Renishaw and BEGO conclude additive manufacturing licensing agreement

12 March 2013

Renishaw plc, the global engineering technologies company, and BEGO Bremer Goldschlägerei Wilh. Herbst GmbH & Co. KG, a leading international specialist in dental prosthodontics, have concluded an agreement that licenses Renishaw to use BEGO patents for additive manufacturing in dental applications.

BEGO Bremer Goldschlägerei Wilh. Herbst GmbH & Co. KG, is one of the leading international companies in dental prosthodontics and implantology. Based in Bremen, Germany, the company has a long track record of making significant investments in R&D and the development of future technologies. In the growing market of digital CAD/CAM solutions, BEGO is a pioneer in additive manufacturing processes for the dental sector for which it holds various patents.

The new licensing agreement between Renishaw and BEGO will allow the Renishaw Group to strengthen its existing dental business on a global basis.

Christoph Weiss, managing partner of BEGO says, “We are delighted to find in Renishaw an innovative and strong licensee. The dental industry is one of the most competitive industries worldwide and the licensing agreement strengthens the position of Renishaw and BEGO. In particular the license agreement emphasises the BEGO strategy of investing in new technologies and to be a key innovator in the dental industry.”

Geoff McFarland, Renishaw's Group Engineering Director, adds, “This is an important agreement for Renishaw which allows us to sell and utilise our own additive manufacturing machines for dental market applications, and gives our customers access to important patents from BEGO which is a leader in this field. It also comes at a time when we are introducing a range of innovative processes for the manufacture of dental structures.”

BEGO launched additive manufacturing (AM) technologies into the dental industry in 2001. The AM process allows the production of precision metal parts direct from 3D CAD data in a layer building process that removes many of the design limitations and material waste associated with conventional ‘subtractive' milling processes.

“The licence agreement with Renishaw underlines BEGO's approach to create win-win-solutions in the dental sector and therefore merchandise our patent portfolio successfully”, concludes Dr. Thomas Kosin, technical director of BEGO.

All images and text copyright Renishaw

Register for news updates

Register for regular news updates from Renishaw