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3D printing system developer to enter new markets, accelerate growth, and enable medical device manufacturers to leverage the full potential of high-performance polymers
Brussels, May 28, 2020 – Solvay Ventures announces today its equity investment in Kumovis, a German startup developing a cutting-edge 3D printing ecosystem for medical applications. Kumovis wants to shape the future of the production of medical devices thanks to 3D printing technologies, by enabling its manufacturing right at the point of care. The Kumovis R1 is an open 3D printing system based on Fused Layer Manufacturing that can use a wide range of thermoplastic materials, ranging from PLA to PEEK.
As a world leader in high-performance specialty polymers, Solvay develops innovative solutions for healthcare applications and offers notably the industry's broadest selection of high-performance thermoplastics. Solvay’s advanced materials meet the needs of the most demanding industries, including biocompatibility for implantable devices. Solvay is committed to developing next generation, high performing Additive Manufacturing-ready materials to support the transition to patient-specific products.
“Its impressive team, its product quality and performance attributes give us confidence that Kumovis is poised to disrupt traditional manufacturing methods in the demanding medical industry. By accelerating the transition to personalized medicine, Kumovis and Solvay will expand together the application space for high-performance specialty polymers in healthcare, and have the potential to do so in other industries as well,” says Stéphane Roussel, Solvay Ventures Managing Director.
"Not only are the two additional investors luminaries in their fields, from now on they are our new partners with a strong commitment to pushing the limits of high-performance materials. With Solvay, we welcome a world leader in specialty polymers to the Kumovis business venture. We are confident that there will be even more synergies for 3D printing of high-performance polymers beyond our previous joint projects,” adds Miriam Haerst, co-CEO and co-founder of Kumovis.
The investment in Kumovis was co-led by Solvay Ventures, the Corporate Venture Capital activity of Solvay and Renolit SE, with participation from existing Seed investors High-Tech Gründerfonds and Filipa Venture Capital. Munich-based company Kumovis was founded as a spin-off of the Technical University of Munich in October 2017.
“Not only does this investment align with Solvay’s ambition to become a leading provider of AM-ready advanced polymer solutions, but it furthers Solvay’s commitment to improving health and quality of life in general,” concludes Stéphane Roussel.
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Solvay Ventures is the Venture Capital fund of Solvay, investing in breakthrough technologies in advanced materials and formulations. Operating since 2005, Solvay Ventures currently invests out of a €80m global evergreen fund. Solvay Ventures targets early stage investment opportunities (Seed through Series B) with a focus on startups solving problems in sustainable resources, energy transition, increased wellbeing, and digital age. Beyond capital, Solvay Ventures leverages the resources at Solvay to accelerate technology and market adoption.
Kumovis got its start in 2017 by alumni in fields ranging from medical technology to polymer engineering, who originally founded the company as a spin-off of the Technical University of Munich. The start-up is enabling the medical community to process high-performance polymers in a reproducible as well as regulatory compliant way, and consequently adopt additive manufacturing for healthcare wherever it is needed. In 2019, Kumovis has released the R1 3D printer introducing the concept of an industry-specific system for decentralized clean room production to the market. Learn more at www.kumovis.com. Follow Kumodis on Twitter @Kumovis_3DP or on LinkedIn.
About SolvaySolvay is a science company whose technologies bring benefits to many aspects of daily life. With more than 24,100 employees in 64 countries, Solvay bonds people, ideas and elements to reinvent progress. The Group seeks to create sustainable shared value for all, notably through its Solvay One Planet plan crafted around three pillars: protecting the climate, preserving resources and fostering better life. The Group’s innovative solutions contribute to safer, cleaner, and more sustainable products found in homes, food and consumer goods, planes, cars, batteries, smart devices, health care applications, water and air purification systems. Founded in 1863, Solvay today ranks among the world’s top three companies for the vast majority of its activities and delivered net sales of €10.2 billion in 2019. Solvay is listed on Euronext Brussels (SOLB) and Paris and in the United States, where its shares (SOLVY) are traded through a Level I ADR program. Learn more at www.solvay.com. |
