- Lithoz has installed a CeraFab Lab L30 at the Central University of Technology in South Africa

- The CeraFab Lab L30, designed as an entry-level model, will be used in the MedAdd project to support medical device manufacturing via 3D printing

Lithoz GmbH, world and industry leaders in ceramic 3D printing, have recently installed a CeraFab Lab L30 ceramic 3D printer at the Central University of Technology (CUT) Free State in South Africa. The machine - funded by the South African Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Innovation - will be housed inside the ISO13485 accredited Centre for Rapid Prototyping and Manufacture, where it will be used as an important tool in providing access to this ground-breaking healthcare technology to benefit the general population.

With the motto “In Africa – For Africa”, this machine will enable the democratization of first-class healthcare possibilities and treatment for the entire population. The Lithoz printer will be used in medical device manufacturing and has been acquired by the Department of Science and Innovation to support their Medical Device Additive Manufacturing Technology Demonstrator (MedAdd) project.

The installation was proudly supported by a personal visit from the acting deputy director-general of the Department of Science and Innovation, Dr Rebecca Maserumule, and the Free State MEC (Member of Executive Council) for Education, Honourable Tate Makgoe. This visit underlines the importance of the arrival of LCM 3D printing as a key technology to enable a new dimension of innovative and patient specific healthcare solutions.

As the first ceramic 3D printer installed in the entire African continent, this installation represents an important step forward in the growth of ceramic 3D printing as an established manufacturing technology in industry and healthcare. CUT, a leading African University of Technology at the forefront of research and innovation in additive manufacturing for medical implants, will use the machine to aid their research into customized medical device manufacturing via 3D printing.

Dr. Gerrie Booysen, Director of the Centre for Rapid Prototyping and Manufacturing at CUT, was delighted with this new acquisition, stating, “This new technology is a complete game-changer for our research at CUT. With this access to powerful 3D printing technology, we will be able to develop and innovate further than ever into new healthcare solutions - in Africa, for Africa.” Dr. Johannes Homa, CEO of Lithoz, is very proud to have “successfully brought ceramic 3D printing access to the  African continent for the first time”, citing it as “a real milestone achievement for Lithoz and the ceramic 3D printing industry worldwide”.