Stratasys did not slow its cost-cutting measures in the second quarter, once again shrinking its losses by $4.5 million from a year ago.
 
During the three-month period ending June 30, revenue dropped 5.5 percent for the Eden Prairie-based manufacturer of 3D printers and additive manufacturing systems. From sales of $172 million, the company ended with an $18.7 million loss.
 
For the year so far, Stratasys’ net loss totals $41.8 million verses the $239.6 million loss it had accumulated halfway through 2015.
 
Roughly $50 million of that nearly $200 million decrease is attributable to cuts in its selling, general and administrative department. The other $150 million comes from the elimination of any goodwill impairment charges—which, in the course of 2015, amounted to a $942 million hit on the company.
 
Those charges are primarily due to a devaluation of certain properties Stratasys owns, including its subsidiary MakerBot. (Operating expense cuts have also hit Brooklyn, New York-based MakerBot, which earlier this year said it would outsource its production to China and slim its staff size.)
 
“We were pleased to achieve further improvements in our operational performance during the second quarter,” said Ilan Levin, who took over as Stratasys’ CEO in July. “Our margins benefitted from a sales mix that favored our higher-end systems, including the recently launched J750, the industry’s most advanced full-color, multi-material 3D printer, as well as our ongoing efforts to improve operations, and reduce operating expenses.”
 
Although Stratasys is one of the largest businesses in the 3D printing industry, it’s the future is an uphill battle. Major players like Hewlett-Packard and Canon are stepping into the market with entry-level printers, an area of the market that Stratasys has long struggled to gain a foothold in.