Zhejiang Chaoling Intelligent Technology closes Pre-A round led by Zhuji Guotou and Rushan Capital for pellet composite 3D printing

Zhejiang Chaoling Intelligent Technology Co., Ltd. (Chao Ling Zhi Neng) has completed a Pre-A funding round co-led by Zhuji Guotou and Rushan Capital. The company, founded by Professor Li Xiping of Zhejiang Normal University, specializes in pellet-fed composite 3D printing systems using a direct extrusion process. Its large-format gantry-style printers produce tooling, molds, and sculptures from fiber-reinforced engineering thermoplastics. The company previously closed a near-10 million RMB angel round in 2023 and has since deployed systems across commercial aerospace, composite tooling, casting, medical, and cultural-creative sectors, serving clients including AVIC, Anta Group, and North Long Dragon. Products are also exported to Europe.

This funding round underscores the growing industrial traction of pellet-fed material extrusion (polymer-MEX) as a cost-effective alternative to filament-based FDM for large-format parts. Pellet feedstock typically costs 5-10x less per kilogram than filament and enables significantly higher deposition rates, making it attractive for tooling, jigs, and large lightweight structural components. Chaoling’s differentiation lies in its vertically integrated "materials-equipment-process-software" stack and its focus on fiber-reinforced engineering plastics rather than commodity thermoplastics. The involvement of state-backed capital (Zhuji Guotou) signals local government interest in building advanced manufacturing capacity, while Rushan Capital adds venture discipline. The company competes in a niche but growing segment alongside players like Titan Robotics (US), WASP (Italy), and domestic peers such as Create Three-D (Chuangxiang Sandi). The key challenge remains moving beyond tooling and prototyping into repeatable production applications with qualified material properties.

For Chaoling, the immediate priority is scaling machine production and deepening customer qualification cycles in aerospace and defense, where fiber-reinforced pellet printing can compete with aluminum tooling and low-volume metal castings. The company must demonstrate that its process can deliver consistent mechanical properties across production runs, not just one-off demonstrators. For buyers evaluating large-format polymer AM, pellet extrusion is now a credible option for non-critical tooling and fixtures, but material certification data remains thin compared to established SLS or filament-based processes.