The acquisition follows a successful year of joint go-to-market collaboration between the two companies in both North America and EMEA, said Nexa3D in the announcement. The joint sales and marketing efforts reportedly resulted in converting dozens of customers from traditional to digital tooling thanks to the time and cost savings. The end-to-end solution formalized by the acquisition combines the speed of Nexa3D’s ultrafast 3D printers with Addifab’s high-impact, high-temperature soluble resins to print complex tools compatible with any injection molding feedstock.

The purchase deal was first announced on 29 January 2024 and signed on February 6, strengthening Krones' position in the beverage, medical, and thin-wall packaging markets.

Although NETSTAL's current revenue sits below Krones' group level at just over €200m in the 2023 fiscal year, the company projects to close this gap in the coming years. Notably, NETSTAL contributed nearly 20% to the KraussMaffei Group's 2023 total sales.

As part of the agreement, around 530 NETSTAL employees will join Krones from KraussMaffei, ensuring both continuity and valuable expertise. All existing NETSTAL jobs will be retained. NETSTAL will operate as a separate, independent entity within the Krones Group, led by CEO Renzo Davatz.

One high-profile adopter of the technology is Wilson Sporting Goods. Its R&D team was able to produce and test multiple designs simultaneously of its youth baseball bats using final manufacturing materials. This would not have been possible using any other 3D-printed tool, according to Nexa3D.

“Soon after teaming up with Nexa3D, it became increasingly apparent that our combined solution unlocks tremendous opportunities for customers looking to create complex injection molding tools quickly and affordably. A year into our enormously successful commercial collaboration and dozens of customer implementations with the likes of PepsiCo and Wilson Sporting Goods, I’m thrilled that we are officially joining forces,” said Lasse G. Staal, co-founder and business development leader at Addifab.

Combining complementary technologies developed by the two companies unlocks the full potential of digital tooling by blending the design freedom of 3D printing with the reliability of injection molding. The acquisition positions Nexa3D for accelerated growth in the fast-growing additive manufacturing space, said the company. It adds foundational intellectual property and capabilities to Nexa3D’s product line and accelerates its resin formulation and industrial production initiatives. “We believe that the market-validated strategic fit between our businesses and products, combined with the expanded capabilities in product development, next-gen resin formulation, channel coverage, manufacturing, and marketing, will result in significant revenue and accretive growth,” said Avi Reichental, co-founder, chairman, and CEO of Nexa3D.

Krones sees significant potential in integrating NETSTAL's technology and market reach, allowing them to offer more specific solutions to customers across the entire beverage and liquid food value chain.

Krones AG has been a long-standing NETSTAL customer that manufactures machines for filling and packaging beverages and liquid foods. Additionally, Krones is also acquiring Netstal Deutschland GmbH, a sales and service subsidiary based in Stuttgart, along with eleven other sales and service units across US, South America, Europe and Asia.

As part of its growing commitment to EMEA, and in service of its growing reseller partner network, Ventura, CA–based Nexa3D plans to immediately leverage Addifab’s Copenhagen facility as its Customer Experience Center, comprising a product showroom, service and support hub for Europe-based customers, and warehouse and logistics center.

Headquartered in Näfels, Switzerland, NETSTAL provides injection moulding machines in the beverage (PET preforms and caps), medical, and thin-wall packaging markets.

Copenhagen-based Addifab developed, patented, and successfully brought to market a proprietary end-to-end digital tooling solution that includes a CAD-to-tool software generator, dissolvable tooling resins, and a 3D printing and production injection molding process. By combining the freedom of 3D printing with the industrial strength of injection molding, Addifab said its technology unlocks tremendous potential for contract manufacturers, regional molders, medical device companies, service providers, and low-volume manufacturers that want to offer same-day and next-day part production.

“This transaction is a milestone in the long history of Netstal. Krones opens up strategic perspectives that were previously not possible. The potential for more customer benefits and growth in the beverage sector is obvious. The opportunities in the medical and thin-wall packaging applications are equally exciting. It is a pleasure for me to continue the strategic direction we have taken together with Krones to an even greater extent," added Renzo Davatz, CEO Netstal.

KraussMaffei CEO Chi Zhang said: "The sale of NETSTAL is part of our long-term plan to realign KraussMaffei strategically, organisationally and on the global market. In future, we want to concentrate fully on our core business and new growth markets, strengthen the KraussMaffei core brand and focus the Group accordingly. At the same time, the sale of NETSTAL gives us the leeway to make further investments, for example in digitisation and the development of new machines."

Addifab's xMold resin is compatible with the entire range of off-the-shelf thermoplastic materials, including reinforced high-performance feedstocks. Metals, ceramics, and silicones are also covered, enabling users of Nexa3D printers to tap into applications that otherwise would require a substantially larger capital investment. A tool printed with the xMOLD resin is soluble — it does not require complex slides and gates — giving customers the flexibility to test and iterate more frequently. Moreover, the user doesn't have to be an experienced toolmaker to quickly design an injection molding tool using Addifab software or Solidworks.

Mechanical engineering specialist Krones AG has finalised the acquisition of NETSTAL Maschinen AG, Swiss-based provider of injection moulding solutions, from KraussMaffei for €170 million.

Nexa3D’s ultra-fast printers combine with Addifab’s soluble resins to print complex tools compatible with any injection molding feedstock.

Polymer 3D-printing company Nexa3D has completed the acquisition of Addifab, the developer of Freeform Injection Molding, a proprietary and patented digital tooling process that couples the design freedom of 3D printing with the mechanical performance of injection molding using a full range of engineering materials.