When Dutch startup MX3D 3D-printed a fully functional stainless steel bridge made from 4,500 kilograms of stainless steel to cross one of the oldest and most famous canals in the center of Amsterdam in 2021 it required a human being to supervise every step of the way.
MX3D will next week open its second 3D printed bridge in a a new section of the Eastern portion of the city. This time the robots did the job alone, no human supervision required.
While building bridges is just a small part of MX3D’s business they do serve as an apt metaphor. The scale-up, one of hundreds that exhibited their innovations at the Viva Technology conference in Paris June 14-17. is building software and sensors that serve as a bridge to industry 4.0.
The Amsterdam-based company equips typical industrial robots with purpose-built tools and develops the software to control them, allowing the company to 3D print complex structures out of metal that weigh, on average, anywhere from 5 kilos to 2,500 kilos. Customers include France’s Engine, a global energy and services group, German auto maker BMW and Japan’s Shimoda Iron Works.
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