When you think of printing, you will probably think of printing on a piece of paper using ink. With the advancement of science and technology, Charles W. Hull, in 1980’s, came up with the idea of creating physical objects from digital models. Building on this idea has led to the emergence of 3D printing under the name “rapid prototyping” which is to prototype faster and cheaper. Since then, 3D printing technology has shown amazing results and is proved to be a magic tool. It has made a huge impact in manufacturing industry and will gradually spread its magic in every industry worldwide.
“Innovation is the combination of different ideas and contribution of the different minds.”
– Mahendra Machi
About 3D printing
3D printing is a process of forming physical three dimensional objects using a digital image. A digital form of 3D model can be created using different animation modeling softwares (CAD or CAM softwares). Once the digital model is ready, the image can be connected with the printer which can then analyze the digital image and print it out in three dimensional object layer-by-layers. In traditional printing, the syringes will be filled with different coloured liquid ink, whereas, in 3D printing the syringes will be filled with different types of liquid consistencies such as plastic, rubber, metal, and so on.
“The worldwide 3D printing industry is expected to grow $12.8 billion by the end of 2018, and exceed $21 billion by 2020 in revenue.”
The innovation and adoption of this technology is rapidly moving in various directions. And this will continue to expand in many areas in the future. Some of the most promising areas include aerospace, architecture, art, automotive, engineering, fashion, jewellery, manufacturing, medicine, education, and the list goes on. It has started to change, empower, and enrich people’s lives.
Prominent advantages of 3D printing
There are endless advantages of 3D printing. Fields such as engineering, product design, manufacturing, and architecture are investing heavily in this technology. Some evident advantages are:
- Saves cost and time:
This technology quickly creates multiple prototypes using only the materials needed which indeed saves time and cost. This reduces wastage of materials and helps engineers, designers, and other stakeholder to provide feedback in a short time.
- Customize complex products
With the help of 3D printing, complex models that are difficult to even imagine, can be customized using 3D printer with ease. These can be tailored according to the needs of the customers. Companies can leverage this to the best of their advantage to create innovative prototypes of products which is not possible with any other technology.
Just Imagine!
We are living in the times when both machines and human beings are in a state of learning and teaching one another. What we can anticipate in the future is a confluence of man and machine working their way to transform each industry and every sector. With popular emerging technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, Cloud Computing, Robotics, Machine Learning, and Deep Learning, 3D printing technology is expected to rise with sky as the limit.
Given the huge bank of opportunities and the rapid technology development, it is evident that 3D printing will soon take over the world in the near future. Considering the prediction, startups, and entrepreneurs in the world are seeing immense potential in 3D printing technologies. Once you are thorough with ins and outs of these emerging technologies, success will be on the horizon to embrace you!
