PAMA is on a mission to make photopolymer additive manufacturing (PAM) more accessible and to increase the safe and responsible adoption of these technologies.
A collaboration with the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology
Report from the Photopolymer Additive Manufacturing Workshop: Roadmapping a Future for Stereolithography, Inkjet, and Beyond
PAMA Working Committees
- Materials Characterization
- Hardware Characterization
- Environment, Health, and Safety
- Government Partnerships & Regulation
Photopolymer Additive Manufacturing Alliance
A collaboration between the National Institutes for Standards and Technology (NIST) and RadTech is an alliance of industry, academic, governmental, and NGO organizations with the goal of bringing commonly accepted standards and practices to the field of PAM.
Through voluntary self-regulation and working in collaboration with government agencies, we seek to help ensure PAM technologies are adopted in a safe and responsible manner.
September 19-22, 2023 • Boulder, Colorado
Press Releases & Announcements
Proper Handling of UV Curable 3D Printing Resins
Ultraviolet (UV) curable resins for 3D printing/additive manufacturing cure rapidly when exposed to UV light. As with all chemicals, UV curable resins must be handled in a safe manner. This fact sheet is meant as a general guideline for the handling of UV curable resin materials (photopolymers) used in 3D printing systems such as stereolithography (SLA), digital light processing (DLP) and UV inkjet.
Health and Safety Considerations for the Additive Manufacturing/3D-Printing of Consumer Products
May 9, 2023, 2:00 PM to 3:00 PM EDT
Speaker: Treye Thomas, Ph.D., U.S. Consumer, Product Safety Commission
Moderator: Dr. Dianne Poster, National Institute of Standards and Technology
Treye Thomas, Ph.D., is a Lead Toxicologist and Program Manager for the Chemicals, Nanotechnology and Emerging Materials (CNEM) program area in the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission’s (CPSC) Office of Hazard Identification and Reduction.
Additive Manufacturing of Medical Devices: FDA Perspective
April 25, 2023, 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM EDT
Speaker: Matthew Di Prima, Ph.D., Materials Scientist, U.S. Food and Drug Administration
Moderator: Dr. Dianne Poster, NIST
Additive Manufacturing (AM) is now commonly used in the production of medical devices with significant adoption of the technology occurring between 2010 and 2020. This talk will discuss the broad medical applications that makes AM attractive to medical devices along with the applicability of the different AM technologies to the medical device space.
RadTech announces its RadLaunch Class of 2023
Awards Celebrate Innovation Enabled by UV/EB Technology
Created to recognize innovative start-ups and innovators for ultraviolet and electron beam (UV/EB) technologies, RadTech, the UV/EB industry association announces its RadLaunch Class of 2023. RadLaunch award members will be recognized and celebrated at the upcoming BIG IDEAS for UV+EB Technology conference, March 6-8, 2023 in San Diego, CA.
RadLaunch thanks our awards chairs Dr. Darryl Boyd, Research Chemist – US Naval Research Laboratory, and Co-Founder and Senior Scientist for Science Made Simple; and Mike Idavacage, Radical Curing LLC.
“The RadLaunch class of 2023 is exceptional, offering a wide range of technology, from new bio-materials to a novel way to combine DLP and SLA curing for additive manufacturing to an innovation in Smart Glass to an all-in-one system to make 3D Printing easier to implement in a dental lab,” says Idacavage.
Award winners will be recognized and celebrated at the upcoming BIG IDEAS for UV+EB Technology conference, March 6-8, 2023 in San Diego, CA.
Check out the latest PAMA Applications
Printing vs. Molding: At 1 Million Parts, Merit3D to Deliver the Largest 3D Print Order Ever
May 22, 2023
Big Ideas Conference 2023, March 6-8, 2023
March 6-8, 2023
The BIG IDEAS for UV+EB Technology Conference is set for March 6-8, 2023, at the Wyndham Bayside in San Diego, California.
This event focuses on the BIG IDEAS in the global space for UV+EB technology and will include 3D printing, additive manufacturing, UV LED, printing, automotive, data-driven materials and more. The BIG IDEAS conference offers the industry a forum to discuss the future of UV and EB technologies while learning more about the applications and science that will enable developments two years, five years and ten years down the road.
PAMA Webinar: Fire Testing and Flammability in Photopolymer Additive Manufacturing, April 11, 2023
April 11, 2023, 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM EDT :: The on-demand ideal of additive manufacturing requires versatile feedstock materials to meet the needs of a variety of industries. Flammability requirements vary widely from industry-to-industry, making the ideal of a universal “fire safe” photopolymer resin challenging to attain. This webinar will present an overview of the ubiquitous UL-94 flammability test, as well as an overview of the requirements for the most common tests in the aerospace and automotive industry where photopolymer additive manufacturing promises to have its greatest impact. Additionally, use of the unique architectures enabled by additive manufacturing to create flame retardant metamaterials will be discussed to highlight a potential future direction for fire-safe photopolymer materials.
Announcing the first PAMA "mini" magazine, December 22, 2022
December 2022
PAMA was formed as a collaboration between the National Institutes of Standards and Technology (NIST) and RadTech, a nonprofit trade association, as additive manufacturing (AM) begins to accelerate on its journey into the manufacturing supply chain. PAMA doesn’t necessarily target specific industries, but instead is a multi-stakeholder organization which spans across the length of the entire AM supply chain (i.e., chemical producers, resin formulators, hardware OEMs, print shops, end-users/customers) and across multiple industry verticals (aerospace, automotive, dental, medical device, construction materials, etc.).
PAMA Webinar: Working Safely with Resin-based Additive Manufacturing Machines, January 24, 2023
January 24, 2023, 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM EST :: Resin-based additive manufacturing processes such as vat photopolymerization and material jetting involve curing liquid resins to build objects. Feedstock resins for these processes can contain chemicals that are known lung or skin irritants and/or sensitizers. This webinar will present an overview of potential adverse health effects from exposure to resin constituents, review current research to understand if and how users might be exposed to resin constituents and to what extent, and describe pragmatic approaches to minimize exposure potential.
PAMA Webinar: Flame Resistant Photopolymers for Additive Manufacturing, December 13, 2022
December 13, 2022 :: As additive manufactured components enter various industrial applications, critical end-users have identified a new requirement for the industry to grapple with: UL flammability testing.
Prepare for Launch | RadLaunch 2023 Applications Are Open
RadTech, the non profit for ultraviolet and electron beam technologies, and the Photopolymer Additive Manufacturing Alliance (PAMA) invites students, university labs, start-ups, and new technology developers to apply to be a part of RadLaunch 2023, the UV+EB technology industry education accelerator, focused on unique and novel technologies.
RadTech and PAMA Support the U.S. Department of Energy Industrial Heat Shot™
Ultraviolet Curing included as a “Key Pathway”
RadTech, the Association for UV+EB technologies and PAMA, the Photopolymer Additive Manufacturing Alliance, support the new Department of Energy (DOE) Industrial Heat Shot™ initiative.
PAMA Appoints Michelle Bockman as Board Member, Sets Working Committees
The Photopolymer Additive Manufacturing Alliance (PAMA), welcomes Michelle Bockman, President, STANLEY X, as a new Executive Advisory Board Member. Bockman leads efforts to identify and build new sources of growth and innovation in key areas of Stanley Black & Decker, including internal startup incubation, ecosystem development and company partnerships.
NIST: Additive Manufacturing Benchmark Test Series (AM-BENCH)
AM-Bench provides a continuing series of controlled benchmark measurements, in conjunction with a conference series, with the primary goal of enabling modelers to test their simulations against rigorous, highly controlled additive manufacturing benchmark test data.
New Group to Drive Innovation in 3D Printing Industries
The Photopolymer Additive Manufacturing Alliance (PAMA) will Kick off Activities at RadTech 2022 in Orlando.
PAMA Members Represent Multiple Stake Holders
PAMA Thanks our Members!!
Founding Corporate Members
- Dymax
- Osaka Organic Chemical Ind. Ltd
Corporate Supplier Members
- 3D Systems
- allnex
- Ameralabs
- Arkema
- Henkel Corp
- IGM Resins
- Miwon North America
- NAGASE Specialty Materials NA LLC
- Rahn
- TE Connectivity
PAMA Members represent the following organizations:
- Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
- Met-L-Flo, Inc.
- MicroTau
- Mighty Buildings Inc
- MIT
- Montana State University
- National Institutes of Standards and Technology
- PrintFoam
- Prismatic Manufacturing
- Rapid Prototyping Consortium–MSOE
- South Dakota Mines
- Stanley X
- Tactile Materials Solutions
- University of Cincinnati
- University of Denver
- Vitro3D
What types of questions does PAMA seek to answer?
- How do we ensure that 3D printed parts are fully cured and not leaking or off-gassing materials in a consumer’s home?
- How can we ensure the safe transport and disposal of 3D printing resins in industry and in the home? What protocols are necessary to protect the environment?
- How can we calibrate light delivery rates to a universally accepted calibration standard?
- Should material properties be reported in a standard format to make selection easier for end-users?
- How can we ensure that 3D printing hardware remains operating to specification and/or notifies the user when service is needed?
- How can we overcome the challenges of documenting and reporting hazards to ease the adoption of technology in new markets?