Christopher Mims writes his opinion of 3D printing futures on the MIT Technology Review blog, where he suggests that 3D printing will never become a “mature technology that can reproduce all the goods on which we rely”. He goes on to suggest that to believe so is a “complete denial of the complexities of modern manufacturing”. We think Mims is right and wrong. He’s right that today’s 3D printers and even those envisioned for the next few years are (and will be) limited in capability. They print in a limited selection of materials with constrained physical properties and indeed that is problematic if you intend on using printed objects for general use.
He’s wrong that 3D printing will “go the way of virtual reality”. To us, the signs are present: we have a technology gradually improving in capability, price and effectiveness with a great many people working on it. We have massive numbers of 3D capable people appearing, acquainted with 3D via design, gaming or entertainment.
And there’s something else.
Personalization. The 20th century was the period of mass production. Many identical cheap items were made for all purposes. Today people have become more demanding of objects that more precisely match their needs. And we call that personalization. 3D printing can achieve that, at least for an increasing subset of items.
As people grow more accustomed to personalization, the percentage of 3D printed items will rise. If the percentage of 3D printed items rises, then it becomes more important, and does not “go the way of virtual reality”.
What say you? Will we become less interested in personalized objects in the future, or more so? I think you know what we think.
As a Manufacturing industry veteran myself with over 16 years of industry experience with global companies including Applied Materials, Dell, Oceaneering and Balfour…I can say without a shadow of a doubt that The complexities of Manufacturing mean that current 3D printing sites including my own company http://www.Kraftwurx.com; as well as Shapeways, Sculpteo and Cubify are not ready for the realities of the complexity of REAL MANUFACTURING but all of us recognize this…
As a 16 year member of the Society of Manufacturing Engineers, I have a stack of scholarly written articles about topics as diverse as abrasive water jet cutting to Geometric Dimensioning and tolerances. I have spoken as events including plastics conventions and even designed and built a Solar Race car at Northrop Grumman and Lockheed Martin. 3D printing. is not traditional manufacturing, especially high precision, repeatable, mass manufacturing.
For example: ASTM standards, ASME standards, ISO standards, FDA standards and other standards the world over are established to safeguard both industry and consumers by using established procedures, materials and processes to ensure repeatable results.
Having built things as complex as Slit valves and gas panels for Intel wafer fabrication or 36" diameter metal-seated ball valves designed for harsh or abrasive materials, I can say that many product industries are well beyond the reality of 3D printing…today…
Now that I have said what I believe to be current state-of-the-industry, let me say what I do believe true about 3D printings potential…
1.) It has a place now and its use will grow creatively and very quickly.
2.) It has a future that will be significant as materials and technology advance.
3.) Someday it may be capable of completely replacing traditional manufacturing, it is simply up to creative engineers and scientists to advance this technology.
4.) Do NOT discount what it can actually do today…as the right people get a hold of it, they will show creative uses that push the boundaries of the tech today.
5.) Don't be surprised if the advancements are faster than at any time before. It may be possible that 3D printing begins to accelerate development at a rate similar to Moore's Law.
As a Manufacturing industry veteran myself with over 16 years of industry experience with global companies including Applied Materials, Dell, Oceaneering and Balfour…I can say without a shadow of a doubt that The complexities of Manufacturing mean that current 3D printing sites including my own company http://www.Kraftwurx.com; as well as Shapeways, Sculpteo and Cubify are not ready for the realities of the complexity of REAL MANUFACTURING but all of us recognize this…
As a 16 year member of the Society of Manufacturing Engineers, I have a stack of scholarly written articles about topics as diverse as abrasive water jet cutting to Geometric Dimensioning and tolerances. I have spoken as events including plastics conventions and even designed and built a Solar Race car at Northrop Grumman and Lockheed Martin. 3D printing. is not traditional manufacturing, especially high precision, repeatable, mass manufacturing.
For example: ASTM standards, ASME standards, ISO standards, FDA standards and other standards the world over are established to safeguard both industry and consumers by using established procedures, materials and processes to ensure repeatable results.
Having built things as complex as Slit valves and gas panels for Intel wafer fabrication or 36" diameter metal-seated ball valves designed for harsh or abrasive materials, I can say that many product industries are well beyond the reality of 3D printing…today…
Now that I have said what I believe to be current state-of-the-industry, let me say what I do believe true about 3D printings potential…
1.) It has a place now and its use will grow creatively and very quickly.
2.) It has a future that will be significant as materials and technology advance.
3.) Someday it may be capable of completely replacing traditional manufacturing, it is simply up to creative engineers and scientists to advance this technology.
4.) Do NOT discount what it can actually do today…as the right people get a hold of it, they will show creative uses that push the boundaries of the tech today.
5.) Don't be surprised if the advancements are faster than at any time before. It may be possible that 3D printing begins to accelerate development at a rate similar to Moore's Law.
I'm guessing this gentleman is simply taking a contrarian view to get some publicity or he hasn't looked into sales numbers at Makerbot or the Printrbot success on Kickstarter, not to mention the growth of Shapeways.
I'm guessing this gentleman is simply taking a contrarian view to get some publicity or he hasn't looked into sales numbers at Makerbot or the Printrbot success on Kickstarter, not to mention the growth of Shapeways.