3D Printing comes of age in US industrial manufacturing
Has 3D printing (3DP) finally come of age? It’s become clear that the technology, also known as additive manufacturing, is crossing from a period of hype and experimentation into one of rapid maturation. 3D-printed parts and products are quickly making their way into end products—from a printed car to athletic shoes to a printed NASA rocket engine. Manufacturers of all stripes are building 3DP programs and are likely to continue to expand those programs as advancements in 3D printers, software and printing materials (or “inks”) make adoption easier and more cost-effective.
According to our survey, we find some interesting shifts in how 3D printing is being applied by manufacturing.
7 ways 3D printing is disrupting US manufacturing
- 1. More making, less tinkering
- 2. Expectations rise for 3D printing of high-volume and low-volume production
- 3. After-market parts vs newly developed products
- 4. 3D printing seen useful to produce obsolete parts
- 5. Majority of all manufacturers in the US adopting 3D printing technology
- 6. Cost and quality lead adoption barriers
- 7. 3D printing seen to disrupt supply chain, threaten intellectual property
1. More making, less tinkering
While roughly the same percentage of US manufacturers are currently adopting 3DP in some way (roughly two-thirds) a higher percentage (51%) are using it for prototyping and final-products compared to two years ago (35%); meanwhile, fewer are simply “experimenting” to determine how they may use the technology (17% vs 29% two years previously).
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