Reusable mould is '14 times faster than 3D printing'

The first infinitely reusable moulding technology has been made by US manufacturer Fyous.

PolyMorphic moulding is reported to shapeshift in less than 20 minutes, have no tooling waste and make usable parts 14 times faster than 3D printing.

The technology, which was devised and engineered by Fyous co-founders, has more than 28,000 densely packed pins that create the mould. Once they are in position the mould can withstand 6t of distributed pressure.

By inputting a 3D computer aided design model, the software generates the mould shape. The machine then 'shapeshifts' the mould to create the product. On completion, the mould is returned to the machine, ready for the next product.

Fyous say the product can be anything that a mould is typically used for, such as vacuum forming, foam casting, food production or composite layup.