Mitsubishi Chemical Group announces the Winner of the 3D Printing FGF Engineering Challenge

The jury team chose Testa Seat from USA as the Winner, who will receive material and manufacturing support worth $25,000

DÜSSELDORF: March 13, 2024 — Last year in October, Mitsubishi Chemical Group’s Growth Garage, in collaboration with partners launched the 3D Printing FGF Engineering Challenge. This Open Innovation program aimed to invigorate co-innovation between top industry players from the 3D Printing industry and forward-thinking companies.

MCG’s Growth Garage collaborated with selected industry partners including Alstom, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, CEAD, Adaxis, Fis Robotics and Nedcam. To promote sustainable innovation, The Global KAITEKI Center and the Arizona State University also supported in the Engineering Challenge.

Based on the judging criteria, the expert jury team panel selected the Overall Challenge Winner who will receive $25,000 worth of support in expertise in finding the right 3D Printing material, design, and manufacturing process to grow their business.

Challenge Winner: Testa Seat, USA

The Testa seat enables individuals with disabilities to interact with their surroundings (photo credit: Testa Seat)

 
The startup from USA, headed by Alexander Geht, has developed an innovative seating solution, the Testa Seat to enhance independence, mobility, and overall quality of life for children with disabilities, ensuring equal opportunities for active participation in daily activities. Their solution employs 3D Printing for a customizable, lightweight, cost-effective full body support device that matches the needs of the user.

Special Recognition

The challenge received several strong submissions, and along with the winning entry, two other submissions stood out.

The concept represents the retrofitting of a pellet extruder on desktop 3D printers (photo credit: Helix)

 
HELIX, an early-stage startup from Poland, founded by Filip Turzynski, is developing a small, affordable, robust, and universal FGF extrusion system that can be installed on most desktop and professional 3D printers. It enables users to utilize the full range of different 3D printing materials. This technology revolutionizes pellet-3D printing by enabling the printing of small parts with the wide material selection of FGF.
 

Large scale composite part manufactured with water soluble molds ( photo credit: Center Street Technology)
 

Bala Cherukuri and the team at the startup from USA, have developed an innovation that employs large format additive manufacturing with water-soluble polymers in pellet form. Their focus is on production of cores and mandrels for composite part manufacturing, typically in large scale manufacturing of airframes.
 
MCG has a wide range of 3D Printing FGF materials, spanning from soft to high-performance properties for various applications. Grades with a low carbon footprint, featuring bio-based components or recycled content are available in the portfolio to enable circular business models.
 

About the Mitsubishi Chemical Group

Mitsubishi Chemical Group Corporation (TSE: 4188) is a specialty materials provider with an unwavering commitment to lead with innovative solutions to achieve KAITEKI, the well-being of people and the planet. We bring deep expertise and material science leadership in core market segments such as mobility, digital, food, and medical. In this way, we enable industry transformation, technology breakthroughs, and longer, more fruitful lives for us all. Together, around 70,000 employees worldwide provide advanced chemistry-based solutions to deliver the core elements of our slogan — “Science. Value. Life.” For further information, please visit our website: https://www.mcgc.com/english/
  

About Mitsubishi Chemical Group Growth Garage

Growth Garage is the Open Innovation Hub of the Mitsubishi Chemical Group. Its mission is to support and develop new ideas and projects their using advanced manufacturing technologies and Specialty Materials, to help tackle some of today's biggest engineering challenges. Growth Garage is offering opportunities for engineers, innovators, and entrepreneurs from startups, scaleups and innovative companies to join the community and submit their ideas and projects through the open innovation programs. Successful applications will get exposure and access to Mitsubishi Chemical Group’s network of industry experts, Mitsubishi Chemical Group’s Corporate Venture Capital team and business partners to advance their ideas and projects.
 

For additional information, contact: media@mitsubishi-chemical.eu