Iowa micromolder acquires a 3D printer

Accumold, a specialist in molding small parts for more than 30 years, recently bought a Fabrica 2.0 3D printer. Accumold

For more than 30 years, Accumold, Ankeny, Iowa, has specialized in producing molded microscale plastic parts and components, as well as macroscale parts having tiny, intricate features. The vertically integrated company offers a complete package of micromolding services—from design to toolmaking to molding to assembly—and works to micron and submicron tolerances.

Recently, the company took delivery of a plastic micro-additive manufacturing machine built by Fabrica Group.

Accumold’s CEO and president, Roger Hargens, said the company has been watching the evolution of industrial AM/3D printing to see how the technology may help it better serve customers. He described the acquisition as an “important strategic move which will further reinforce our market-leading credentials in the micromolding arena. … It also plays to the fact that the future of AM is not as a replacement to traditional manufacturing processes that we use daily, but instead is a complementary technology that adds to the agility and versatility of our product development services.”

The moldmaker’s new micro-AM system, the Fabrica 2.0, has a build volume of 50 by 50 by 100 µm, 1 mm/hr. build speed and resolution of 1.9 µm.

Fabrica Group, acquired earlier this year by Nano Dimension, said it is positioning micro-3D printing as an alternative to traditional plastic-fabrication technologies.

An advantage of 3D printing, according to Fabrica, is that it allows the user to design and produce complex geometries at no additional cost. Another is that because AM eliminates costly tooling, designs can be altered with minimal expense.