ROCK HILL, South Carolina – February 24, 2010 – 3D Systems Corporation (NASDAQ: TDSC), a leading provider of 3-D Printing, Rapid Prototyping and Manufacturing Systems and Parts Solutions, announced today that it has filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission a universal shelf registration statement on Form S-3 providing for the offer and sale from time to time of up to $75 million of securities, including equity, debt and other securities as described in the registration statement.
The Company believes that filing a shelf registration statement is an efficient means to enable access to capital markets and to maximize its financial flexibility. However, the Company does not currently have any commitments or intentions to sell securities. As indicated in the registration statement, the Company expects to use the net proceeds from any offering that it may make under the registration statement to finance future acquisitions and for working capital and other general corporate purposes, which may include the repayment of future indebtedness.
The registration statement has been filed with the SEC but has not yet become effective. These securities may not be sold nor may offers to buy these securities be accepted prior to the time the shelf registration statement becomes effective. This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any jurisdiction in which an offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such jurisdiction. Any offering of the securities covered under the shelf registration statement will be made solely by means of a prospectus and an accompanying prospectus supplement relating to that offering.
3Shape A/S is a Danish company specializing in the development and marketing of 3D scanners and CAD/CAM software solutions. These are used for the creation, processing, analysis and management of high-quality 3D data. Implementing 3Shape’s solutions brings significant benefits in terms of quality, productivity and creativityto complex manufacturing processes, where the handling of physical objects is critical. With more than 50 full-time developers dedicated to dental solutions, we have unmatched development and innovative power, thereby making the vision of a complete digital lab a reality.
Thousands of dental restorations are produced every day by customers using 3Shape’s 3D scanners, CAD modeling software and production management systems in more than 50 countries. 3Shape is a privately-held Danish company, whose headquarters are in Copenhagen, with development teams in Denmark as well as the Ukraine. In early 2009, we opened Sales and Support Offices in New Jersey, USA and Shanghai, China.
When WebProNews hit Vegas for the CES 2010 conference, we came across a number of new and interesting gadgets.
The MakerBot’s CupCake CNC is a 3D printer/fabricator that can make just about anything you want. As long as the object you desire can be made out of ABS plastic and stays in a size range of 4″x4″x6″.
Once the design is input using 3D modeling software or by visiting Thingiverse for a pre-made template, MakerBot turns the creation into reality. The machine begins ‘printing’ and soon after, a 3D model of the design requested materializes right before your eyes.
These 3D fabricators are priced between $750-$950 and have qualities that even attracted major companies like Google. The MakerBot representatives stated Google has invested in multiple CupCake CNCs. For what? We can only wonder….
Print-on-demand technology — utilized by companies like Vistaprint and CafePress — has become widely implemented over the last decade as digital printing has steadily replaced costly letterpress plates and other complicated methods. At the same time, 3-D printers (like our favorite, the MakerBot) have become more commonplace in the manufacture of products and prototypes. And, now, biotech outfit Invetech has merged the two technologies, replacing printer ink with living cells. That’s right: a 3-D, on-demand human tissue printer.
Developed for bioprinting company Organovo, the printer contains software that allows bioengineers to build model “scaffolds” on which to place, say, liver cells for a patient in need of a transplant — all before the structure is constructed by laser-calibrated print heads. The printer then builds the tissue layer by layer, much like a traditional 3-D printer.
This will undoubtedly change the game for biotech in years to come. The technology proposes a future in which patients do not need to wait for transplants from other human hosts; instead, medical technicians will simply have tissue models ready to be customized and printed on-demand. And, of course, this will be tons of fun if it ever hits the consumer market (not likely), as we’ve already started fantasizing about printing out real teeth and eyeballs for next year’s Halloween ghoul-fest.
A company called Invetech has created what looks to be a human tissue printer that works in a similar way to how 3D printers work. The system is capable of building up human organs cell by cell to create scaffolds that liver cells could be placed on.
Regular 3D printers use plastic that is built up layer by layer over the course of the printing session to create unique 3D objects. The new system replaces this “3D ink” with living cells so that Dr’s can print human tissue on demand.
“Scientists and engineers can use the 3D bio printers to enable placing cells of almost any type into a desired pattern in 3D,” Murphy said. “Researchers can place liver cells on a preformed scaffold, support kidney cells with a co-printed scaffold, or form adjacent layers of epithelial and stromal soft tissue that grow into a mature tooth. Ultimately the idea would be for surgeons to have tissue on demand for various uses, and the best way to do that is get a number of bio-printers into the hands of researchers and give them the ability to make three dimensional tissues on demand.”
An interesting point to make here is that the model is a production model and already delivered to a company called Organovo who in turn will supply the machines to researchers investigating human tissue repair and organ replacement.
The 3D bio-printers include an intuitive software interface that allows engineers to build a model of the tissue construct before the printer commences the physical constructions of the organs cell-by-cell using automated, laser-calibrated print heads.
“Building human organs cell-by-cell was considered science fiction not that long ago,” said Fred Davis, president of Invetech, which has offices in San Diego and Melbourne. “Through this clever combination of technology and science we have helped Organovo develop an instrument that will improve people’s lives, making the regenerative medicine that Organovo provides accessible to people around the world.”
