The MPP process yields smooth finishes on DMLS parts. Source: EOS GmbH
EOS GmbH is setting up a joint venture for the German-speaking market with the Swiss company BESTinCLASS under the name First Surface Oberflächentechnik GmbH in January 2012. The company will have its headquarters in Krailling near Munich Germany.
First Surface will rely on BESTinCLASS’ Micro-Machining Process (MPP), which improves surface finish of direct metal laser sintering (DMLS) components.
"Surfaces can be treated in many ways. But First Surface (FS) is the first supplier on the German market to improve surface roughness in order to increase its performance," explains Dipl.- Ing. Frank Wiermann, managing director of First Surface Oberflächentechnik.
"This joint venture is a perfect combination of two future-oriented companies," says Dr. Hans Langer, founder and CEO of EOS. "The application spectrum ranges from prototypes to series products. Through the joint venture, we can extend our services to customers beyond design and the manufacturing process to include the surface finishing of laser-sintered components. This gives our customers a huge competitive advantage."
According to the company, the MPP technology not only permits a surface as smooth as glass, it also has further advantages over other polishing methods. These include exact reproducibility and surface homogeneity, maintenance of design style and the ability to control costs.
First Surface aims to replace manual and semi-automatic methods of surface treatment by an industrial, fully automatic process, thus optimizing component surfaces and achieving reproducible results.