14 DAY TRIAL // If you thought 3D printing things out of plastic drops was odd, wait till you see what Mcor Technologies has come up with. It will give a whole new meaning to the term “paper waste.”
Well, maybe that's not quite true. After all, no one ever said that they had to use fresh, clean paper sheets in the process.
Paper that has already been used for newspapers, books or whatever else should be simple enough to incorporate.
But incorporate into what, you might ask. The answer is this: the company, based in Dunleer, Ireland has a 3D printer that can bind paper together and cut it into shapes afterwards.
It works like this: paper, used or otherwise, is fed into the printer, which prints ink on the outside edges of the individual sheets.
Then, the hundreds or thousands of pieces or paper are bound together, after which they are cut into whatever shape you're seeking to print.
And it's not just the fact that this is possible at all that should be amazing you. It's the fact that it's done in color.
The ink used to paint the paper edges isn't just black, and the final products can actually look very lifelike. Well, as much as a brain kept in vitriol (only without the actual vitriol) can look lifelike.
And no, we're not pulling your leg, although such a knee-jerk assumption can be excused, especially if you were to see the picture below before you actually read about the Mcor 3D printer.
Yes, that thing down there. It really is a fake grapefruit made of paper. It's almost scary how realistic it looks. Especially since, for all we know, those could be newspaper clippings mashed together in there.
It's enough to make one wonder why it took so long for the outfit to gain money. Mcor Technologies Founders Fintan and Conor MacCormack established their company a whole decade ago after all.
At least their revenue has gone up by 800% in the past 2 years, so that's something. Oh, and the printers they make sell quite well among architects, print shops, design studios and educational institutions.
More recently, though, WHEB Partners, a Munich and London based private equity fund manager, invested €6.6 million / $9 million (growth capital, that's what they call it) in the Irish firm. It should help them shoulder international demand better.
“We are experiencing strong demand internationally for our products and this investment from WHEB will allow us to deliver on our exciting sales pipeline and, together with WHEB, build Mcor into a global 3D printing company,” stated Dr. Conor MacCormack, CEO and co-founder of Mcor.
“We now have all the ingredients necessary to create a world beating 3D printing technology company, with new and innovative products on the horizon.”
