Additive technology is no more bound to just rapid tooling, toys, prototyping, and trinket; it is now one of the most sought-after technologies which offer industries with durable and safe products in moderate as well as large quantities. 3D printing is now extensively used in industries, namely aerospace, medical devices, jet engines, unmanned aerial vehicles, and others. 3D is not just a niche technology anymore; it is ready to enter the market and become the most viable alternative to conventional manufacturing processes and methods. More and more industries would be incorporating these technological advances.
You might think it would be a bit difficult to completely displace the traditional methods; however, when it comes to manufacturing in large quantities and reducing manufacturing and logistic cost, additive technology is the perfect solution for both big-scale and small-scale industries. Large scale 3D printing by Massivit 3D offers relief from heavy investment. Additive manufacturing helps in avoiding the downside of standard manufacturing, which would be a lack of flexibility. As each unit is manufactured separately, in case there is any need for any modification, it would be done without any hassle. Again, setting up the production system is also simpler with this as there are far fewer steps involved. This is why additive manufacturing has been gaining so much popularity because of how it can easily manufacture replacements and rare units.
Again, pieces which at the beginning during conventional manufacturing were attached one by one, with additive manufacturing, it could be done in a jiffy as it is produced in one piece in just one single run. One could even make customizations; even then, the manufacturer’s cost would be little as orders reach mass levels of production. Additive manufacturing could even use multiple printer jets and provide you with multiple products simultaneously. Additive manufacturing is ready to make its mark in industries like consumer products, automobiles, construction as well as aerospace. How 3D printing makes its mark in the industry would have a huge impact on how different industries run in the next 10 years.
3D printing has several benefits, including rapid response, rapid innovation, enabling new models, reduced lead time and storage space, mass customization, and a lot more. Here is a list of the industries that are benefitting from this technology in recent times.
Construction
No other industry is benefiting from 3D printing as much as the construction industry. Additive manufacturing has made it easy to create complex designs and easily manufacture them, changing the way we design and build architecture. You could soon witness complete buildings built using 3D printing. Dubai claims that it has built the first building in the world, built using 3D printing entirely, which measures 120 feet long, 20 feet high, and 40 feet wide. This design also featured an automatic robot arm that helped with the implementation of the entire printing process.
Use of 3D Printing in the Medical Field
When it comes to producing inorganic materials, 3D printing is easy to incorporate. Place desired materials like metal, concrete, or plastic, and you would get your design, but that is simply not the case in the medical field. Printing a live element poses a bigger challenge; however, if mastered, it offers tremendous potential in this field. Imagine what if you could bioprint blood vessels and get them placed in your patient’s body? That is what researchers are working on now, to create a custom 3D bioprinter that would use dissolved ink to create skin cells containing tissues that can later function as potential blood vessels.
However, 3D printing technology is already being used in hospitals to get a blueprint of the patient’s anatomy before surgery. 3D printers are of great assistance in printing bone-related replacements, including ankles, knees, spine parts, hips as well as the skull.
3D printers are also being used in the aerospace industry to explore space by creating parts and prototypes. When it comes to the future of additive manufacturing, the scope is endless as different industries are still exploring ways to incorporate this technology into their manufacturing and operational practices. Hopefully, one can now understand the potential and future of 3D printing and how bright it is, as it offers you everything that you simply desire or require.