To gain a practical insight into the Austrian 3D printing community, Austrian Innovation Minister Norbert Hofer visited Lithoz, one of the world's leading manufacturers of 3D printers for high-performance ceramics, in February.
Dr. Johannes Benedikt (CTO Lithoz), Ing. Norbert Hofer (Federal Minister) and Dr. Johannes Homa (CEO Lithoz), from left to right
Lithoz
During his visit to Lithoz, Hofer was guided through the company by the two founders and managing directors, Dr. Johannes Homa and Dr. Johannes Benedikt. Since its foundation in 2011, Lithoz has evolved from a spin-off of the Vienna University of Technology to one of the world market leaders in this promising segment.
During the tour, the minister was not only shown the 3D printers, but also practical application examples where Lithoz technology is already being used by companies. These include, for example, cast cores for turbine blades, which are used by numerous turbine manufacturers, or absorbable bone implants, which have been in use since 2017. As a highlight, the minister was also presented with a model of St. Stephen's Cathedral, which Lithoz recently produced on a scale of 1:7000 from artificial lunar dust.
For Federal Minister Ing. Norbert Hofer, 3D printing is an innovative high-performance technology that represents a special opportunity for Austria as a technology location: "3D printing will permanently create new high-quality jobs and has a high economic potential for Austria". The Federal Ministry for Transport, Innovation and Technology (BMVIT) has already proven that these words are meant seriously by supporting the technology platform Additive Manufacturing Austria (AM Austria) - a non-profit association that was founded a year ago as a result of the findings of a project on "Additive Manufacturing" sponsored by the Austrian Research Promotion Agency (FFG).