^{Joint News Release}

BASF Acquires 3D Printing Service Provider Sculpteo

• Acquisition drives market growth
• Additional sales channel for BASF customers and partners
• Access to new materials and technologies for customers of BASF and Sculpteo

To continue to expand its position as a leading service provider in the additive manufacturing sector, BASF New Business GmbH has formally agreed to acquire the online 3D printing service provider Sculpteo. The agreement was signed on November 14, 2019 and is expected to become effective in the next few weeks pending regulatory approval by the relevant authorities. The acquisition of the French 3D printing specialist based in Paris and San Francisco will enable BASF 3D Printing Solutions GmbH, a wholly-owned subsidiary of BASF New Business GmbH, to market and establish new industrial 3D printing materials more quickly. Sculpteo’s management team fully supports the acquisition and will remain in place to provide customers and partners with this expanded service spectrum.

For around a decade already, Sculpteo has operated an online platform with integrated production for the manufacturing of prototypes, individual objects, and serial production components with a range of different additive manufacturing technologies. Customers in various industrial sectors around the world use the Sculpteo service to produce new components rapidly and reliably.

BASF will develop the existing Sculpteo 3D printing platform further into a global network. For customers and partners, BASF 3D Printing Solutions will thus be able to offer an additional channel for marketing their services and expanding their own customer bases.

"Through the acquisition of Sculpteo, we can provide customers and partners with even faster access to our innovative 3D printing solutions. In addition, our customers will benefit from an extended range of services”, explains Dr. Dietmar Bender, Managing Director BASF 3D Printing Solutions. “Together with Sculpteo, we are pursuing our goal of establishing additive manufacturing as a proven technology for industrial mass production", says Bender.

Combining the strengths of both companies will provide Sculpteo's existing customers with access to a more extensive portfolio of 3D printing materials. "We are excited to join the BASF team and thus benefit from BASF’s outstanding R&D to provide our customers with innovative solutions”, says Clément Moreau, CEO and Co-Founder of Sculpteo. Moreau will stay with Sculpteo as CEO. 

Beyond this, the Sculpteo Design Studio and BASF’s technical experts will collaborate to be able to support customers in their 3D printing projects from the early planning phase right through to the final printed part. This will enable BASF to offer its customers end-to-end industrial 3D printing solutions.

Further information on BASF 3D Printing Solutions is available on our website

www.forward-am.com; Information about Sculpteo's service offering is available at www.sculpteo.com. 

About BASF

At BASF we create chemistry for a sustainable future. We combine economic success with environmental protection and social responsibility. The approximately 122,000 employees in the BASF Group work on contributing to the success of our customers in nearly all industrial sectors and almost every country in the world. Our portfolio is organized into six segments: Chemicals, Materials, Industrial Solutions, Surface Technologies, Nutrition & Care, and Agricultural Solutions. BASF generated sales of around €63 billion in 2018. BASF shares are traded on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange (BAS) and as American Depositary Receipts (BASFY) in the U.S. For further information please visit: www.basf.com.

About BASF New Business

BASF New Business GmbH (BNB) searches out long-term trends and innovative topics in industry and society as well as future markets, analyzes their growth potential and checks whether potential new business areas are suitable for BASF. Its activities are focused on the client sectors of transportation, building and construction, consumer goods, health & nutrition, electronics, agriculture, and energy & resources where new business opportunities outside existing BASF businesses are identified. BNB then progressively builds the most promising business concepts as new business areas for BASF. BNB concentrates on new chemical-based materials, technologies and system solutions, also promoting technological progress through actively driving the development of new products. To evaluate the technology and the market, BNB works closely with BASF‘s global research platforms and specialist divisions. In addition, BNB cooperates with research institutes, universities, startups and industrial partners. The subsidiary BASF Venture Capital invests directly in startups working in strategically relevant technology fields. For more information please visit: www.basf-new-business.com.

About BASF 3D Printing Solutions

BASF 3D Printing Solutions GmbH, headquartered in Heidelberg, Germany, is a 100% subsidiary of BASF New Business GmbH. It focuses on establishing and expanding the business under the Forward AM brand with advanced materials, system solutions, components and services in the field of 3D printing. BASF 3D Printing Solutions is organized into startup-like structures to serve customers in the dynamic 3D printing market. It cooperates closely with the global research platforms and application technologies of various departments at BASF as well as with research institutes, universities, startups and industrial partners. Potential customers are primarily companies that intend to use 3D printing for industrial manufacturing. Typical industries include automotive, aerospace, and consumer goods. For further information please visit: www.forward-am.com.

About Sculpteo

Sculpteo, pioneer and specialist of digital manufacturing, offers full-range online 3D printing services, from Design for Additive Manufacturing specialists, through 3D file repair, to manufacturing and delivery of the final object. Sculpteo makes digital manufacturing accessible to any business at every scale of production. Based in France (Paris) and California, Sculpteo delivers on-demand 3D printing and manufacturing for start-ups, SMEs, design studios, and MNCs. Sculpteo offers more than 75 materials and finishing options, automated 3D file optimization tools, and professional services to enable companies to adopt industrial additive manufacturing processes. Sculpteo’s factories use professional 3D printers and laser cutters with rapid production and international delivery. Sculpteo was created in 2009 by Eric Carreel and Clément Moreau. For further information please visit: www.sculpteo.com.

Contacts:

P-19-398