The Impact of 3D Printers on the Field of Industrial Design

3D printing or additive manufacturing is a process of making three-dimensional solid objects from a digital design. The creation of a 3D printed object is achieved using additive processes. In an additive process the desired object is created by laying down successive layers of material (usually molten alloy or plastics) until the entire object is formed. Each of these layers can be seen as a thinly sliced horizontal cross-section of the eventual object.

The company Apis Cor has figured out how to construct houses using a 3D printer and thus have the potential to change the housing industry forever. Many companies have tried to use 3D printing in order to print houses however none have been successful until now. Apis Cor took a different approach to the issue, instead of making a printer that was larger than the housing unit it was attempting to print, it made a 3D printer that was able to be transported easily on a transport truck. This specialized printer has a 360 degree printing radius and has a maximum operating zone of 433 square feet (Apis Cor). These 3D printed houses could help to solve the issue of overpopulation around the world.

With such high demands, the 3D printer market is expected still to grow "as high as 17.2 billion dollars by 2020". Though costs have dropped and are expected to keep decreasing. The first

3D printing uses a process known as "additive" manufacturing. That means that the solid, three-dimensional object constructed will be made by adding the desired material in layers. The first successful outcomes of additive printing occurred back in the 1970’s. One of the advantages of using additive printing is that it takes less time than having to get a big enough piece of material and then making a mold before starting the process.(Additive) Those both also add to cost which is saved using this process. Also, there is a

Also known as additive manufacturing because 3D printing is the process of making an object by depositing material by layers at a time. This is useful and was created because many businesses use subtractive manufacturing, where they tend to have material and carve into it and make something out of it, thereby wasting a lot of material. While using the additive manufacturing they are able to use the material with 98% efficiency to create something, which is why 3D printing is burgeoning and more research is being conducted to increase the 3D printers

Using a 3D printer as a motivator for students to be creative can be a benefit to any currirulum. As Van Epps, Huston, Sherrill, Alvar, and Bowen (2015) state “3D printing not only promotes learning but inspires creativity and fun”. One of the major goals

“Although 3-D printers are not yet a standard part of home-computing equipment, the latest generation of devices, such as Cube® by 3D Systems, the Cubex™ or Makerbot’s Replicator™2X - which retail for between one and three thousand US dollars - are bringing the possibility of home manufacturing one step closer to reality” (Jewell). Now the biggest difference between traditional manufacturing and 3D printing will be the emergence of mass customization. Goods will be, “infinitely more customized, because altering them won’t require retooling, only tweaking the instructions in the software. Creativity in meeting individuals’ needs will come to the fore, just as quality control did in the age of rolling out sameness” (D'Aveni). When you have a product that is printed out individually from software with your own customization, then there would be no reason in buying a product that will look like something another person can own because of its ordinary accessibility. Creating physical 3D models in a fast, easy and affordable way has great potential, especially when you can do it in the comfort of your home.

One Emerging Technology field that is soon to change the game is 3D Printing. Though 3D Printers have been around since the 1980’s, it hasn’t been widely accessible or used until now. This is due to the advances in technology, which allow 3D Printers to be created in a smaller form factor and used at a much cheaper price. Throughout this paper, I will further go through more reason why I believe 3D printing has a huge future. This paper’s topics are broken up into various paragraphs, which will discuss technology specifications, business value, examples of usage, competitive value, and my analysis and perspective of 3D Printing technology.

3D printing is a process where a digital design is turned into a physical object using additive manufacturing. In contrast to subtractive manufacturing, where an object is carved out of a larger solid piece of material, additive manufacturing involves

3D printing is changing the world we live in today. Business Insider calls 3D printing “The Next Industrial Revolution” (Rega). Imagine having the capability of producing any product you want at your fingertips within minutes; it is now possible because of 3D printing. Simply put, 3D printing is the process of creating real objects by “printing” chosen substances layer by layer until the desired product is made, therefore 3D printing is sometimes referred to as additive manufacturing. There are endless possibilities with 3D printing from the medical field, to manufacturing, automobiles, to airplanes, and also personal use. 3D printed objects are going to be an integrated part of everyday life.

Hod Lipson, a well-known robotics engineer at Cornell University, once said, “The next episode of 3D printing will involve printing entirely new kinds of materials. Eventually we will print complete products - circuits, motors, and batteries already included. At that point, all bets are off” (Lipson). This dated quote has now become a reality. The new expansion in technology has led to 3D printing becoming a new revolutionary process that is going to further industry. 3D printing is being used in multiple fields such as medical, food, automotive and even education. The use of this new technology has opened doors for new learning and new horizons for future inventions.

This essay will convey in depth the definition of 3D printing and how it operates. It will also show some examples of different types of 3D printing as well as show us how it can be useful in the industry of business, professional, education and home time. 3D printing can bring some advantages as well as disadvantages not only to business but also to its employees. Printing this way will become more common as time goes by and can help the industry limit on human error.

As well as technology, there are multiple processes for 3D printing. The very first being Stereolithography (SL). SL is a very accurate laser-based process that works with photopolymer resins (see picture one). Next is Digital Light Processing (DLP), which is similar to SL in the aspect of photopolymers. The only major difference/advantage between the two is that DLP only

As times change and new technologies emerge that create a paradigm shift, companies have to adapt to prevent becoming obsolete. According to Forrest and Cao (2013), “Periodically, a new technology comes along wherein its dissemination completely redefines the fundamental operating principles of entire economies and civilizations”. Forrest and Cao (2013) continue to say that there have been many paradigm shifts throughout history. The most recent of which is three-dimensional (3D) printing. Campbell, Williams, Ivanova, and Garrett (2011) predict that 3D printing “could up-end the last two centuries of approaches to design and manufacturing”. It is essential for companies to stay ahead competition during this technology shift, in order to stay successful in the changing manufacturing paradigm, however other aspects of the life course, such as medical fields, homemaking and consumerists will also be affected.

3D printing, also referred as additive manufacturing assembling, is essentially a technique for making a three-dimensional object from a bundle model. The object may be of pretty much any structure. In additive manufacturing technique, an item to be composed is assembled from the base-up by adding it to layers of the improvement material. The additive manufacturing procedure is distinctive from the subtractive procedure, where material is evacuated from a square by strategies such as chiseling or penetrating. The primary material used in the improvement of 3D items is plastic, however as of late, there has also been a huge number of development toward utilizing optional materials like metals of different sorts and also natural matter like carbon and its changed subordinates (Bhandari, 2014).