
Axial3D, a med-tech firm, has announced the completion of a $15 million investment round headed by a $10 million strategic investment from Stratasys Ltd., a leader in polymer 3D printing solutions. This is the company’s first investment in Axial3D. The two firms will also offer a collaborative offering to make patient-specific 3D printing solutions more accessible to hospitals and medical device manufacturers, allowing it to become a mainstream healthcare option.
Personalized 3D printed anatomic models are utilised for pre-surgical planning and diagnostic purposes in order to improve patient outcomes while decreasing operating room time. They are also utilised in education and training, as well as the creation of medical devices. Normally, creating a 3D printed model from a patient’s scan data takes several hours and necessitates a high level of technical competence as well as costly software licences.
Investment in Axial3D
The artificial intelligence-powered algorithms used by Axial3D enable healthcare providers to segment CT and MRI scans for these models without substantial effort, specific skills, or large upfront costs.
Stratasys is a leading manufacturer of 3D printers, materials, and software for anatomic models. The J850™ Digital Anatomy™ 3D printer from the firm allows medical clients to make models that not only properly mimic the appearance of human tissue, but are also biomechanically realistic while suturing, cutting, inserting, and deploying medical devices. With Axial3D software, a variety of Stratasys printers and materials have been validated and FDA 510(k) authorised to manufacture anatomic models for pre-operative surgical planning and diagnostic use across many disciplines.
“We are proud to be partnering with Stratasys, and have always believed in their technology and, more importantly, their vision for 3D printing in healthcare. We believe that to move the industry from early adopters to the mainstream, we need to improve the accessibility of models for healthcare so hospitals and medical device manufacturers can scale their patient-specific programs. Our joint offerings will be the positive, disruptive catalyst that medical 3D printing needs to address 3D printing accessibility.”
– Roger Johnston, CEO, Axial3D
Stratasys estimates the medical 3D printing market to be worth $2.8 billion.
According to Dr. Yoav Zeif, CEO of Stratasys, “Many of the world’s leading hospitals are already benefiting from our MediJet and Digital Anatomy 3D printers for medical models. We believe that by working together with Axial3D, we can remove the barriers to entry for the remaining majority of hospitals in many countries around the world, dramatically growing the use of 3D printing in pre-surgical planning so it is truly a standard part of patient care. This is about providing a complete tailored solution for customers that is fast, automated and scalable.”
Axial3D (booth 8209) and Stratasys (booth 8312) will both display and discuss their joint partnership plans during the Radiological Society of North America’s RSNA 2022 annual meeting and exhibition, which will be held in Chicago from November 27 to December 1.