Incodema3D got its first EOS system, a M280 in 2012, but split off from Incodema in 2014. In 2022 it bought its 16th system, and it then had EOS M 400s, M290´s & an EOS M 300-4. Since then the company has bought around 4 EOS M400 and 4 EOS M400-4´s since then. So Santa has come down the chimney in March in New York already. Incodema3D runs mostly Inconel working extensively for aerospace and defense as well as industrial and energy. Incodema3D is precision focused and has nearly all relevant AM and post processing in house. The company has AS9100D, ISO 9001:2015 and is ITAR compliant.
“We are excited to partner with AFM Capital. AFM Capital brings operational expertise and strategic resources that will allow us to accelerate our growth, expand production capabilities, and continue investing in advanced additive technologies. Together, we are well positioned to meet the increasing demand for high-performance metal components across mission-critical Defense, Aerospace, Space, Energy, and Industrial markets. I would also like to express my appreciation to our early-stage investors for their support in helping establish our organization as a strong and trusted enterprise.”
AFM Capital President Mark McTigue,
“Incodema3D represents exactly the type of advanced industrial platform we seek to build at AFM Capital.The Company has established itself as a trusted partner to leading customers by delivering highly engineered metal components at production scale. We look forward to working closely with Sean and the Incodema3D team to invest in capacity and large-format additive technologies, while expanding the Company’s manufacturing footprint to support long-term customer programs.”
Incodema3D was advised by Cantor Fitzgerald & Co as the financial advisor and Courtney Wellar Esq. and Bond Schoeneck & King were legal advisors. AFM was advised by DLA Piper with PMorgan Chase and Gladstone Capital Corporation obtaining debt financing.
Incodema3D is an excellent company. Sean, and
When the whole industry was preaching high mix low volume Incodema3D was targeting serial production, reliability, repeatability and low scrap rates. By building a large collection of machines the company has made significant investments. But, more than this it has invested in its people, training and execution. An early focus on defense, suppressors and aerospace was the right one also. Expertise in the most critical parts and the most efficient manufacturing of those parts is key to their success. The company is relentless.
Many people have small service bureaus and escaping the initial economics of having one metal machine for example is brutal. It’s very difficult to make money. By getting significant investment early Incodema3D was able to secure better process economics. The company has also not only invested in machines but the most productive ones. It has also made a big bet on EOS and sustained a long relationship with them spanning 14 years. That is key to building up institutional learning and tribal knowledge on several platforms. It’s not quite like Ryanair running only 737´s but similarly, there are economies of scale.
As a service bureau it is easy to get distracted by the shiny parts that you are making. Lots of industries and lots of applications everywhere. Incoma3D invested in bringing almost the whole process chain in house but having excellent suppliers on top of this as well. This combination is powerful. Some services outsource a lot of valuable time critical work such as heat treatment while others struggle to find good local partners in anodizing or similar operations. Choosing what to insource and what to ship out is not a simple affair. Incodema3D also made substantial investments in CNC and in understanding CNC which of course is important. But, it’s easy to say that now a lot of people ten years ago thought that 3D printing was the magic, and CNC was something dumb that everyone could do. The combination of both Additive and CNC done well is a very powerful one especially with parts that have high regulatory burdens or tight tolerances.
With so many potential clients service bureaus often struggle with the cost of quality. You’re either making too many cheap parts in an expensive process or you have a way too expensive process for a lot of the parts that you make. Understanding in which system you are, and how you perceive is is key to solving this problem. You could try run two quality levels in house, which I’ve never really seen work. Or you could focus on a family of clients, applications and parts that are optimal for one quality level. This is what Incodema3D did. At the same time it at a very early stage focused on production, efficiency and repeatability.
Incodema3D is efficient as well with good people but not too much overhead, in 2024 the firm reportedly had 55 staff. That coupled with a focus on metrology, precision and efficiency made the company a very well oiled machine. But, the focus on defense, energy and aerospace meant that similar processes, similar materials and similar quality levels and practices really brought dividends here. Other people had machines but Incodema3D turned the entire operation from design to production and post processing into an efficient well oiled machine. Beyond the Additive hype there are well working efficient businesses with long term contracts and good economics.
This seems like a good outcome for Incodema3D. I for one would love to know if Core or American Industrial Partners also threw their rings in the hat for this one. It’s interesting that a less additive focused investor won on the day. Incodema3D shows us that we were all in the Additive business but not many of us have turned Additive into a business. We were doing the VC SPAC cargo cult while Incodema3D was pushing out parts with ever greater efficiency. A lot of hard work and thought went into Incodema3D and this is a well deserved exit for the team.