Taiwan's ITRI Plans to Develop Locally-sourced 3D Printing Material and Equipment

Taiwan's government-backed Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI) plans to organize a 3D printing consortium by the end of this year with the aim of developing locally-sourced equipment and materials technologies for Taiwan's emerging 3D printing industry.

The consortium is scheduled to roll out its first commercialized 3D printer early next year.

At least three manufacturers headquartered in southern Taiwan will reportedly join the alliance to license the technology from ITRI and apply for special subsidy from the Department of Industrial Technology (DoIT) of the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA).

According to executives of the Additive Manufacturing and Laser Application Center of ITRI Southern Region Campus, in charge of the consortium plan, 3D printing materials have evolved from plastics to metal, ceramic and even eco-friendly poly-lactic-acid (PLA) to make fully-functioning products.

They note that in recent years 3D metal printing technology has advanced considerably that durability and precision of printed products have improved impressively, hence motivating the industry to target mold-making and medical-equipment applications.

ITRI has released Taiwan's first titanium-aluminum alloy powder injector for 3D printer and 3D metal printing equipment. The injector is a prototype for laboratory and academic institutes, which can produce powder less than one-third the diameter of a hair. The metal-product printer rivals German products in precision, according to the institute. (KL)