Solukon launches SPR-Pathfinder PRO depowdering software
Solukon, based in Augsburg, Germany, has announced the launch of SPR-Pathfinder PRO, a new version of its intelligent depowdering software for Laser Beam Powder Bed Fusion (PBF-LB) parts. Developed in direct response to the growing complexity of industrial Additive Manufacturing components, SPR-Pathfinder PRO reportedly delivers significantly higher simulation resolution, accurate process-time prediction, and enhanced design-stage depowdering validation.
In addition to the new PRO version, SPR-Pathfinder will now also be available in a more affordable version for parts with medium complexity: SPR-Pathfinder BASIC.
As PBF-LB geometries become increasingly complex, depowderability is emerging as a limiting factor for industrial adoption. Parts only create value when powder can be removed reliably and repeatably. SPR-Pathfinder PRO was developed to remove this barrier. In direct response to market demand, the Solukon team, led by Product Owner Hemank Raj, has worked on the major software upgrade for the following reasons:
- Certain PBF-LB parts have exceeded complexity limits of the standard SPR-Pathfinder version
Geometries like ultra-complex thermal management components and multi-channel aerospace structures require a very large simulation resolution to guarantee automated depowdering accuracy. The previous limit of 2.4 million voxels used to simulate the ideal depowdering path has been removed. - The AM market shows the need for full process transparency
In metal AM, the need for data transparency is especially high because parts are complex, quality requirements are strict, and every build is a chain of interdependent steps. If you can’t clearly trace what happened when (parameters, machine state, post-processing steps), it becomes hard to explain deviations, prove repeatability, or meet customer and certification expectations. Solukon’s Digital-Factory-Tool records relevant depowdering process data with the intention of enabling maximum transparency, with the option to integrate this information into a higher-level digital dashboard via OPC UA. SPR-Pathfinder PRO is intended to extend these capabilities further. - One of Solukon’s overall main goals: Enabling an enhanced “Design for Depowdering” process
Many manufacturers have understood the value of Design for Additive Manufacturing (DfAM), optimising a part’s geometry so that it can actually be manufactured. Fewer have applied the same thinking to what happens after manufacturing. Designing for depowdering includes considering, from the earliest design stage, whether powder can reliably escape the part’s internal structures and adjusting the geometry accordingly before a single layer is built. The payoff is practical: fewer iterations and surprises after manufacturing, more predictable lead times, and a clearer route to repeatable, documentable postprocessing, especially for intricate internal channels where depowdering requirements rise with part complexity. According to Solukon, Design for Additive Manufacturing ensures a part can be manufactured, whereas Design for Depowdering ensures the part can be industrialised.
By making depowderability a predictable engineering parameter, Solukon enables manufacturers to validate complex designs before production starts. Andreas Hartmann, CEO and CTO, stated, “At Solukon, we have always believed that reliable and intelligent automated depowdering can be achieved when machine, process, and software are aligned. The parts our customers print today are more complex than ever and we have grown alongside that ambition. SPR-Pathfinder PRO reflects years of listening to the market and advancing our software in step with the most demanding AM applications: parts with sub-millimeter channels, densely packed internal surfaces, and geometries previously inaccessible.”
The PRO version introduces three capabilities that go beyond the existing software:
- Higher simulation resolution: SPR-Pathfinder PRO supports up to 1,000,000 particles, a 20-fold increase over the standard version, combined with an unlimited number of voxels. This makes it possible to accurately compute even the most intricate internal structures, including sub-millimetre channels and densely packed internal surfaces that were previously inaccessible to simulation. In the simulation by SPR-Pathfinder PRO, the part moves in the same way it will later during the corresponding cleaning step in the Solukon machine. This provides a clearer understanding of the process.
- Cross-sectional inspection in all planes: The software now enables cross-sectional views of the component in all planes (X, Y, and Z), giving operators full visibility inside the part at any point and from any direction. The part’s transparency can also be adjusted, providing a high degree of control. This makes it straightforward to identify powder traps and bottlenecks before a single layer is built.
- Accurate process-time prediction: For many industrial operators, depowdering remains an unknown variable in production scheduling. SPR-Pathfinder PRO now allows users to specify exactly how long the calculation and depowdering process in their Solukon system will take and to determine how that time fits into their production schedule. Solukon states that this can eliminate a bottleneck that grows more costly as production volumes increase.
Hemank Raj, Product Owner of SPR-Pathfinder, commented, “SPR-Pathfinder PRO is the result of working closely with operators who push LPBF to its limits every day. The standard version already removes the guesswork from depowdering program creation. With PRO, we go further: users can now look inside the most complex geometries, predict process time with confidence, and validate depowderability before the first layer is printed. That changes how engineers think about postprocessing from the very start of a project.”
With the introduction of SPR-Pathfinder PRO, Solukon now offers the software in two versions, each designed for specific applications and production needs. In general, the SPR-Pathfinder software uses the CAD file of the complete build job to calculate the ideal motion sequence for removing powder from complex interior structures as quickly as possible. Calculations are based on the digital twin of the part.
SPR-Pathfinder BASIC helps calculate cleaning programs for moderately complex components. It provides the core automation that makes manual programming unnecessary. SPR-Pathfinder BASIC is aimed at users whose parts do not require advanced simulation and who want a cost-effective entry-level depowdering software.
SPR-Pathfinder PRO is designed for highly complex components and for operations where process transparency and production planning precision are non-negotiable. It delivers full simulation depth, cross-sectional inspection capability, and accurate process-time prediction.
SPR-Pathfinder PRO extends the digital twin through the full post-processing workflow, from design validation to production planning, delivering the process transparency that industrial AM operations increasingly need to scale with confidence.
