Cambridge, UK-based industrial inkjet printhead manufacturer Xaar announces that 3D print software from Belgium-based Materialise, Materialise Magics and Materialise Build Processor, will be included as a bundle option with Xaar’s additive manufacturing development kit. This means that Xaar’s customers who are looking to develop their own inkjet enabled 3D printing/additive manufacturing equipment will benefit from a simple “one-stop approach” to initiating a development program.

Materialise incorporates more than 25 years of 3D printing experience into a range of software solutions and 3D printing services, which together form the backbone of 3D printing technologies. Xaar delivers inkjet technology used in additive manufacturing 3D equipment.

The Materialise Standard Image Build Processor bridges the gap between 3D software and inkjet 3D printing machines. It seamlessly interfaces with Materialise Magics and transforms prepared 3D models to an inkjet machine-specific data format (images). The transformation process can easily be adopted to any inkjet 3D Printing technology by a user friendly profile editor, according to the company. The processor allows users to output multi-channel and multi-pass formats enabling the user to build up complex print strategies. The advanced pixel-fill methods, such as gradient fills and tiling, allow the user to fill print areas with whatever pattern they want, resulting in build strategies that bring the best out of the inkjet 3D printer.

“We are delighted to be collaborating with 3D printing software leader Materialise to deliver to our customers a fantastic and comprehensive development kit,” says Neil Hopkinson, director of 3D printing at Xaar. “Combining Xaar’s printing systems and Materialise’s software solutions gives our customers easy access to best-in-class complementary technologies and will undoubtedly allow for much easier and faster 3D printer development programs".

Earlier this year Xaar opened its new 3D Centre in Nottingham in the UK, specifically focusing on products related to that growing technology.