Headmade Materials closes financing round of EUR 1.9 million led by the Industrial Technologies Fund of btov Partners

Headmade Materials, developer of the metal 3D printing process Cold Metal Fusion (Metal SLS), has completed a EUR 1.9M financing round. The single investor is the Industrial Technologies Fund of btov Partners. The innovative process of the Würzburg-based startup enables 3D printing for series production using low-cost 3D printers available on the market. Headmade Materials will use the funds for scaling up the technology as well as for marketing and customer development. The financing round was supported by the BayStartUP investor network. The financing round was prepared by the BayStartUP investor network.

The company was founded in 2019 as a spin-off from the Würzburg-based polymer research institute SKZ (www.skz.de). The sinter-based Cold Metal Fusion technology was developed for serial production of metal parts, using an existing ecosystem of machines and processes in 3D printing and powder metallurgy. The printing process is carried out with standard laser sintering systems for polymers (SLS), which are available on the market from established manufacturers. This allows customers to scale from a very capital-efficient entry point to this technology all the way to very high production output.

3D printing of metal parts is a fast-growing market, but it is still limited by high part costs and low output. Headmade Materials is aiming for 3D printing of series with up to 100,000 parts per year, thus reaching a new market segment. The Cold Metal Fusion technology offers users full flexibility and scalability at low investment costs. At the core of the process lies the Headmade feedstock, a combination of metal powder and a special polymer binder system. This feedstock can be processed on almost any laser-based 3D printer, giving users complete freedom to define the process chain, depending on their own applications and needs. The debinding and sintering process is compatible with existing powder metallurgical processes (e.g. the MIM process) and significantly simplifies process integration.

In addition to the sale of feedstock based on standard alloys (stainless steel 316L, titanium 6AI-4V), Headmade Materials also adapts individual alloys on request, e.g. hard or refractory metals. With the 3D printing services offered, customers are also supported in the design, part manufacturing and process integration.

"We have been working on the technology for five years and the partnership with btov now gives us the opportunity to accelerate the company's development and realize our vision of 3D series production," says Christian Staudigel, Managing Director of Headmade Materials.

"We see the Cold Metal Fusion technology as a very viable approach for serial production due to the high cost efficiency of the process. The combination of mechanical part properties known from metal powder injection molding (MIM) process and considerable process advantages, such as reduced safety requirements due to easier powder handling and higher green part stability, is also significant here," says Robert Gallenberger, partner of the btov Industrial Technologies Fund.

 

About Headmade Materials

Headmade Materials GmbH, founded in 2019 in Würzburg, Germany, develops materials and processes for metal 3D printing of serial parts. At the core of the technology is the sinter-based 3D printing process Cold Metal Fusion ("Metal SLS"), which enables customers to produce metal parts in series at low cost and in a scalable manner with quantities of up to 100,000 parts per year. By adapting the material, the process runs on established equipment from various manufacturers and considerably facilitates process integration and component certification. Headmade Materials offers customers full use of the Cold Metal Fusion technology as well as 3D printing services and consulting.

Further information at www.headmade-materials.de

 

Über btov Partners

btov Partners, founded in 2000, is a European venture capital firm focusing on digital and industrial technologies. btov’s network of entrepreneurial private investors provides it with unique expertise and access to non-obvious investment themes and founders. The btov Industrial Technologies Fund focuses on hardware and software innovation with industrial use cases such as automation, robotics, data analytics, Industrial AI, additive manufacturing and quantum computing. The btov Digital Technologies Fund focuses on startups primarily in AI, fintech, SaaS, logistics and digital marketplaces. btov has seen waves of innovation like machine learning or fintech very early on and is one of the most successful backers of AI companies in Europe.

With offices in Berlin, Munich, St. Gallen and Luxembourg, the company manages assets of more than EUR 500 million. Its network of private investors consists of 250 experienced entrepreneurs and executives from all over Europe. The most well-known investments include Data Artisans, DeepL, Dyemansion, Effect Photonics, Finanzcheck, Immatics, ORCAM, Quanta, Raisin, SumUp and Volocopter.

More information at https://btov.vc/industrial-tech-fund/