enterprises are thriving and even growing with new investment.

The 3-D printing / additive manufacturing industry has come to the forefront of many efforts over the last few months. This agile manufacturing technology suite offers benefits such as a lack of tooling that allow for a quick pivot of production lines.

3-D printing companies have, since the early days of the novel coronavirus outbreak, been rapidly producing personal protective equipment (PPE), nasopharyngeal (NP) testing swabs, and even emergency-use medical devices. Many 3-D printer OEMs have also turned their own lines to producing such goods, becoming immediate response factories.

Aside from pandemic-driven applications, additive manufacturing has been coming into play as a solution to disrupted supply chains. Decentralizing production reduces the strain of global logistics, as digital technologies like 3-D printing allow for manufacturing to take place at any site with the appropriate 3-D printer and post-processing setup. Design files can thus be created in Singapore for production in Oregon, for example, eliminating the need for international shipping.

And investors have been noticing.

Raising millions of dollars of investment is always big news for a business, whether it be a fresh-faced startup or a more grizzled production operation. Doing so during an economic downturn sets companies even further apart, showing that they have something so special that its future can’t be put on hold.

Among the 3-D printing companies to recently announce millions in new investment rounds are:

Additive Industries

Arevo

• Based In: Milpitas, California, US
• Focus: Continuous carbon fiber 3-D printing
• Investment: $25 million Series B
• Led By: Defy Partners and GGV Capital, with participation from Khosla Ventures, Alabaster, and others
• Total Funding: $60 million

Azul3D

• Based In: Skokie, Illinois, US
• Focus: High-throughput 3-D printing
• Investment: $12.5 million in oversubscribed seed financing
• Led By: Louis A. Simpson, former CIO for Geico, former manager of Berkshire Hathaway
  BRK.B
  and founder of SQ Advisors; Wally Loewenbaum, former chairperson of 3D Systems
  DDD
  ; Joe Allison, former CEO of Stratasys Direct Manufacturing; Hugh Evans, former senior vice president of corporate development for 3D Systems
• Total Funding: $20.5 million

BCN3D

• Based In: Barcelona, Spain
• Focus: Desktop 3-D printing
• Investment: €2.8 million (approx. US$3.3 million)
• Led By: Mondragon and Spanish National Innovation Agency CDTI (Centro para el Desarrollo Tecnológico Industrial), with participation from Accurafy4, JME Venture capital, and Danobatgroup
• Total Funding: €5.5 million (approx. US$6.5 million)

DyeMansion

• Based In: Munich, Germany
• Focus: Post-processing for additive manufacturing
• Investment: $14 million Series B
• Led By: Nordic Alpha Partners (NAP) joining existing investors UVC Partners, btov Partners, KGAL, and AM Ventures
• Total Funding: $24 million

ICON

• Based In: Austin, Texas, US
• Focus: Construction 3-D printing
• Investment: $35 million Series A
• Led By: Moderne Ventures, with BIG-Bjarke Ingels Group, CAZ Investments, Citi, Crosstimbers Ventures, Ironspring Ventures, Next Coast Ventures, Oakhouse Partners, Trust Ventures, Vulcan Capital, and Wavemaker Partners
• Total Funding: $44 million

Kumovis

• Based In: Munich, Germany
• Focus: Medical 3-D printing
• Investment: €3.6 million Series A (approx. US$4.3 million)
• Led By: Renolit SE and Solvay Ventures, joining existing investors High-Tech Gründerfonds and Ffilipa Venture Capital
• Total Funding: €4.8 million (approx. US$5.7 million)

Mighty Buildings

VELO3D

• Based In: Campbell, California, US
• Focus: Metal 3-D printing
• Investment: $40 million Series D
• Led By: Piva and TNSC, as well as “new strategic investors,” joining existing investors Bessemer Venture Partners, Playground, and Khosla Ventures
• Total Funding: $150 million

(Disclosure: VELO3D has previously been a client of mine for editorial content through Additive Integrity LLC.)

This is by no means an exhaustive list of investment in 3-D printing companies over the last half-year — nor are they indicative of the only types of investment into 3-D printing technologies.

Merger and acquisition activity has been ongoing — such as FATHOM’s acquisition of GPI, Nexa3D’s acquisition of NXT Factory, and BASF’s Forward AM business acquiring Owens Cornings
OC’ XSTRAND business line — and major new additive manufacturing technology facilities have recently opened, like BMW’s €15 million Additive Manufacturing Campus in Oberschleissheim, Germany and Evonik’s new Center for Structured Polymers Technology in Austin, Texas.

Investment in the 3-D printing industry has been on the rise for some time, with multimillion-dollar funding rounds indicating rising confidence in the business appeal and viability of additive manufacturing.

That these millions are still pouring into this manufacturing sector during times of overall difficulty is telling. Additive manufacturing is an advanced digital manufacturing technology that promises enhanced agility and real-world viability. While the technology suite is still young and growing, it is no longer a “technology of tomorrow” — additive manufacturing is a production-ready solution ready today, including for the disruptions of today’s business and supply chain environment.