Breakthrough in Material Technology: Engineered Nano-Composite Bluestone SL Material for SLA Systems Available

July 29, 2004

3D Systems Corporation announced the availability of Bluestone(TM) SL material, the first commercially available engineered nano-composite resin for SLA(R) (stereolithography) systems.

Bluestone(TM) engineered nano-composite material is a breakthrough in material technology, delivering exceptional accuracy, stiffness, thermal performance and long-term stability. Bluestone material is ideal for automotive and aerospace applications, such as wind-tunnel testing, under-the-hood applications, and the manufacture of jigs and fixtures. Its thermal properties are also suitable for elevated temperature electronic applications, including insulating components, electrical housings and connectors.

"Bluestone resin is an excellent fit for applications requiring added stiffness and thermal resistance," said Rainer Neumann, General Manager, 4D Concepts GmbH. "This material is perfect for applications in aerodynamics, lighting applications (such as reflectors), and masters for vacuum casting and thermoforming. As a service provider we need to have flexibility in our material offerings, and Bluestone resin allows us to fulfill many customers' needs for a variety of applications. Now we can offer our customers a unique material with improved part quality and functionality."

Extensive pre-release customer testing has shown the material to facilitate a reliable and predictable build process, to be easy to use and require minimal maintenance.

Stereolithography users will find this material easy to adopt as it requires little or no additional facilities, procedures or expertise, and its performance will extend the range of applications they can address.

Source: 3D Systems