The launch of MicroFineTM Grey follows the successful launch of MicroFineTM Green in 2018. It has been added to the range because a number of engineering designers wanted a neutral colour to convey a more finished look. As an alternative, the more striking green colour highlights the part that is being prototyped. Both resins have been custom formulated for very small to micro-sized parts.
Says Andrea Landoni, 3D Printing Product Manager for Protolabs, “Before the introduction of MicroFineTM Green and now MicroFineTM Grey, if you needed to develop very small parts you had to compromise. You could either order injection moulding tooling and build in higher tolerances or rely on other costly and time-consuming production processes.
“Now you can quickly prototype and reiterate your micro part design for form and fit testing to make sure that you get it right before you commit to production. Not only does this mean you get it precise, but you significantly reduce the development timeline by several weeks.
“Now that we have added MicroFineTM Grey, the designer can choose whether they want the prototype part in a more neutral colour or to highlight the part being designed by using the more striking green option.”
Combining these resins with equipment developed for the company allows Protolabs to 3D print parts with a layer thickness of just 0.025 mm. This precision provides an extremely smooth finish and allows the printing of features as small as 0.07mm.
MicroFineTM Grey is fairly durable and rigid with mechanical properties similar to ABS plastic. Its mechanical properties make it a more durable choice for small part applications than polycarbonate-like materials.
Both resins are typically used in prototyping products for the medical industry, research labs or consumer electronics, but can be used for the development of any small parts or components requiring finer detail than is possible using other 3D printing processes or materials.
