The Castor Technologies Team (© Castor Technologies).
The Castor Technologies Team (© Castor Technologies).
Press release
Venture Capital
October 24, 2019

Evonik invests in Israeli software start-up offering a 3D printing decision-support system

Evonik Venture Capital has invested in an Israeli software start-up that helps industrial companies adopt 3D printing.

  • Tel Aviv-based Castor Technologies helps industrial manufacturers adopt 3D printing
  • Castor’s software determines the 3D printability of parts, the best materials and estimates costs
  • Investment enables Evonik’s business to offer services thus expanding its activities beyond materials

Essen, Germany. Evonik Venture Capital has invested in an Israeli software start-up that helps industrial companies adopt 3D printing. Castor Technologies has developed a software that assesses a part’s printability, the best printing material, cost and lead time. The technology helps manufacturers decide if and how to apply 3D printing to their production processes. The investment enables Evonik to expand beyond selling materials and into services by allowing customers to test printability of their parts.

“Castor occupies an exciting space in the 3D printing market, helping companies overcome the hurdles associated with adopting the technology,” said Bernhard Mohr, head of the company’s venture capital activities. “The investment perfectly complements our existing portfolio of 3D printing activities and is our second investment in Israel, one of the most active start-up ecosystems in the world.”

Evonik will contribute its expertise in printing materials and help Castor to establish the software as a platform accessible for all industries. Evonik has more than 20 years expertise in developing and manufacturing 3D printing materials. With Castor’s software, customers will have the opportunity to identify parts that could be printed with materials such as high-performance polymer powders and filaments. Evonik also produces a full range of additives that can modify material properties, for example, improving the flow of the material or making the finished part more robust.

“With the software, broader adoption of 3D printing at a commercial scale becomes possible,” said Thomas Große-Puppendahl, head of the innovation growth field additive manufacturing at Evonik. “That will offer us better insights into customer needs and preferences.”

Castor, based in Tel Aviv, was founded by Omer Blaier, Elad Schiller and David Calderon in 2017. Customers are machinery manufacturers from industries such as automotive, aerospace, medical devices and logistics that have so far relied on traditional production methods such as injection moulding.

The start-up’s software is complementary to computer-aided design (CAD) solutions and customers can analyse their existing CAD files of large assemblies or of many single parts, simultaneously. More specifically, the software performs a comprehensive technical and economic analysis which results in a simple report showing the break-even point for additive manufacturing versus traditional manufacturing methods. This allows manufacturers to decide whether to prefer 3D printing over traditional manufacturing methods and empowers engineers to identify parts which can be defined as the “lower hanging fruits,” leading to cost reduction and time savings.

“Our vision is to be the manufacturers’ gateway to industrial 3D printing,” said Omer Blaier, chief executive officer of Castor. “Evonik’s expertise in 3D printed polymers combined with Castor’s ability to identify unmet needs in material properties is the right combination to improve our customers’ products.”

In addition to Evonik, investors in the current financing round include Chartered Group and Tel-Aviv University’s venture capital fund TAU Ventures.

Evonik Venture Capital helps the company secure access to disruptive technologies and innovative business models as well as supporting digital transformation. To this end, Evonik launched its second venture capital fund with a volume of €150 million at the beginning of 2019, more than doubling the amount under management to €250 million.

Image Caption: The Castor Technologies Team (© Castor Technologies).

Company information

Evonik is one of the world leaders in specialty chemicals. The focus on more specialty businesses, customer-oriented innovative prowess and a trustful and performance-oriented corporate culture form the heart of Evonik’s corporate strategy. They are the lever for profitable growth and a sustained increase in the value of the company. Evonik benefits specifically from its customer proximity and leading market positions. Evonik is active in over 100 countries around the world. In fiscal 2018, the enterprise with more than 32,000 employees generated sales of €13.3 billion and an operating profit (adjusted EBITDA) of €2.15 billion from continuing operations.

About Evonik Venture Capital

Since its inception in 2012, Evonik Venture Capital has realized more than 25 investments, both direct and fund investments. EVC has offices in Germany (Hanau/Essen), the U.S.A. (Parsippany) and China (Shanghai) and invests in young companies with innovative technology and high growth potential in the fields of Heath & Care, Smart Materials, Animal Nutrition and Specialty Additives. Evonik Venture Capital’s team is made up of experienced investment managers that provide portfolio companies comprehensive support. The investment scope ranges from early stage to growth stage with investment volume per portfolio company of up to €15 million. Further information is available at http://venturing.evonik.com

Disclaimer

In so far as forecasts or expectations are expressed in this press release or where
our statements concern the future, these forecasts, expectations or statements
may involve known or unknown risks and uncertainties. Actual results or
developments may vary, depending on changes in the operating environment.
Neither Evonik Industries AG nor its group companies assume an obligation to
update the forecasts, expectations or statements contained in this release.