3D Printing - Future - Manufacturing

The speed at which an idea becomes a reality in years gone by was around 5-10 years, now its happening in months.

The impact 3d printing it is having in the manufacturing sector is amazing, 3d printing or Additive manufacturing (AM) is defined as the process of joining materials to make objects from 3D models, adding layer upon layer, as opposed to subtractive manufacturing methodologies that takes it away by machining.

AM or 3d printing has evolved so much we are now printing fully functional parts in composite plastics to metal.

There is a project in the USA to 3d print a rocket, a 3d printer being used on the space station, there are a huge number of applications.

The technology is improving fast and is now going mainstream. We will see a huge amount of manufacturing return to Australia.

AM / 3d printing due to its fully automated system is making Australian industries competitive by minimising labour costs.

Changing how we design : AM allows the manufacture of parts in one piece that would have to be made from multiple parts, this can save huge amounts of resources time/materials/tracking.

Due to the control we now have in design software 3d printed parts can be made very light & strong one example is Markforged onyx composites when reinforced with carbon fibre it can be stronger than 6061 T6 aluminium.

CAC.WORKS 3d printed composite back plates for CSIRO in1 piece to replace the old back plates that were made from 21 seperate parts! the cost to track those components is huge.

There is also a huge amount of use in the medical field where its use at the moment is only scraping the surface.

AM or 3D Printing has a huge future, its use case is only limited by your imagination.

what do you want to make?