Hamburg-based 3D Spark wins start-up competition

Ruben Meuth, CEO and one of the three founders, noted: "Millions of industry employees worldwide can make smarter decisions with the help of the 3D Spark platform because the effects of different production alternatives are presented transparently." Supply shortages for components cause billions in damage annually. Dr. Fritz Lange, one of the founders, said: "Manufacturing companies often lack the transparency needed to select the cheapest, fastest, safest and most sustainable production process for each component." The company's 3D printing software ensures full supply-chain security. Missing parts can now be printed locally and on-demand, which saves production costs and avoids delayed deliveries. 

The start-up's success is rooted in work at the Fraunhofer Research Institution for Additive Production Technologies (IAPT). "The door opener for the successful adoption of 3D printing, and thus more efficient and sustainable production, is the identification of profitable applications. This is exactly what the 3D Spark platform does by digitizing expert know-how and making this easily accessible to every user," said Olaf Steinmeier, Head of NextGen Energy at Fraunhofer IAPT, who had worked with the trio for over seven years. 

Companies including the Metshape manufacturing services provider, automotive supplier ZF Friedrichshafen and rail technology company Alstrom are already using 3D Spark's software. The latter has saved EUR 1.8 million in costs and more than 20,000 days of delivery time thanks to the application. The start-up now plans to expand its portfolio and offer a comparison of all relevant manufacturing processes. 3D Spark secured Inno Ramp Up funding from the FB Innovationsstarter GmbH in Hamburg this summer and has had years of backing from Felix Krieg, a start-up consultant at  beyourpilot. 

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