Belgium – Miscellaneous special-purpose machinery – Preparation of basic concept, detailed engineering and construction of a high-volume 3D printer

This tender is for the purchase of a high-volume 3D micro-extrusion printer equipped with continuous paste feeding, vision technology and a plate handling system. The printer distinguishes itself from other 3D printers that are standard on the market due to the combination of a large printing capacity (high volume – max 20 liter paste per hour), a high resolution, a good reproducibility and a high amount of vision systems and data capture. For this, the 3D printer must be custom designed and built. Key conceptual decisions that will be made relate to the extrusion system, the intended production volume, how paste is fed to the extrusion system, how printed materials are removed and how many and which sensors are needed for data capture. VITO sees this tender as a collaborative exercise in the technical design, a lot of knowledge and expertise has been built within VITO in all these aspects in recent years.