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The Lego Group has revealed its first large-scale production part, which will be included in a seasonal parts set sold during the holiday season at the end of the year. The part in question is a functional train composed of several pieces with an internal design that can only be produced using additive manufacturing (AM). The parts were produced on a high-resolution polymer laser powder bed fusion (PBF-LB) system from EOS. 

Wohlers View:

The part is a milestone for the company as its first commercial product made at scale using additive manufacturing (AM). The Lego Group has experimented with 3D printing for many years while exploring new technologies that could change the way it produces its products in the future. The company’s interest in new manufacturing methods has been driven in part by a desire to streamline its supply chain. 

Successful production applications of AM for consumer products remain rare, mainly due to higher per-part costs. This announcement is significant for the AM industry for several reasons. Chief among them is the fact that it made practical sense to include a 3D-printed part as a standard catalog item—even for a limited-release product offering—and as one component within a set of traditionally manufactured parts. It is also notable that the part achieved the level of quality required by a leading brand such as Lego, which is known for its exceptionally tight size tolerances to ensure the trademarked perfect fit of its interconnecting pieces. 

That said, “large scale” is still far from “mass production,” where traditional manufacturing retains a considerable advantage. However, the technical success of producing parts at this scale could encourage the development of new business models, such as limited or localized special product offerings. Moreover, the ability to make parts locally could appeal to companies that place a high value on their sustainability footprint. READ

The sale of Desktop Metal assets continued with bankruptcy court approval in the Southern District of Texas for their acquisition by Arc Impact. The assets include those not already sold by Desktop Metal (DM) as part of the bankruptcy proceedings, as well as the assets of ExOne, a DM subsidiary. DM itself became a subsidiary of Nano Dimension through a court-ordered acquisition in April 2025. The transaction was valued at $7 million. 

Wohlers View:

Details of Desktop Metal’s bankruptcy have been covered in previous issues of Wohlers Weekly. The company carved out assets for separate sale, including the German and Japanese operations of ExOne and the dental business of EnvisionTEC, which was sold to SprintRay, as reported here last week. 

The proceeds from these asset sales represent only a small percentage of the company’s debt. At the time of its bankruptcy filing in late July 2025, Desktop Metal reported secured debt of $53 million and unsecured debt of $165.6 million. 

The sale of Desktop Metal’s remaining assets likely marks the final chapter in the story of a company founded in 2015 that at one point achieved a market capitalization of more than $2 billion after raising hundreds of millions through venture capital and a SPAC merger. 

The buyer of the assets is Arc Impact, which identifies as a Public Benefit Corporation—a for-profit enterprise that seeks to generate social and public good while operating sustainably and responsibly. An operational plan for the acquired assets has not yet been announced. Arc currently operates in the healthcare and energy sectors and, based on available information, does not appear to engage in manufacturing. READ

Injection molding machine producer Arburg will terminate its 3D printing business at the end of 2025. The company will continue to support customers operating its printers through employees who will remain in its principal business lines. Arburg stated that the decision followed a careful evaluation of the current market situation and lower-than-expected growth in the 3D printing sector. 

Wohlers View:

Arburg entered the 3D printing space in 2013 with its version of material extrusion (MEX) technology. At the time, the entry of a respected mainstream injection molding machine producer into 3D printing was seen as a positive indication of how additive technology could complement traditional plastic manufacturing. Product development proceeded steadily and, despite the systems’ ability to produce high-quality parts, sales never gained traction. 

The cessation of Arburg’s AM business is another example of the disappointment experienced by mainstream machine companies when expectations for the 3D printing market did not materialize. While the AM sector has continued to grow at an above-average historical rate exceeding 20% annually since the late 1980s, companies like Arburg entered the field expecting even higher growth. Another recent example of a German family-owned company abandoning its AM ambitions is Trumpf, which sold its metal PBF-LB business in July 2025, as previously reported in Wohlers Weekly. 

Arburg’s interest in the 3D printing market extended beyond developing its own MEX technology. In 2020, the company’s owners acquired a majority interest in German RepRap, a manufacturer of consumer and professional MEX systems, making it a sister company to Arburg. German RepRap was rebranded as InnovatiQ and continued to operate as a separate entity, although the two companies often shared exhibition booth space. At present, there is no indication that InnovatiQ will also exit the 3D printing market. Arburg’s Freeformer platform was never sold through InnovatiQ. READ

Frontiers in Surgery reports on research by a team from Capital Medical University in Beijing, China, showing that 3D-printed surgical guides improved outcomes in transforaminal lumbar intervertebral fusion (TLIF) surgery.  READ

MIT News reports on a new development from the institution’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, where researchers have shown that 3D-printed designs can be modified to use less plastic without sacrificing strength. READ

StoneReefs presents a case study on the use of 3D-printed concrete to produce custom objects designed to enhance underwater biodiversity. READ

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