FX10 Metal Kit World’s first dual-capability industrial 3D printer for metal and composite printing

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Markforged has introduced the FX10 Metal Kit, a new print engine that enhances its FX10 3D printer with metal printing capabilities. This development marks the FX10 as the world's first industrial 3D printer capable of printing both metal filaments and advanced composites with continuous fibre reinforcement.

The launch of the FX10 Metal Kit by Markforged represents a significant step forward in industrial 3D printing technology, enabling manufacturers to use a single machine for both metal and composite printing. According to Shai Terem, CEO of Markforged, this advancement eliminates the need for separate printers and maximizes return on investment by enhancing factory floor efficiency and productivity. “The FX10 supercharges other equipment on the factory floor to be better utilized and run more efficiently, increasing productivity and reducing potential line down events,” Terem stated.

The FX10, released in November 2023 as a composite only printer, was designed to be the most versatile tool on the factory floor and has received tremendous feedback from early customers. With its modular architecture, upgrades like the Metal Kit enable customers of the FX10 to gain additional value from the machine after purchase.

Markforged also announced a new 316L stainless steel metal filament to be used with the FX10 Metal Kit. Users will also be able to print in 17-4PH with additional support for other Markforged metal filaments in the future.

“We designed the FX10 to be a modular platform, so that we are able to release new innovations and upgrades without customers having to purchase a new printer every year,” said Terem. “Along with new software capabilities we release regularly, the FX10 Metal Kit is poised to provide continuously growing value on factory floors for years to come.”

The FX10 Metal Kit consists of a swappable print engine that includes a metal-specific print head, material feed tubes, routing back, and dual pre-extruders. An FX10 can be swapped between metal and composite as many times as needed, and the swap takes about 15 minutes.

Similar to the 5th Generation Continuous Fiber Reinforcement (CFR) print system in the FX10 that prints nearly twice as fast as previous composite printers, the 2nd Generation Metal FFF engine, built on years of Markforged’s experience printing metal, prints significantly faster than previous Markforged metal systems. FX10 combines faster print speed with a print volume twice as large compared to Markforged’s prior industrial metal printers.

Metal prints are built from the metal filament and a ceramic release filament. The ceramic release is extruded as an interface between the part and supports for ease of separation and removal. Once metal prints are complete, they must be washed and sintered in Markforged’s Wash-1 and Sinter-2 solutions. Eiger, Markforged’s slicer and print management software automates the process, including scaling parts to account for shrinkage during sinter.

The Digital Forge is the additive manufacturing platform that enables every aspect of the FX10 and is purpose-built to integrate into existing manufacturing ecosystems. With the Digital Forge, users can share parts across their organization, and monitor fleet performance from a central location.

Markforged will showcase the FX10 Metal Kit at the International Manufacturing Technology Show in Chicago, Illinois from September 9-14 at booth 432305 where it will be printing in both continuous fibre reinforced composites and metal.

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