Mimaki Europe, a provider of industrial inkjet printers, cutting plotters, and 3D printers, has announced its participation in Formnext 2025 (November 18 to 21 at Messe Frankfurt, Germany). The company, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, will demonstrate at the fair how its full-color 3D printing technology with UV curing can bridge the gap between past and future: by preserving our cultural heritage, reinterpreting design, and creating inspiring new opportunities in the fields (Stand B42).
Preserving the Past: Creating High-Precision Replicas
Mimaki has partnered with leading provider of high-precision scanning solutions SMARTTECH3D to produce high-precision replicas of artifacts for museums and the cultural heritage sector. With SMARTTECH's advanced scanning capabilities and Mimaki's full-color 3D printing technology, artifacts can be reproduced authentically, with both color and surface texture of the objects replicated with exceptional accuracy. Thanks to this technology, museum visitors can see replicas of artifacts while they are simultaneously being conserved or restored.
The artifacts are initially 3D scanned using SMARTTECH3D technology. The files are then sent to Mimaki's 3D full-color printers, where the item is printed before it can be used in museums, cultural institutions, or research facilities. At Mimaki's booth, visitors can familiarize themselves with the entire 'Scan-to-Print' workflow while viewing a selection of museum-quality replicas.
Arjen Evertse, Director Sales at Mimaki Europe, says: 'This year we want to show the significance of 3D printing for our history and cultural heritage and how our technology contributes to its preservation. Our partnership with SMARTTECH3D is an excellent example of how the high accuracy and full-color capabilities of 3D printing can be utilized to create authentic 3D replicas.'
Mimaki aims to inspire and encourage customers with its technology to explore new markets and develop new applications that exceed all previous expectations.
Redefining the Future with 3D Full-Color Printing
Another highlight at Mimaki's booth will be the impressive sculpture 'Eros-Thanatos' by post-digital artist humanoise (Taketo Kobayashi). Using 3D scan data of 10,000-year-old Japanese ceramics, humanoise combined ancient structures with futuristic elements to create a unique and vibrant vase-like vessel. This sculpture will be displayed alongside other 3D-printed artworks by humanoise and other artists as part of the collaborative project 'Digital G-O-D', which was already showcased earlier this year in Amsterdam.
With Mimaki's 3DUJ-2207 full-color printer, users can create realistic 3D prints – an essential requirement for artifacts and complex artworks, but also of great benefit for areas such as design, engineering, medicine, and the creative sector in general. With over 10 million colors and clear, transparent inks, users can create complex, vibrant designs and visual effects with high accuracy. Additionally, the printer uses water-soluble support structures to simplify post-processing and preserve complex features.
'Formnext is a place where ideas take shape. With Mimaki's full-color 3D printing, we prove that the past can be replicated down to the smallest detail and brought to life,' Evertse concludes.
Mimaki at Formnext 2025 at Stand B42
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