Material from Stratasys can be used to fabricate assembly aids for electronic products

Frankfurt  – 15th July 2011 – (NASDAQ: SSYS) Stratasys Inc., maker of 3D printers for prototyping and producing plastic parts, introduced a static dissipative ABS material for items sensitive to electrostatic charge.
ABS-ESD7 workstation
ABS-ESD7 workstation

ABS-ESD7 is a new material for use by Fortus additive manufacturing systems. The material has static dissipative properties for applications where a static charge can damage products, impair performance or cause an explosion.

Unlike most thermoplastics, ABS-ESD7 prevents a buildup of static electricity, so it can’t produce a static shock.

Besides eliminating static shock, the ESD material eliminates another common static electricity problem: the attraction and buildup of particulate, such as dust or powders, which can degrade product performance.

ABS-ESD7 is also beneficial when designing products that avoid attracting atomized liquid, such as medicine inhalers, which must deliver the entire drug dose to the patient and not leave mist clinging to inhaler’s internal surfaces.

The material will be most useful for manufacturers that wish to create assembly aids that hold, handle, or carry their electronics safely.

Primary applications include:

    Carriers and organizers for electrical components

    Fixtures for electronic component assembly

    Production line and conveyor parts

Other applications include:

    Product design and validation for:

    Electronic product enclosures

    Electronics packaging material

    Powder or mist conveying or dispensing

“ABS-ESD7 was engineered in response to a strong demand from our additive manufacturing system owners,” says Stratasys Business Development Director Fred Fischer. “In a survey, over 50 percent of owners expressed a need for ESD materials for creating assembly aids, prototypes, or production parts.”

ABS-ESD7 will run on Fortus 400mc and Fortus 900mc FDM systems. It is comparable in operation to its non-ESD counterpart, ABS-M30, from Stratasys. All mechanical properties of ABS-ESD7 are within five percent of the ratings for ABS-M30.  Orders are being taken now for ABS-ESD7 and material canisters will begin shipping in September.

ABS-ESD7 is available immediately for contract manufacturing jobs through Stratasys’ RedEye On Demand digital manufacturing service. The service can offer either a single prototype or production runs of up to 1000 parts or more. Small jobs can be shipped in 1 to 5 days.

For more details on ABS-ESD7, or to place an order for material, call 888-480-3548 or email [email protected]. For a contract job, get quote here, or go to RedEyeOnDemand.com and select “Get Quote.”