Believe it or not, 3D printing – or additive manufacturing, if you prefer – is in its third decade. What was initially a rather specialist and costly prototyping technique has since flourished and is now very widely used by industries spanning anything from aircraft manufacture to the creation of personalised consumer products. And 3D printed items range from those that simply validate form and function to production models that can be put to immediate use.
Today, 3D printing is a much less expensive process, and the capabilities of machine have evolved. Machines that can print titanium, aluminium, silver and now carbon fibre, are revolutionising many businesses; a good example is jewellery making, where modern 3D printing machines are capable of producing shapes and designs that are difficult, if not impossible, to achieve using conventional techniques.
3D printing technology is also exercising the minds of entrepreneurs in the life sciences industry. Dentists will soon be able to produce perfect crowns on demand using in-house machines, while other types of medical implant will, quite literally, be made to measure.
The technology has spawned opportunities for other entrepreneurs to offer new types of services that will help their clients make the most of 3D printing and the vast array of materials at its disposal. Manufacturing is entering a period of renaissance where start-ups can produce brilliantly designed, high quality products without the need for a factory.
In the past, to have an idea for a product was one thing, but to have it made was quite another. 3D printers have changed all that; now a single product can be made, small batches are easy to produce and individual customisation is no longer the exclusive privilege of the wealthy! And should demand increase, you simply add more machines in order to meet it.
Additional materials are coming onto the market all the time, and now the ability to mix these during the printing process has opened up even more opportunities for those willing the grasp them. Some of the manufacturers with whom my company works stock standard products and only finish them to individual customer specifications at the last minute. This facilitates stock holding reductions with massively increased product range flexibility. When the technology is used in this way it leads directly to higher margins through more efficient use of resources.
Existing manufacturing can easily adapt to accommodate 3D printing and many otherwise traditional manufacturing concerns have deployed it successfully throughout their operations. Indeed, a new breed of company is emerging that exploits the reduced cost base of 3D printing to offer innovation through flexibility that is hard to match in a more traditional manufacturing environment.
There are opportunities too for the spare parts manufacturing industry. Companies that are obliged to provide spare parts for many years, such as in the automotive or aerospace industry, face storage and logistics costs with 'dead' stock. With 3D printing it is simple to maintain 'digital spares' that are printed to order. In this way, any quantity of digital spare parts can be held in stock indefinitely, effectively extending a product’s life with all the reputational and environmental benefits that this can bring to an organisation.
Operators in the aerospace, F1, satellite, consumer product and life science sectors are increasing their 3D printer deployment to help them innovate faster. And in areas of economic under-development where industry may not have taken a foothold, 3D design and printing is also offering great business innovation potential.
Creating products locally means that new agile businesses can start with low investment, minimal infrastructure and potentially high returns. The ability to manufacture to demand is very appealing to manufacturers in poorer parts of the world who view 3D printing as a way to leapfrog the industrial developed world's historic production and development cycles. Likewise, manufacturers from the developed world are reaping the benefits of locating machines in those parts of the world where they can take advantage of operating conditions and energy costs.
The march of the robot builders
Many people belief that mankind’s future will see the colonisation of other planets. Development of technologies for mining asteroids is already underway and in as little as 20 years, mining in space may become a reality. Robotised 3D printing and other manufacturing in space could be an alternative to sending product supplies from Earth.
It is predicted that the first permanent dwellings beyond our own planet will be built by robots using 3D printing techniques developed to work with the local materials and prevailing conditions. Albeit a long-term business opportunity, this has already spawned several development companies, with Sir Richard Branson and Google's Larry page numbering among their investors.
3D design and printing technologies are currently used to create the systems and vehicles that get people into space. All the subsequent systems for exploring, mining, refining and the manufacturing of goods for use either in space or for return to Earth could be developed using those same technologies.
Meanwhile, back on Earth, 3D printing is also providing new insight for the education market. Recent studies at Queens University, Belfast have demonstrated the effectiveness of digital 3D animated models as teaching and training tools compared with more traditional written or verbal instruction. And when this is coupled with the opportunity to present students' work as 3D physical models, learning is further accelerated.
The imagination is also fired when students use additive manufacturing techniques to make 'impossible' shapes and effectively produce 'something from nothing'. Adding social networking and communication to the mix enables student collaboration, ideas exchange and further innovation from young minds. This can spawn low cost start-up manufacturing businesses that students can begin to build upon graduation. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the United States.
Begun as an outreach project from MIT's Center for Bits and Atoms (CBA), Fab Labs develops programmable molecular assemblers that can be used to make almost anything. Fab Labs projects include solar and wind-powered turbines, computers and equipment for agriculture and healthcare, housing, and the printing of complete working machines - including 3D printers! Not surprisingly there are many business opportunities and new enterprise scenarios based on the Fab Labs model and its intensive use of 3D design technology.
There is also another trend whereby people are able to use designers' basic forms to customise their own products. Essentially, people without design skills can partner with designers to create new products. As 3D printing prices fall, this market driven by 'collective intelligence' will inevitably grow.
Scanning an item with your phone and making a part is also not too far into the future. This would allow people to scan, make, repair and replace parts rather than discard a product because one of its component is faulty. The financial argument is strong because there is immediate return through money saved. Roadside breakdown repairers could even manufacture parts on the way to a vehicle that has communicated directly with a 3D printer onboard the recovery vehicle.
In the coming years 3D printing is set to grow exponentially and, as it does so, new business opportunities will abound. Correctly positioning a business to capitalise on that prospect presents many exciting ways for enterprises to flourish in this new era of technology.
Frédéric Vacher is a director at Dassault Systèmes
With its 3D Experience platform used by more than 170,000 companies to develop 3D digital models and product simulations, Dassault Systèmes is at the heart of additive manufacturing. Working with many 3D printer-using innovators, the company is helping them to achieve maximum business advantage from the technology as it evolves. Visit www.3ds.com for more information.