The latest are Musashi Seimitsu Industry, a Japan-based auto parts supplier, which led the A round for KeraCel, a US-based additive manufacturing company, and Sweden-based engineering group Sandvik, which co-led Oqton, a US and Belgium-based manufacturing software developer’s, $40m A round.
But the range of interested groups continues to expand. GCV Rising Stars Jennifer Diedrichs, Ginger Rothrock and Dina Routhier.
Diedrichs closed EnBW New Ventures’ lead investment into 3Yourmind as the Germany-based energy utility Energie Baden-Württemberg’s first additive manufacturing deal, while Rothrock is on the board of additive manufacturing portfolio company Equispheres and Routhier has seen Stanley Back & Decker’s CVC unit back AstroPrint, MetalMaker 3D and Calt Dynamics in the sub-sector.
And the sector received a significant boost at the end of last year after additive manufacturing technology provider Desktop Metal succeeded in its $2.5bn reverse merger with Trine Acquisition as a special purpose acquisition company (Spac), albeit still far behind the market capitalisation of HP but ahead of more than a dozen others.
Others, however, such as Carbon 3D, could follow the public market route as the additive manufacturing industry is estimated to grow from $12bn to about $146bn this decade as it shifts from prototyping to mass production, according to Wohlers Report 2020. Given manufacturers make about $12 trillion in goods per year, this is not only scratching the proverbial tip of the iceberg but probably able to recreate it as well.
Corporate backed deals in 3D Printing 2011-20
