Latest Desktop Metal acquisition is expected to further accelerate ‘adoption of additive manufacturing 2.0’

Desktop Metal Inc. (NYSE: DM) and The ExOne Co. (NASDAQ: XONE) announced Aug. 11 that they have entered into an agreement whereby Desktop Metal will acquire all of the issued and outstanding shares of ExOne common stock. Under terms of the agreement, ExOne shareholders will receive $8.50 in cash and $17.00 in shares of Desktop Metal common stock for each share of ExOne common stock, for a total consideration of $25.50 per share.

Desktop Metal’s founder and CEO, Ric Fulop, said of the $575 million deal,“We are thrilled to bring ExOne into the DM family to create the leading additive manufacturing portfolio for mass production. We believe this acquisition will provide customers with more choices as we leverage our complementary technologies and go-to-market efforts to drive continued growth. This transaction is a big step in delivering on our vision of accelerating the adoption of additive manufacturing 2.0.”

ExOne and Desktop Metal are among the leading builders of metal binder-jet 3D printers.

Besides ExOne, Desktop Metal has made other recent acquisitions in the AM arena. In January of this year, it bought EnvisionTEC, a global supplier of production-volume photopolymer 3D printing solutions for end-use parts. In May, it acquired Adaptive3D, a manufacturer of elastomeric materials, and in July, the company purchased Aerosint, a pioneer in multimaterial deposition systems for powder-based AM processes.