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Photocentric

HardwarePeterborough, United KingdomFounded 2002· One of 1708 Hardware companies tracked by AMPulse

Photocentric manufactures patented LCD-based 3D printers and a wide range of photopolymer resins, enabling affordable, scalable, and high-volume digital manufacturing.

CEO / Founder
Paul Holt
Team Size
51-200
Stage
Active
Total Funding
$5.58M
Latest Round
Grant
Key Investors
Innovate UK, Advanced Propulsion Centre UK, UK Government

Technology & Products

Key Products

LC Titan (world's largest LCD 3D printer), LC Nano (world's fastest LCD 3D printer), JENI (automated modular 3D printer).

Technological Advantage

The primary advantage is a dramatic reduction in the cost and complexity of resin 3D printers, enabling the creation of very large format machines for mass production. Vertical integration, with in-house development of both printers and photopolymer resins, allows for highly optimized and customized manufacturing solutions, giving them a significant cost and performance advantage.

Differentiation

Value Proposition

To enable custom mass manufacturing by providing a scalable and affordable digital manufacturing solution based on proprietary LCD 3D printing technology and vertically integrated photopolymer resin development.

How They Differentiate

Photocentric differentiates itself by focusing on cost-effective, large-format printers for mass production, whereas competitors often focus on higher-cost, specialized systems. Their invention of the core LCD printing technology and in-house resin manufacturing provide a unique cost structure and ability to tailor solutions directly to industrial-scale applications.

Market & Competition

Target Customers

Manufacturers and businesses in sectors such as industrial components, automotive, dental, and consumer goods seeking to replace traditional manufacturing methods with cost-effective, on-demand 3D printing for mass production.

Industry Verticals

["Industrial","Automotive","Medical & Dental","Consumer Goods","Aerospace/Defense","Miniature Figurine Manufacturing"]

Competitors

Nexa3D; Formlabs; 3D Systems

Growth & Milestones

Growth Metrics

Revenue reached £16.58 million in FY 2021. The company has consistently expanded its operations, including a new US headquarters, and has successfully secured multiple multi-million-pound government grants for R&D in sustainable and advanced manufacturing.

Major Milestones

["2002: Company founded by Paul Holt.","2016: Launched the world's first LCD 3D printer.","2016: Awarded the Queen's Award for Enterprise: Innovation.","2018: Awarded the Queen's Award for Enterprise: International Trade.","2021: Relocated US headquarters to Avondale, Arizona.","2022: Received a £2.5 million grant from Innovate UK for sustainable mass manufacturing.","2023: Launched the LC Titan, one of the world's largest LCD 3D printers.","2024: Secured £1.9m in funding from Innovate UK for 'Project Nexus' to develop sustainable materials for bioprocessing."]

Notable Customers

Badgemaster; K Line (via SouSmile); New Era; The 3D Printing Store (3DPS); Games Workshop; Girbau (via Sculpteo)

https://photocentricgroup.com

Why this company matters

Photocentric occupies a distinctive position in polymer additive manufacturing as the inventor of LCD-based 3D printing. Its Daylight Polymer Printing (DPP) technology uses visible light from standard LCD screens to cure photopolymer resins, a method that is more cost-effective and scalable than traditional UV-based SLA or DLP approaches. This innovation allows the company to target high-volume production applications that have historically been uneconomical for resin 3D printing.

The company's product line includes the LC Titan, described as one of the world's largest LCD 3D printers, the LC Nano, positioned as the fastest LCD printer, and the JENI, an automated modular system. Photocentric develops both the printers and the photopolymer resins in-house, giving it tight control over material-process optimization and a cost structure that competitors like Formlabs, Nexa3D, and 3D Systems typically cannot match with their higher-cost, specialized systems.

Photocentric serves industrial, automotive, medical and dental, consumer goods, aerospace and defense, and miniature figurine manufacturing verticals. Named customers include Badgemaster, Games Workshop, and Girbau (via Sculpteo). The company has also formed key partnerships with BASF, Autodesk, and Sartorius, and has received multiple government grants from Innovate UK and the Advanced Propulsion Centre UK for R&D in sustainable and advanced manufacturing.

A key open question is whether Photocentric can scale its customer base beyond niche mass-production applications and compete effectively against larger, well-funded rivals in the broader photopolymer market. Its revenue reached £16.58 million in FY 2021, and the company has expanded its US headquarters to Avondale, Arizona, but sustained growth will depend on winning repeat orders from tier-1 manufacturers in automotive and medical devices.