3D printing, printing in the future

A 3D printer creates a physical object from a three-dimensional digital model. This object is created through additive processes, which means by laying down many successive thin layers of a material until the object is created. With the ubiquitous presence of 3D printers, manufacturing can take place virtually everywhere by anyone.

Organovo

3D bio-printing opens new ways for the medical world where prosthesis, dental crowns, implants and even organs can be printed. Organovo is a company that is printing these parts with help of three-dimensional bioprinting technologies.

Facts, Figures & Implications

  • Organisations like NASA are currently experimenting with combining different cartridges with each other when printing an item, printing both liquid and solid materials simultaneously and with printing of organic materials like wood and ceramic.
  • 3D printing will have an democratisation effect on manufacturing and supply chain as consumers and entrepreneurs will print their own products.
  • Price Waterhouse Cooper recently reported that roughly 40% of air/shipping cargo is under threat due to 3D printing
  • Mckinsey reports that of the 12 trillion manufacturing industry in 2025, approximately 400 billion will be 3D printed.
  • Gartner expects manufacturing 3D printing as well as bio-printing systems for organ transplants to hit the plateau of productivity in 5-10 years.

Feetz

3D-printing will enable us all to become designers and manufacturers at the same time. Feetz is a company that is using a photo of your foot to 3D print your own perfectly fitting customized shoe.

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3D printing

The future of 3D printing is bright but will also disrupt the supply chain as we know it. A lot of manufacturing processes could be simplified when cartridges can be combined. Every material that you can imagine can be printed when printers are available in every possible size. In the future we will be able to print a wide range of goods. From houses to clothes and from food till organs. Every domain will be disrupted by this trend if 3D printers become more common and affordable; for instance, manufacturing, healthcare and feed and care. Developments could even shorten the supply chain by cutting out the retailer and manufacturer.

3D printers can be implemented in all kinds of manufacturing processes to make them more precise, cost efficient and reduce development time. Customized parts could be created without extra machines or costs and huge stocks will be reduced by on demand manufacturing of products. When a consumers can print a personalised good from home or a 3D printing hub nearby the demand will change. Customers demand customized goods provided with the flexible and accessible service that a 3D printing hub has to offer. Traditional retailers and manufacturers should reform their business models to still be of added value to the customer. Providing the customer with blueprints, materials, and extra services regarding design and construction will become interesting.

3D printers have the potential to solve a lot of issues that our society is currently struggling with. 3D printers could be used to print organs to solve the shortage. Moreover they could save trees by printing organic materials like wood. Another societal issue is attached when 3D printers are able to print food, in that way they could contribute to the rising demand of food and water. If the developments continue, and if used in the right way 3D printers will play a dominant role in the coming 15 years.

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The automotive industry was one of the early adaptors of 3D printing. In the beginning to print prototypes but in the near future parts of the manufacturing process will be replaced with 3D printed alternatives. Those alternatives make manufacturing processes a lot cheaper and more effective. Using 3D printing techniques will create lighter, stronger and more durable cars. With the replacement of different parts of the car by 3D printed parts the car manufacturing process becomes cheaper and more effective.

We believe that if this trend will continue a significant share of the current manufacturers and retailers could even become redundant if they refuse to adapt. 3D printers at home or 3D hubs at the corner of the street will make consumers manufacturers of their own parts. The added value of the car retailer is his current form will disappear if consumers can create what they want whenever they want it. New markets of making blueprints, providing materials, and extra services regarding design and construction of a car will become interesting.

Implementing 3D printers in the manufacturing process will have a positive impact on price, features and sustainability and will make a car more accessible. 3D printers will enable consumers to execute small maintenance using their own printed parts and eventually the car would become a do-it-yourself item where consumers print all the parts they need and fully customize their own car.

Blade

Blade is the first 3D printed supercar that actually works. It has the lightest chassis on the market, from cut carbon-fibre tubes combined with 3d printed joints. If it survives all the tests it could be a more durable, lighter and stronger and cheaper way to produce cars.

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The future of 3D printing in the field of housing is an interesting case. The potential of 3D printing offers affordable on-demand manufacturing of buildings as seen in China. 3D printed houses could save labour cost, construction waste and makes the process more efficient. 3D printing will also effect the life inside the house or office and make it way more convenient with 3D printed interior. A 3D printer becomes a requisite in every building by 2030.

Improvement of 3D printers will make it affordable to have an in-house printer which can print anything a customer likes in a reasonable amount of time. The cheap costs of materials will make it able to possess, for instance, more exclusive furniture. The possibility to print customized items on a low scale will enable the consumer to print the interior they always wanted. The less-creative people have to rely on others when it comes to design, which is an interesting business opportunity for furniture retailers.

Developments will make it possible to print affordable houses. With a special 3D printer consumers will also be able to print an extension on their existing house when someone is moving in or when they get kids. Developments will also lead to every piece of furniture that could be printed with the right materials, so a quick change of interior is no longer unthinkable. The 3D printer can also be used to print toys, tools and can be used for quick replacement of broken items. These developments change the role of jobs. Common jobs like a contractor, plasterer and carpenter could become redundant if they don’t adapt to this trend. The developments in the field of 3D printing raise a lot of questions. Would people even print their own private gardens if it would be possible to print organic materials?

Winsun

In China, a company called Winsun printed a five storey apartment with a 3D-printer. The apartment has a perimeter of 1100 square metres and is liveable. Using a 3D printer for the manufacturing has reduced construction waste, labour cost and production time.

3D printing at Voodoo

Voodoo 3D printing is currently testing with a prototype of a programmed robot arm to control a cluster of 3D printers. In this way they are able to manufacture customised products at a larger scale without the need of a human.

The most important advantages of 3D printing are the affordability, flexibility and accessibility. If 3D printing becomes more accessible, the prices will drop and the price of manufacturing products that can be printed will decrease as well. The 3D printer is able to customise every product if the right design is implemented. Voodoo 3D printing now differentiates from those advantages through offering mass production of 3D printed goods.

The possibility to manufacture customised products with your 3D printer is known. But think about the possibilities that arise if 3D printers could be linked together to print customised products on a large scale. This is the idea that Voodoo 3D printing is currently testing with. Project Skywalker is 3D printing factory with a robotic arm connected to a cluster of nine 3D printers and an assembly line. The little printing factory is currently printing on a 24/7 continuous basis. As a result, employees become redundant in the manufacturing process and the production rates are expected to increase with 400% in the coming 3-5 years.

With the 3D printing factory the whole manufacturing part switches to the software side. Design of the products becomes an important part in the manufacturing process. Understanding what the customer want before he does and providing that customer with the right supplies becomes a key. Give customers the feeling that they created their own product and that you only helped them out. Every customer can soon own unique products for an affordable price.

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Printing in Ghana

In the past years, the developments in 3D printing found their way to Africa. Whereas the the market for 3D printing in Ghana is still in the start-up phase, the potential is huge. At the moment, there are only a few companies in Ghana that use that potential. 3D printing techniques can make products more affordable and accessible. When added in the right way to the current economy 3D printing could be of great added value for Ghana.

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Facts, Figures & Implications

  • The African 3D printing market is predicted to grow from $0.47 billion to $1.3 billion (2015-2019)
  • The demand for 3D printing products in Africa is planned to rise with 23% in 2017

E-Nable

e-NABLE Ghana is an initiative that flew over from Hungary that creates limbs with a 3D printer for people that are missing parts of their body. 3D printing is a cheap way to create replacements for these parts and help Ghanaians function normally in the society.

 

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3D printing and mobility in Ghana

In Ghana the GDP and middle class are rising. Combined with a cost efficient manufacturing process and selling price of cars due to 3D printing more and more Ghanaians will be able to afford a car. With this growing target group multinationals will see Ghana as a more interesting market to sell their cars. At first, 3D printing technologies will shape the infrastructure and car manufacturing process. Later on, the impact of the trend on consumers in Ghana will grow when the country gets more 3D hubs.

Case in point: 3D printing using e-waste

University students in Ghana build their own 3D-printer using e-waste to cut costs. They used screws, wires and other materials from old devices to create the 3D printer. They shared the design of the printer to create 3D printer building projects around Ghana.

3D printing and Mobility

The changing needs that are accompanying these developments and the demand that will change in the field of mobility will lead to all kinds of new business models and innovative ideas. This example is showing that university students in Ghana are able to build their own 3D printers using e-waste. Following the example of students in three other African countries KLAKS 3D has already built over 10 of these machines in less than a year. If this technique is optimized and reused, this invention could lead to a very cheap production of 3D printers and products.

There is a lot of e-waste in Ghana at the moment, coming from western countries, but a lot of it is not functional. That non-functional e-waste could be used to build 3D printers that contribute to a cheaper and more effective manufacturing process. Combined with an increase in competition this will mean that the prices of vehicles drop and that more Ghanaians will be able to afford a car. The e-waste printers could stimulate the upswing of 3D hubs or printers at home and that will enable the Ghanaian population to print their own car parts. In this way more Ghanaians are able to drive cars and execute their own maintenance.

3D printing techniques will not only improve mobility in Ghana when integrated in the car manufacturing process but will also have an effect on the infrastructure of Ghana. 3D Printed concrete will support the construction of solid roads on rough terrain. The manufacturing of 3D printed traffic lights, traffic sings and street lights on roads which are not illuminated yet will reduce the amount of unsafe roads and traffic accidents. This trend will create an improved infrastructure with cheaper cars and combined with the growing middle class it could give a boost to mobility in Ghana. On the other hand more people in possession of a car and an improved infrastructure will lead to more bustle, traffic jams and more crowded rush hours. This trend has all the potential to have a huge impact on daily life in Ghana.

 

3D printing and housing in Ghana

The growing population and continuing urbanisation in Ghana, especially in big cities like Accra and Kumasi, will lead to an increase in the demand for housing. 3D printing could offer a solution for this problem by printing small houses or extensions to existing houses. This more affordable and convenient way of construction supplies the rising demand of the Ghanaian population. 3D printed houses are also of a decent quality and can protect against criminality or heavy weather.

 

Case in point: Affordable 3D printers at home

AB3D, hosted in Nairobi, that stands for African Born 3D printing is an organisation that is planning to introduce the 3D printer in entire Africa. Their mission is to bring the technology of 3D printing to local communities. They offer cheap 3D printers, parts as well as customised designs.

3D printing and Housing

The future of 3D printing in the field of housing is an interesting case. The potential of 3D printing offers affordable on-demand manufacturing of buildings as seen in China. 3D printed houses could save labour cost, construction waste and makes the process more efficient. 3D printing will also effect the life inside the house or office and make it way more convenient with 3D printed interior. A 3D printer becomes a requisite in every building by 2030.

As one of the first companies that brought 3D printing to Africa, AB3D is a company with a clear mission that introduces the 3D printer to the African society. Bringing 3D printers to the public sector would boost the local economies. Local 3D hubs will also create employment. The printers can help to print furniture, sanitarian devices or simple things as plates an cutlery. Everything to make life near and inside a house more convenient. The printers also stimulate creativity by providing consumers an opportunity to design and print their own products with an AB3D printer.

3D printing is going to integrate into the Ghanaian society by means of in-house 3D printers or 3D hubs that provide a neighborhood with assets. This could have a huge impact on the housing domain in Ghana. The influence could be seen in 3D printed interior for houses, apartments, offices, public buildings etc. Because the trend is cost-attractive, more Ghanaians with a lower income would be able to create a proper living place. The growing middle class could be able to upgrade their furniture and living space with customised furniture or a bigger house. The developments will cut the costs and improves the quality of the products so this trend has a huge potential.