M&As: Digital inventory start-up Replique spins off from BASF incubator; Constantia Flexibles completes acquisition of Drukpol Flexo

Replique, a digital manufacturing start-up, has spun off from Chemovator, the business incubator of German chemicals firm BASF, and successfully closed a late seed round to further build its business. The funding round was led by STS Ventures, a leading digital technology investor. Replique provides the first fully encrypted 3D printing platform that makes spare part management and the production of small series more sustainable.

Replique is already the fifth start-up to spin off from Chemovator. Despite becoming an independent company, Replique maintains a close relationship with BASF as a customer as well as its subsidiary BASF 3D Printing Solutions, one of Replique’s material partners, and the whole BASF network.

STS Ventures led the funding round as experienced early-stage investor. However, with their managing partner Stephan Schubert – former founder and managing director of Onvista until its spin-off in 2007 – STS Ventures also brings valuable entrepreneurial mindset and experience to the table and will be a great support for Replique's path to a strong profitable business.

“We see a lot of start-ups with promising ideas, but Replique stood out to us as a game-changer in the manufacturing industry. Their innovative industrial 3D printing platform has the potential to disrupt the industry and we are excited to support their growth and expansion in the future. Besides the right solution, Replique also brings the right mind-set and an excellent team to the table”, says Oliver Kaul, partner at STS Ventures.

Angel investors Chameleon GmbH and R3 consulting & investment GmbH round up the late seed funding, with experience in machinery and data business.

"We're thrilled to have successfully spun off from Chemovator and to have secured ourselves the support of such prominent investors, who have a strong experience in scaling start-ups and bring the strategic expertise to internationalise our business in an efficient way," says Dr. Henrike Wonneberger, co-founder of Replique.

The team around co-founders Dr. Henrike Wonneberger and Dr. Max Siebert offers an industrial 3D printing platform that enables OEMs to store parts digitally. Those parts are provided on demand to customers via a network of more than 80 trusted and certified print farms around the globe.

The secure platform is easily integrated into existing business landscapes such as ERP systems and webshops. This enables B2B businesses such as Alstom to leverage 3D printing in a smooth seamless supply chain process and B2C businesses like Miele and Siena Garden to offer 3D-printed parts to their customers.

Replique says it is now focused on expanding its reach and acquire new customers in various industries. With the proceeds, Replique plans to enhance the platform's development with new features, as well as invest in human resources.

In other news, Constantia Flexibles, the third largest producer of flexible packaging worldwide, has announced the successful completion of its acquisition of Drukpol Flexo, a renowned packaging company based in Poland.

Drukpol Flexo, known for its printing and converting capabilities, has built a strong reputation for delivering packaging solutions in the food and HPC markets for local and international customers. The acquisition of the company by Constantia Flexibles strengthens both companies' global reach and more sustainable product portfolio by investing in the growth of the European flexo printing platform.

"With the completion of this acquisition, we are excited to welcome Drukpol Flexo into the Constantia Flexibles family," said Pim Vervaat, CEO of Constantia Flexibles. "The addition of Drukpol Flexo's expertise and advanced technologies further strengthens our position as a global leader in flexible packaging. We are confident that this strategic move will enable us to better serve our customers with a wider range of innovative and sustainable packaging solutions."

(PRA)

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