3D print company set to become a global market leader after raising a further £2.5m

A UK company which is on course to become a world leader in the 3D printing industry has raised a further £2.5m after announcing a partnership with a major global industry player.

Additive Manufacturing Technologies (AMT), whose equipment automates the final stage of the 3D production process, has secured funding from NPIF – Mercia Equity Finance, which is managed by Mercia and part of the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund; Foresight Williams Technology; the government’s Future Fund; DSM Venturing, the global startup investment arm of Royal DSM; and private investors.

The latest funding round brings the total raised by the Sheffield-based company to date to over £7m. It follows AMT’s recent success in agreeing a partnership with the tech giant HP, positioning its technology as a preferred post-processing solution alongside HP’s range of industrial 3D printers.  

AMT’s PostPro technology is a fully automated surface-finishing solution for 3D printed parts. Currently, this cleaning and polishing process has to be carried out by hand and can account for 30 per cent of the cost of a 3D printed part. AMT’s technology can not only cut costs but could also make 3D printing viable for high-volume production across industries such as automotive, industrial, medical and sporting goods.

AMT, which doubled its revenue year-on-year in 2020, was founded in 2017 by Joseph Crabtree and based on technology developed at the University of Sheffield. It now employs over 80 staff at its headquarters in Sheffield, its manufacturing facility in Hungary, and offices in Texas.

AMT secured a £750,000 investment from NPIF in February 2019 and a further £4.2m later in the year, in a series A funding round led by DSM Venturing and Foresight Williams Technology EIS Fund. The latest investment will allow it to continue its growth and product development plans.

Joseph Crabtree, CEO of AMT, said:

“Our mission is to be the world’s first-choice application-centric provider of end-to-end industrialized automated post-processing systems. This latest investment will help us to unlock the full potential of industrial additive manufacturing and its sustainable impact.”

Nigel Owens of Mercia said:

“AMT’s technology is accelerating the adoption of 3D printing and transforming manufacturing in many industries. The company has gone from strength to strength and the recent HP partnership deal is another major milestone, as it represents acceptance of its technology at the highest level. This latest funding is allowing AMT to capitalise on its successes and continue its rapid growth.”

Ken Cooper at British Business Bank said:

“This investment demonstrates how NPIF is able to support high-growth businesses in the North like AMT and unlock additional capital from other investors. As the economy starts to recover we anticipate that the demand for equity finance will increase across north and we are pleased that NPIF will be able to support more innovative, growing companies like AMT.”

The Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund project is supported financially by the European Union using funding from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) as part of the European Structural and Investment Funds Growth Programme 2014-2020 and the European Investment Bank.

ENDS

For more information, please contact:

Alison Dwyer
Head of Marketing and Communication
Mercia Asset Management PLC                                                                                                               
+44 (0) 330 223 1430
[email protected]

Pauline Rawsterne
PR Agent
Turquoise PR
+44 (0) 161 860 6063
+44 (0) 780 163 9816
[email protected]

About Mercia Asset Management PLC

Mercia is a proactive, specialist asset manager focused on supporting regional SMEs to achieve their growth aspirations. Mercia provides capital across its four asset classes of balance sheet, venture, private equity and debt capital: the Group’s ‘Complete Capital Solution’. The Group initially nurtures businesses via its third-party funds under management, then over time Mercia can provide further funding to the most promising companies, by deploying direct investment follow-on capital from its own balance sheet.

Mercia has a strong UK regional footprint through its eight offices, 19 university partnerships and extensive personal networks, providing it with access to high-quality deal flow. Mercia has almost £0.8billion of assets under management and, since its IPO in December 2014, has invested over £90.0million across its direct investment portfolio.

The Group raises its own Venture Capital Trusts (VCTs) and Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) Funds and details about open offers can be found through Mercia’s website.

Mercia Asset Management PLC is quoted on AIM with the epic “MERC” and includes the following wholly owned subsidiaries –

• Mercia Fund Management Limited is authorised and regulated by the FCA under firm reference number 524856
• Enterprise Ventures Limited is authorised and regulated by the FCA under firm reference number 183363
• EV Business Loans Limited is authorised and regulated by the FCA under firm reference number 443560

www.mercia.co.uk

About The Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund

• The Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund will invest in Microfinance, Business Loans and Equity Finance sub-funds which will offer financing ranging from £25,000 to £2m, specifically to help small and medium sized businesses secure the funding they need for growth and development.
• The Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund is operated by British Business Financial Services Limited, wholly owned by British Business Bank, the UK’s national economic development bank. Established in November 2014, its mission is to make finance markets for smaller businesses work more effectively, enabling those businesses to prosper, grow and build UK economic activity.
• The Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund is supported by the European Regional Development Fund, the European Investment Bank, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and British Business Finance Limited, a British Business Bank group company.
• The NPIF covers the following LEP areas: Tees Valley Combined Authority, Greater Manchester, Cheshire and Warrington, Cumbria, Liverpool City Region, Lancashire, Humber, Leeds City Region, Sheffield City Region, York, North Yorkshire and East Riding
• The project is receiving up to £140,359,192 of funding from the England European Regional Development Fund as part of the European Structural and Investment Funds Growth Programme 2014-2020. The Department for Communities and Local Government is the Managing Authority for European Regional Development Fund. Established by the European Union, the European Regional Development Fund helps local areas stimulate their economic development by investing in projects which will support innovation, businesses, create jobs and local community regenerations. For more information visit https://www.gov.uk/european-growth-funding.
• The funds in which Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund invests are open to businesses with material operations, or planning to open material operations, in, Yorkshire and the Humber, the North West and Tees Valley.
• The British Business Bank has published the Business Finance Guide (in partnership with the ICAEW, and a further 21 business and finance organisations). The guide, which impartially sets out the range finance options available to businesses and provides links to support available at a regional level, is available at www.thebusinessfinanceguide.co.uk/bbb