3DXTech LLC, a manufacturer of high-performance 3D printing materials and 3D printed parts, has purchased a building in Grand Rapids, Mich., more than 10 times the size of its current facility.
The 4-year-old company, which is currently based out of 6,000-square-foot leased facility in Byron Center, Mich., bought the 68,000-square-foot building for more than $2 million to accommodate current and future growth.
"We've had about 200-250 percent growth year over year for the last four years. … We're working 12-hour shifts, six days a week, right now just trying to keep up with orders, so we had to expand," Matt Howlett, founder and president of 3DX Tech, said in a Sept. 13 phone interview.
"This place is really going to be nice," he added. "The whole goal is to have a very nice, modern place that's focused really exclusively on additive manufacturing — both materials and parts manufacturing."
The company plans to be completely moved into the new facility in October and will initially occupy 24,000 square feet. A 3,000-square-foot area will be dedicated to 3D printing parts, Howlett said.
"The rest is to grow into as the business continues to grow," he said.
3DXTech currently employs 10, but Howlett said that number could increase to 30 by the end of the year. And by the end of 2019, he estimates the company could employ up to 50 workers.
In addition, 3DXTech is more than doubling its extrusion capacity and has invested more than $1 million in equipment and upgrades to keep up with the growth rate.
"We already purchased all-new extruders from a company here in the U.S., and one of them was delivered this week," Howlett said, noting additional equipment purchases such as 3D printers, dryers and lasers.
3DXTech supplies its high-performance 3D printing materials, including carbon fiber, polyether ether ketone (PEEK), polycarbonate and ABS, and printed parts to multiple industries such as automotive, electronics and aerospace. Customers range from NASA, Boeing Co., Lockheed Martin Corp., SpaceX, Nike Inc., Samsung and Apple Inc.