3D printing isn't just a technology that's gotten a lot of buzz, it's the forefront of a new approach that will change manufacturing for the better. Cheaper and more efficient production means more affordable prices and wider options for consumers. As industries reap the rewards, and demand (and business) grows, it will also mean more jobs.
Past manufacturing has been subtractive - meaning parts are built by extracting and shaping them from a larger section of material. 3D printers represent additive manufacturing (AM) - the process of building up a piece by layers. A designer creates the part on computer, and it is sent to a 3D printer, which sprays layer by layer of a composite material which is fused to create the desired object. At the present time, this is mostly plastics, ceramics, and powdered metals, but other materials are being developed for use.
This process represents a new way of looking at things for engineers. The limits of design in machining or molding a part collapse as complex 3D objects forming a single unit become possibilities. Engineers can design better components without being limited by manufacturing techniques.
Although these printers are becoming more affordable, many businesses have been unwilling to embrace the technology. This is often due to a lack of faith in the finished product. Some may regard the process as too slow, or materials and equipment too expensive or difficult to acquire. Others may cite a lack of understanding or skills in the workplace. All that is changing.
AM has made great contributions to medicine. Large companies like Invisalign have used it to produce thousands of dental devices. Dentists can use 3d printers to make ceramic crowns. The application of plastic polymers to build parts has resulted in cheaper custom prosthetics.
AM can also be used to create arterial implants with an accuracy of almost a 2,000th of an inch. Medical researchers envision a day when this process creates body parts and even organs. And not necessarily artificial ones. 3D printers could use biological materials customized to the recipient via their own stem cells. AM technology might even create new bones, or teeth.
The automotive and aerospace industries also stand to make great strides. GE Aircraft announced that it has begun production of fuel nozzles made by 3d printers as a single unit 25% lighter than those from the old process which required the manufacture and assembly of 18 different parts.
Aurora Flight Sciences demonstrated an aerial vehicle constructed with parts from 3D printers. It had a nine-foot wingspan and achieved speeds of 150 mph while weighing only 33 pounds.
The auto industry is keeping pace. Local Motors unveiled the Strati, a uni-body vehicle made with AM technology, and is planning to take orders for a model called the LM3D Swim in 2016. Vehicle production might take as little as 12 hours. Local Motors envisions a time when car buyers can design their own vehicles at a kiosk and send the file to a micro-factory to have it created.
These industries will have to rely on 3D printers that can produce metals. The ability to do so is a basic stepping stone of the AM industry. Traditionally, this is done with expensive metal powders. A company called Xjet announced that it will bring to market a printer that uses liquid metal, creating objects faster and cheaper.
Along with the growth of this technology will come the need for skilled workers. AM could cut manufacturing costs and the production cycle by 50% or more, meaning potentially big profits and fast turnaround for manufacturers. That means growth, and that means job growth. Demand for skilled workers could mean fewer jobs going overseas to exploit cheap labor.
When the day comes that AM is widely adopted by the auto and space industries, there will be a huge demand for metal, plastics, and artificial fabrics. Not to mention the whole concept of after-market replacement parts. Use in the medical field could also lower prices in a rapidly growing market. There will be growing demand not just for engineers, but technicians and sales people. Indeed, growth in all sectors of the job market.
This technical advancement will lead not to a loss of jobs, but to increase relative to booming business. As employers expand operations, it will be incumbent on personnel firms and educators to seek and train a suitable workforce.
