Hybrid Manufacturing Using 3DXpert

When 3D Systems acquired Cimatron back in 2015 the industry was confused as to what interest an Additve Manufacturing hardware company could possibly have in a Subtractive Manufacturing software company. But it was a very strategic decision, one that gave us complete control over the hybrid manufacturing solution that we were developing at the time.

Hybrid Manufacturing is when you use a combination of Additive and Subtractive Manufacturing to arrive at a part that reaps the benefits of both worlds. Conformal cooling is a great example of this. Internal cooling channels in molds which are impossible to manufacture using Subtractive Manufacturing and mirror smooth surface finishes which are impossible to manufacture using Additive Manufacturing.

3DXpert is our all-in-one software solution for metal Additive Manufacturing. You can use this single software to prepare your part for printing in a metal 3D printer as well as strategize and perform machining operations on a CNC machine after it is printed. This results in a simple, streamlined and integrated workflow which saves time and money and vastly increases efficiency. You don’t need to buy a bunch of hardware and software from different vendors and cobble together a solution. Then later when each OEM upgrades their piece of the puzzle, you don’t need to figure things out once again.

If you want to learn more about 3DXpert and its NC Machining software module, here is a link to a webinar that explains things is great detail.