Lattice June 2023 Newsletter: Mergers and Acquisitions

Jul 01, 2023

All content of this newsletter is for entertainment purposes and not investment advice. All the news we share via social media can be found here. To subscribe to this email, click here. Alternatively, we also have a LinkedIn version of this newsletter. This edition includes Insights/Reflection, News, Events, Watchwhile, Open Source, Going Viral, and Book Recommendations.

Hi There! It was said that Leonardo Da Vinci did not care much about money, and that’s why he did not complete many of his works. I used to send our subscribers weekly newsletter “The Lattice” including interesting links, news, and events in healthcare 3D printing but stopped due to the pandemic. I hope that is a convincing excuse.

But excuse no more!

This newsletter marks a revival of the “The Lattice” newsletter but with a new approach. This monthly newsletter will include not just links to news, events, and data, but my own discoveries, opinions, and research. I want this newsletter to be more conversive, informative, and fun than its predecessor.  

For our existing subscribers, I hope you will enjoy this new format of exchange. Please feel free to reply, comment, and suggest appropriate content for each month’s edition. If you love it, please forward it to your friends so they can also subscribe. Please note that you will not see this newsletter elsewhere except as our email subscriber. 

Disclaimer: All content in this email is information gathered from third parties or personal opinions. They are for entertainment purposes only and are not investment advice. 

Mergers and Acquisitions

A few weeks ago, Nano Dimensions (NNDM) offered to acquire Stratasys several times, but it got rejected several times. In May, Stratasys and Desktop Metal announces a stock-for-stock merger. Here is a very detailed event timeline. This became the most popular news in 3D printing industry for June at the time of this writing. A few days later, 3D Systems announced intention to merge with Stratasys …drums…at a lower price. They generated a lot of buzz in the 3D printing industry (see Google Trend), good and bad. 

Often, like marriage, people celebrate when a union occurs, although marriage fails 50% of the time, and M&A fails even more (70-90%).  

Question to ask ourselves when a merger is proposed or occurs: 

  • Friendly or hostile? 
    • If friendly, the union is likely to succeed. One could arguably agree that the Stratasys/Desktop merger is such a union, where the two companies have worked for years to eventually combine. They will close their deal in Q4 if things work out. 
    • If hostile, i.e. the rest of the offerings, then more events likely will take place. Companies have a variety of strategies to avoid being acquired, but regardless of the strategy, it takes a lot of time/energy to implement. Any time is too much time.

To get more into the gossip, here are some links you can check out to keep yourself up to date:


Smaller but perhaps more interesting M&As in 2023 could be these: 

Meta acquires 3D printed optics firm Luxexcel for an undisclosed amount

Restor3d to acquire Conformis for $2.27 per share

Both the acquirers and the acquired deserve a deeper look at the “Why” such a union occurs. Regardless, I hope they are successful and beneficial to the industry in the long run.  

Going Viral

This month, this Instagram post by @quorum.prosthetics  gained a lot of eyeballs: 

“This Quatro adjustable socket with suction is fresh off the printer!”

“The Quatro is an award-winning patented socket design that provides users the ability to adjust the volume and compression of the device by using reels. Most prosthetics can take up to 10 minutes to attach, but the Quatro only takes 20 seconds. The reels and cells inside work in tandem to provide the user with maximum airflow and comfort, even on the go.”

Want us to share your amazing medical and dental 3D printing works on our Instagram account? Add #3dhealspost and we will share. 

3D-printed orthotics and prosthetics is perhaps one of the oldest and most popular applications in healthcare, with a long history of innovation and global community engagements. This field inspired a generation to 3D print. We will host our first virtual event (FREE registration) in a few days, and I hope you can join us live. 

Also, check out the inspiring influencer interviews we published recently on our speakers for this event. These innovators and entrepreneurs are exactly why I founded the 3DHEALS community: 

Interview with Chris Baschuk: Partial Hand Prosthetics

Interview with Aadeel Akhtar: PSYONIC Bionic Limbs

Interview with Brent Wright: 3D Printed Orthotics and Prosthetics

Open Source

In the month of June, we found two incredible open-source websites for your creative endeavors: 

MED3DP

“Med3DP is an initiative to develop on-demand medical devices for humanitarian healthcare using 3D printing technology. Med3DP currently hosts a wide range of projects complete with ready-to-print files, documentation, and other helpful information. This initiative is in association with Trinity College Dublin, the University of Dublin. Each year a talented group of students in the Biomedical Engineering Masters programme take initiative and brainstorm, prototype, and develop 3D printable medical devices.”

Codex Atlanticus

I found this link during my recent trip to Italy. The Codex Atlanticus is a collection of writings and drawings by the famous Italian artist, engineer, and inventor Leonardo da Vinci. It consists of 1,119 pages, making it one of the largest collections of Leonardo da Vinci’s work. It covers a wide range of topics, including scientific studies, engineering projects, artistic sketches, inventions, and personal notes. The content of the codex is incredibly diverse, encompassing subjects such as anatomy, astronomy, architecture, mechanics, weaponry, and much more.

It is considered a valuable resource for researchers and scholars studying Leonardo da Vinci’s multifaceted genius, providing insights into his creative process, scientific inquiries, and innovative ideas. While in Florence Italy, I visited the Leonardo da Vinci Museum (the photo below is a creation based on his drawing of a “drumming robot”), not knowing at the moment that a majority of Da Vinci’s “inventions” have never been really realized. Therefore, this should be a great resource for all of us for ideas, inspiration, and entertainment. 

Books

What is this book about?

How a single cancer molecule became a billion-dollar business from garage entrepreneurs, scientists, and financiers.

Why is this book worth a read?

  • Rare insider stories on how garage biopharma startups grew into unicorns
  • Biotech company costs hundreds of millions of dollars (+ superhuman tenacity + decades) to build 
  • Simply betting a little is not enough. Going all-in is often required to win.
  • Bankers may play more important roles than scientists and doctors. (I know how you feel…)

Podcast

Acquired

I have started to listen to every episode by Acquired. Speaking of successful M&A, few can compete with LVMH. This is one of the most well-researched, entertaining, well-produced podcasts I heard this year.

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