The Netherlands, LUXeXceL Group; Worlds only additive manufacturer of optical components, today announces both the launch of a new additive manufacturing platform that delivers high speed and precision as well as the introduction of a new clear material “LUX-Opticlear”, allowing high quality optics manufacturing up to 20mm in height.

With these new capabilities, the LUXeXceL process is ready to compete with injection molding for the production of small and mid-sized series of optical components. The company now offers a fast and effective service for prototyping, iterating and the manufacturing of optics, cutting out the need for costly and inflexible tooling.

Digital manufacturing of optics

The whole process is digital, allowing full flexibility and ordering on demand. This means that large inventory costs are no longer necessary. Small series or individual optics can be made in the space of a few days. Unique optical designs and components can be quickly tested and new designs can be validated. Adding up all these advantages in one single manufacturing service, LUXeXceL is now offering the full package to take on injection molding for small and mid-sized series.

LUX-Opticlear printing material

The new material; LUX-Opticlear, was developed by LUXeXceL to offer the best optical properties with a print height up to 20mm. This new material is the first of many more developments in the world of optical components. To find all of the information on the new material, including design specifications, material details and product samples, please have a look at our material launch page: Printed optics with LUX-Opticlear

New online order platform for optics

LUXeXceL’s new online platform will be rolled out over the rest of 2014. It will allow for the uploading of CAD files to a personal and secure part of the platform. It will provide the customer with a quotation for the production of the 3D file based on the specifications. This process will be at your disposal 24/7. This business to business 3D printing service will bring 3D printed optics to many new businesses.

A word from the CEO

”The optical quality of the new LUX-Opticlear material combined with the digital advantages of this new additive process, makes our service an affordable and attractive solution for both prototyping and smaller or mid-sized volume manufacturing of optical components” says Richard van de Vrie, Founder and CEO of LUXeXceL. He further explains: “As we do not need to post process the printed products, our process is fast and scalable, enabling optics designers to walk a perfect route from fast prototyping and easy iterating, to manufacturing the exact required volumes in days!”. “The new platform is equipped with software that enables the uploading of various different types of CAD files and automatically re-processes the CAD files in specially formatted print-files. These new capabilities combined with the “One-Step-CAD-to-Optic” manufacturing process is interesting for various industries, as new optical products and functions will arrive on stage and optics can be tailored to every application, project or even single product.