Metal 3D printer maker SLM systems Preps Frankfurt IPO
US investors got their first taste of the German 3D printer trade in October, when Augsburg based Voxeljet launched its US IPO. Another German player plans to go public in Frankfurt this year helping fast track the industry's move into new territory.
SLM Solutions, in Lubeck, is working with Credit Suisse and Deutsche Bank to go public on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange as early as the H1 of this year. The IPO reportedly aims to offer about 60% of the company and raise EUR 200 million to EUR 300 million roughly USD 275 million to USD 410 million.
The vast majority of printers made by 3D Systems (DDD), Stratasys (SSYS), Voxeljet and others work almost exclusively with plastic, depositing layers of material which are then cured by on-board lasers.
SLM's printers fashion components from aluminum, stainless steel and titanium, using lasers to melt and fuse powdered metal. The technology is not new.
Printers made by ExOne are used in applications involving aircraft gear cases, cylinder heads for automobiles and prosthetics and other components for various medical devices. Analysts the Pittsburgh-area based, small cap company to turn profitable next year.
3D Systems acquired Phenix Systems, a French maker of printers able to produce high grade metal and ceramic objects, last July for USD 15.1 million. The company has started rolling out the rebranded Phenix printers, forecasting sales of 15 to 20 machines per quarter after Q1 and totaling $40 million this year.
Source – News.investors.com