Chicago — Private equity firm Core Industrial Partners LLC has acquired three related companies specializing in 3D printing, equipment and materials.
Core announced Oct. 26 that it has purchased 3DXTech LLC, Triton 3D LLC and Gearbox3D LLC. The companies being acquired share a 68,000-square-foot facility in Grand Rapids, Mich.
3DXTech makes and supplies 3D filament for open-source printers. It also offers in-house filament extrusion and winding, custom filament formulation, research and development and printing services for prototypes and production volumes. It uses high-performance materials for its filament, including carbon fiber, polyetheretherketone (PEEK), as well as ABS and polycarbonate.
Triton provides Stratasys-compatible filament and accessories for 3D printing, also known as additive manufacturing. Gearbox, an extrusion company, manufactures the open-source printers.
The companies serve a range of industries including defense, electronics, aerospace, health care and automotive.
Matt Howlett, 3DXTech co-founder, said he and business partner Gary Foote expect the affiliation with Core to create opportunities.
"We have demonstrated rapid growth since the company's founding [in 2014] by successfully pairing our materials expertise with our disruptive 3D printing equipment technology," he said in a news release. "With Core's expertise and resources in the additive manufacturing industry, we'll be able to further accelerate our growth."
John May, managing partner of Chicago-based Core, said in the release Core is building a platform focused on 3D printing and proprietary materials that will take advantage of "the tailwinds from the underlying additive manufacturing sector and broader Industry 4.0 trends."