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Manufacturing Technology Insights | Friday, November 30, 2018
3D printing has come a long way since the days when even the idea of printing objects seemed extraordinary. With recent advances in technology, 3D printing is gradually becoming a significant competitor to traditional mass production.
Adidas, for instance, plans to resort to 3D-printed soles to make shoes at two new and highly automated factories in Germany and the U.S. instead of outsourcing their manufacturing to Asian countries. The entire process that usually takes a couple of months is predicted to be reduced to a week or less with the help of 3D printing. With an aim to introduce shoes in the market faster and keep up with the latest fashion trends, these new factories are expected to produce up to 500,000 pairs of shoes a year.
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Furthermore, 3D printing is speeding up the process of prototyping along with being relied on to produce customized and complex items including false teeth, jewelry, and even parts of aircraft and automobiles. However, 3D printing is yet to become a predominant force for it is still too expensive for certain application and the results have not been satisfactory for the production of certain items. In spite of these limitations, 3D printing—strengthened by Adidas’s project—is estimated to soon become ubiquitous in factories of all kinds. In addition, 3D printing will not remain limited to plastic or metal and will also expand to accommodate biological requirements in the future.
In fact, the medical industry was one of the earliest adopters of 3D printing. With varying requirements of the human body, a large number of prosthetics including dental implants, hearing-aid shells, and orthopedic devices are now manufactured using 3D printing technology. While printing polymers—given their low melting points—is relatively easy, metal printers have to use lasers and electron beams to overcome the high melting points. Although these printers are capable of producing extremely intricate shapes, they take multiple days to manufacture a single item.
3D printing is set to refurbish how a manufacturing plant looks on the inside, with most of the employees comprising software and hardware engineers. Also, the grubby overalls worn by typical factory workers may soon be replaced by white laboratory coats.
See Also: The Manufacturing Outlook
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