Hangzhou has witnessed the IPO of a unicorn company.

EPlus Additive is a high-tech enterprise mainly focusing on the research, development, production, and sales of industrial-grade additive manufacturing (3D printing) equipment.

On June 30, according to the official website of the Shanghai Stock Exchange, the initial public offering (IPO) application of Hangzhou EPlus 3D Additive Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "EPlus Additive") on the Science and Technology Innovation Board was accepted by the Shanghai Stock Exchange. It plans to raise 1.205 billion yuan, and the sponsor is CITIC Securities.

The prospectus reveals that EPlus Additive is a high-tech enterprise mainly focusing on the research, development, production, and sales of industrial-grade additive manufacturing (3D printing) equipment. Its related products and technologies have been accelerating their application and promotion in important fields such as aerospace, industrial manufacturing, scientific research and education, and consumer electronics.

Independently developed over 20 3D printing equipment

In terms of the listing standards, this time EPlus Additive chose to apply the first listing standard in Article 2.1.2 of the "Rules for the Listing of Stocks on the Science and Technology Innovation Board of the Shanghai Stock Exchange", that is, "the estimated market value is not less than 1 billion yuan, and the net profits in the recent two years are both positive and the cumulative net profit is not less than 50 million yuan, or the estimated market value is not less than 1 billion yuan, the net profit in the recent year is positive and the operating income is not less than 100 million yuan".

In this IPO, EPlus Additive plans to raise 1.205 billion yuan. Among them, 464 million yuan is planned to be used for the expansion project of Beijing EPlus 3D Metal 3D Printing, 442 million yuan for the industrialization project of Hangzhou additive manufacturing equipment, 187 million yuan for the construction project of Hangzhou R & D Center, and 112 million yuan for the construction project of the technical service network.

In terms of performance, the prospectus shows that from 2022 to 2024, EPlus Additive's operating revenues were 247 million yuan, 409 million yuan, and 471 million yuan respectively, and the net profits attributable to the parent company were 28.926 million yuan, 68.5815 million yuan, and 98.8134 million yuan respectively, maintaining a relatively fast growth rate.

3D printing equipment is the main revenue source of EPlus Additive. The proportion of this business revenue in the total revenue increased from 92.89% in 2022 to 95.2% in 2024, showing an upward trend.

In terms of products, EPlus Additive has independently developed over 20 3D printing equipment and achieved mass production, equipped with the fully controllable EP Hatch 3D printing process planning software and EPlus 3D control software.

Among them, the company has gradually formed a relatively leading differential technological advantage in large-size multi-laser 3D metal printing equipment. The company was the first to break through the meter-level in all three-axis printing dimensions of metal powder bed fusion printing equipment. The super-large equipment EP-M1250 independently developed by the company was recognized as the "first set in the province" by the Zhejiang Economic and Information Technology Department and "the first in the country" by the Beijing Municipal Science and Technology Commission.

In addition, the "EP-M1550 super-large-size metal additive manufacturing system" launched by the company in 2023 passed the "first set in the country" certification by the Zhejiang Economic and Information Technology Department.

From the perspective of downstream customers, the prospectus shows that in 2024, the top five customers of EPlus Additive were Leishi Intelligent Manufacturing, Jingye Additive, Jiangsu Yangwang Aerospace Equipment Technology Co., Ltd., Shandong Hangyu Industrial Equipment Co., Ltd., and Xi'an Aerospace Mechatronics Intelligence, accounting for 38.17% of the total revenue.

In terms of raw material procurement, the main raw materials purchased externally by EPlus Additive include galvanometers, lasers, machined parts, etc. The main suppliers include Apache (Beijing) Fiber Laser Technology Co., Ltd., SCANLAB GmbH, Gaobeidian Yixincheng Mechanical Equipment Manufacturing Co., Ltd., etc.

Revenue scale and market share are in the middle of the industry

In the prospectus, EPlus Additive lists EOS, 3D Systems, SLM Solutions, and GE Additive as overseas competitors, all of which are German and American enterprises. The domestic competitors are BLT and Farsoon Technologies, both of which are listed on the Science and Technology Innovation Board.

Compared with domestic competitors, EPlus Additive's revenue scale and market share are in the middle position. As of the close on June 30, the market values of BLT and Farsoon Technologies were 16.187 billion yuan and 15.221 billion yuan respectively, and their revenues from metal equipment in 2024 were 1.326 billion yuan and 492 million yuan respectively. In terms of market share, the market shares of BLT, Farsoon Technologies, and EPlus Additive in equipment revenue in 2024 were 1.28%, 0.74%, and 1.03% respectively.

It is understood that additive manufacturing is an important part of intelligent manufacturing and is becoming one of the keys to the transformation of traditional manufacturing to intelligent manufacturing. The technical barriers and patents of the entire additive manufacturing industry chain are concentrated in the mid - stream equipment manufacturers. Additive manufacturing equipment is the foundation for promoting the development and innovation of the entire industry chain.

Data released by the National Bureau of Statistics show that in May 2025, the added value of industrial enterprises above the designated size nationwide increased by 5.8% year - on - year. Among them, the output of 3D printing equipment increased by 40.0% year - on - year, continuing to top the list of the growth rates of national industrial products.

From the perspective of downstream applications, according to Wohlers Associates, in 2024, the downstream application fields of the global additive manufacturing industry were mainly aerospace, medical and health, automotive, energy, etc. Among them, aerospace, medical and health, automotive, and energy were the main application fields, accounting for 17.7%, 11.1%, 10.3%, and 8.4% of the revenue respectively.

The reporter of the Venture Capital Daily noticed that in recent years, the average selling price of industrial - grade additive manufacturing equipment has shown an obvious upward trend. EPlus Additive said in the prospectus that from 2019 to 2024, the average selling price of industrial - grade additive manufacturing equipment increased from 90,000 US dollars to 316,900 US dollars, and the average selling price of metal additive manufacturing equipment was close to 500,000 US dollars, mainly due to the large - scale development of equipment and the continuous increase in the unit price of equipment.

Currently, the sales volume of global metal additive manufacturing equipment is relatively small compared with non - metal additive manufacturing equipment, but the unit value is higher and the growth rate is faster. According to Wohlers Associates, in 2023, the global sales volume of industrial - grade metal additive manufacturing equipment was 3,793 units, a year - on - year increase of 24.40%. While the performance of non - metal additive manufacturing equipment was weak, the global metal additive manufacturing equipment still showed a faster development trend.

Post - investment valuation of 4.19 billion yuan

From the perspective of the financing history, data from Cailian Press Venture Capital Connect show that EPlus Additive has gone through 5 rounds of financing, among which the financing amounts in the B++, B+, and B rounds were all in the hundreds of millions of yuan.

Its latest B++ round of financing took place at the end of December 2024, and the investors included the Beijing Advanced Manufacturing and Intelligent Equipment Industry Investment Fund (Limited Partnership), etc. EPlus Additive said in the prospectus that after the completion of this round of financing, its post - investment valuation was 4.19 billion yuan.

In addition, the company has also attracted a number of state - owned capitals such as SDIC Chuanghe, Yizhuang Guotou, Aero Engine Fund, CSC Financial Capital, and Chinalco Innovation.

In terms of the equity structure, before this issuance, Li Cheng and Li Jianhao, the father - son actual controllers of EPlus Additive, jointly controlled 54.53% of the company's shares. In terms of institutional shareholders, the equity penetration shows that Advanced Industry Investment, Chuanghe New Materials, and Chuanghe Fund are the main institutional shareholders, with shareholding ratios of 3.58%, 3.10%, and 3.01% respectively. In addition, the tutoring institution CITIC Securities is also among the shareholders, directly holding 1.34% of the shares.

It is disclosed that Li Cheng was born in 1962, has a college degree, is a senior economist, and is the founder of Hangzhou Yongsheng Group Co., Ltd. He was engaged in the business of textiles such as fabrics from 1983 to 1997; from November 1997 to the present, he has been the chairman of Hangzhou Yongsheng Group Co., Ltd., and from September 2021 to November 2023, he served as a director of EPlus Co., Ltd.; from November 2023 to the present, he has been a director of EPlus Additive.

Li Jianhao is the son of Li Cheng, born in 1991. He is currently a postgraduate student in EMBA at the China Europe International Business School. He worked at 3D Systems Co., Ltd. and Yongsheng Holdings from 2015 to 2017. From November 2023 to the present, he has been the chairman of EPlus Additive.

Special statement: The content of this article is for reference only and does not constitute investment advice. Investors shall bear the risks themselves if they operate based on this.

This article is from the WeChat official account "Venture Capital Daily", author: Chen Junqing. It is published by 36Kr with authorization.