3D Printing

Nano Dimension Acquires NanoFabrica for $55 million

Posted on by Techtime

Above: Miniature structure created by NanoFabrica’s Tera 250 machine

In a surprising  move to expand its footprint in the market of additive manufaturing for the Electronics industry, Nano Dimension announced that it has signed and closed a definitive agreement to acquire NanoFabrica for $54.9-$59.4 million. Out of that, between $23 million to $27.5 million will be paid in cash (depending upon certain milestones), and approximately $32 million was paid in American Depositary Shares (ADSs) of Nano Dimension.

The Tel aviv based NanoFabrica has developed a 3D Printing technology for miniature parts. Its Tera 250 machine is capable of producing thousands mm-size parts in a single run and in a resolution of down to 1 micron. Nano Dimension’s produce a PCB printer for the Electronics industry. It uses nanoparticle ink to enable in-house rapid prototyping of professional, multi-layer printed circuit boards (PCBs) and passive devices such as resistors, capcitors, inductors and antennas.

High-end components in a digital format

NanoFabrica’s scientists and engineers are expected to now join Nano Dimension and continue to be led by NanoFabrica’s two founders: Dr. Jon Donner and Eyal Shelef. Yoav Stern, Chief Executive Officer of Nano Dimension, stated, “Our mutual vision is to merge the technologies of our micro-electronic 3D-fabrications machines for Hi-PEDs (Hi-Performance Electronic Devices) with NanoFabrica’s micro-mechanic 3D printing.

“The future of Hi-PEDs and miniaturized high-performance printed circuit boards (PCBs) is interlaced with micro-mechanical printing applications. Eventually, the end goal is to reach a capability for maintaining an inventory of high-end PCB devices, micro-mechanical parts and Hi-PEDs in digital form: print them as you need them, where you need them, only the quantity you need, in the best quality at competitive prices.”

Stratasys is looking for Production Technologies

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Stratasys plans to make a strategic move and shift its focus from prototyping-oriented technologies into full scale production. “Stratasys today leads the industry with the largest share in material extrusion and material jetting through our FDM and PolyJet technologies,” said the CEO Yoav Zeif (pictured above), during a conference call after the company had reported disappointing Q2 2020 results.

“However, these two technologies currently address only about one-third of the total additive manufacturing hardware opportunity. Further, their growth rates have slowed in comparison to the growth rates of other technologies that suit the needs of faster growing applications, especially in production.” Stratasys ended the quarter with a net loss of $28 million, joining a loss of $21.7 million in the first quarter – a total of $50 million in H1 2020.

COVID-19 hit the entire 3D Printing Market

This weakness characterizes the entire 3D printing market: Stratasys’s main competitor, 3D Systems, also reported a double-digit decline in revenue and losses in the last two quarters. Among other things, this is the result of COVID-19 crisis that led to a downsizing of many equipment purchasing plans in key industries around the world.

“We have already started the journey into true manufacturing,” added Zeif. “There are over 100,000 Polymer parts flying today that have been printed on Stratasys systems. Therefore, to help us win in these faster growing areas, we will invest organically and inorganically in new Polymer technologies such as PBM, VAT Photopolymerization and others.”

In PBM – Powder Bed Fusion technology –  a powdered polymer is solidified using a heat source such as a laser or a thermal print head. In VAT Photo Polymer technology, a solution of a light-sensitive polymeric substance is solidified by exposing it to ultraviolet radiation. Zeif revealed that in order to implement this strategy, the company is considering to acquire companies that specialize in these technologies.

Stratasys is Downsizing its Workforce by 10%

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The US-Israel based Stratasys Ltd. announced that it is reducing its global workforce as part of a strategic plan to accelerate growth. This resizing was expected according to the company’s long term strategy, but advanced sooner due to the impact of COVID-19. It will affect approximately 10% of its 2,300 employees. The vast majority of the reduction will take place this month. Stratasys plans to complete the reduction during the third quarter of 2020.

“This reduction in force is a difficult but essential step in our ongoing strategic process,” said Yoav Zeif (photo above), Chief Executive Officer of Stratasys. “This measure is not expected to affect the progress on our forthcoming product launch plans.” The move will reduce annualized operating expenses by approximately $30 million. The company will incur a charge of approximately $6 million in severance costs, primarily in the second quarter of 2020.

Stratasys is a global provider of industrial additive manufacturing (3D printing) solutions that are used to create prototypes, manufacturing tools, and production parts for industries, including aerospace, automotive, healthcare, consumer products and education. The company was heavily impacted by the COVID-19 epidemic. Revenue for the first quarter of 2020 was $132.9 million, compared to $155.3 million for the same period last year. The 14.4% reduction was driven primarily by the adverse impact of COVID-19 on the company’s customers.

Lately, in mid May, Zeif said the company had secured resources to contain the crisis: “We have over $325 million in cash and equivalents and no debt. It’s clear that this crisis has helped generate significant awareness that 3D printing is becoming essential for accelerating design, speeding up time to market and creating more resilient supply chains.”