High printer costs have kept 3D printing out of reach for the average consumer so far, but the technology is catching on with manufacturers who need to fabricate specialty parts for prototyping or other uses.

This is good news for industrial 3D printing companies such as Markforged Inc., which announced today that it has raised $30 million in a Series C funding.

The funding round was led by Next47, a venture firm backed by German industrial giant Siemens AG. Other participants in the round included new investors Microsoft Ventures and Porsche Automobil Holding SE, as well as existing investors Matrix, Northbridge and Trinity. Markforged has raised a total of $57 million since it launched in 2013.

Unlike most home 3D printers, which use typically use plastic or resin as a printing material, Markforged creates printers that can fabricate designs using metal or even carbon fiber. According to the company, its technology is 50 times faster for prototyping than traditional machining, and it is 20 times cheaper. Markforged also says that its printers, which are small enough to fit on a desk, are 1/10 the cost of other printing solutions.

“At Markforged we are unlocking a dramatic acceleration to change that process from years to days,” Markforged founder and Chief Executive Greg Mark said in a statement. ”

“Markforged is making 3D printing simple, repeatable, and fast,” added Lak Ananth, a managing partner at Siemens Next47 who will be joining the Markforged board. “This has far reaching implications for our target industries, from automotive and aerospace to healthcare and energy. We see customers embedding Markforged into their product development and production processes, tremendously improving speed to market and addressing new opportunities in their industries.”

Matthew Goldstein, a partner Microsoft Ventures, also said that he believes 3D printing is speeding up physical development in the same way cloud sped up software development.

Markforged has plenty of competition in the metal 3D printing industry, including Massachusetts-based startup Desktop Metal Inc., which closed a $115 million funding round back in July. Several major companies are also pushing for wider adoption of 3D printing in the enterprise, including HP Inc., which launched a partnership with Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Ltd. in August to promote what HP Chief Executive Dion Weisler called “the Fourth Industrial Revolution.”

Photo: Markforged