"The reason 3D printing has been stagnant for the past 40 years is that it hit the massive wall of materials. Graphy (318060) is changing the global medical market landscape with 'living materials' that move and function on their own inside the human body, going beyond simply creating shapes."
Graphy CEO Shim Woon-sup made this confident statement in an interview with Seoul Economic Daily at the company's headquarters in Geumcheon-gu, Seoul, on the 25th. "We have turned what everyone said was impossible at the time of our founding into reality," he said.
After first encountering 3D printing technology some 30 years ago, Shim has devoted himself to creating "final products" that are actually installed in the human body and deliver therapeutic effects, rather than mere prototypes. The culmination of that dedication is the world's first shape-memory clear aligner, the "SMA (Shape Memory Aligner)."
The core competitive advantage of Graphy under Shim's leadership is "Tera Harz," a proprietary 3D printing resin material developed in-house. Conventional clear aligners use a passive method of heat-pressing plastic sheets into fixed shapes. Graphy, however, applies 4D printing technology, enabling the material itself to remember its shape.
"Our material has the property of returning to its originally designed shape in response to oral temperature (body heat)," Shim explained. "This allows us to apply continuous, consistent force to teeth, reducing pain and dramatically shortening treatment time."
A key differentiator from existing products is that the device can be sterilized with hot water while still restoring to its original shape at body temperature, making it easy to maintain hygiene.
The basis for this technical confidence lies in solid academic data. Approximately 200 papers published independently by university researchers worldwide—not the company's in-house lab—objectively validate Graphy's technology.
"We only provided guidelines for these papers; experts from around the world tested our products themselves and academically verified their efficacy," Shim emphasized. "Because we have data recognized by expert communities, our credibility in the global market is unmatched."
The global market response has already been enthusiastic. In the United States, the world's largest dental market, Graphy has partnered with leading distributor Benco Dental. Through Germany's The Scheu Group, it has expanded its supply network across Europe. The Central Lab being established in Florida for made-to-order production serves as a forward base for global expansion.
"Global leading companies have moved beyond merely watching us—they're now quite nervous," Shim said. "The market has already recognized that we're not simply following existing methods but presenting an entirely new paradigm."
Shim's vision extends beyond orthodontics toward becoming a precision medical materials platform. In recent clinical trials conducted with university research teams, Graphy's material was injected into skull defect sites in rabbits. When exposed to light at specific wavelengths, the material precisely expanded to fill the empty spaces.
"This technology could be used to regenerate bone after removing cancer cells in osteosarcoma patients," Shim explained. "In areas where attempts would be impossible without proven biosafety of materials, Graphy's materials are presenting new alternatives."
This year is expected to be Graphy's inaugural year of "quantum jump," when it begins reaping substantial profits. The company has set a revenue target of 40 billion won and plans to achieve an operating profit turnaround by significantly increasing exports of high-value-added materials. Once mass supply through local production bases begins in earnest in the second half of this year, the pace of performance improvement is expected to accelerate further.