Acerca da impressão 3D na produção

Daqui "Stratasys Primes Market for 3-D Revolution":

"WSJ: The prototype stage is such a big part of manufacturing. Is there any idea that [3-D printing] would move into the actual manufacturing stage itself?.
Mr. Jaglom: Well, we're already there, roughly 10% of all our applications are in the manufacturing sector.
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There's actually a department at Stratasys that wakes up, goes to work every day and comes home at night thinking only of manufacturing and are measured on that."

Daqui "Adding and taking away":

"machine-tool makers are beginning to recognise 3D printing is going to be important in the factory of the future, not just for making models and prototypes (as is already happening) but also finished goods. The second is that additive manufacturing can complement subtractive manufacturing, as well as compete with it. If it work—and sells—the Lasertec could be the first of many such hybrids.
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Subtractive manufacturing, in which a milling machine cuts shapes from metal blocks, may waste as much as 95% of the original material. By building something additively, even to only approximately the right shape, and then milling it, such wastage, the company reckons, can be reduced to around 5%.
Moreover, the object can be milled every time a new layer is added. This means smooth internal surfaces can be created inside what eventually becomes a solid object—something previously possible only if an item was made by joining together components that had been milled separately. With its ability to add and remove materials that include aluminium, brass, copper, stainless steel and numerous alloys, the hybrid Lasertec can also be used to repair items that are worn, or even broken. A case, perhaps, of old and new technologies coming together to produce more than the sum of their parts."

 Do "Morgan Stanley Blue Paper: Capital Goods: 3D Printing"

"we think the 3D printing market can grow from $2bn today to $9bn in 2020, a 20% CAGR, to become a sizeable market in capital goods and appliances. Our bull case sees a 34% CAGR to $21bn in 2020 – bigger than the injection moulding market today and about 25% of the size of the CNC machine industry.
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3D printing – or additive manufacturing (AM)
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3D printing – AM systems manufacturers believe it is no longer just a design tool …Perhaps the most controversial question on the industry today is the perceived crossover from prototyping into mainstream manufacturing. In a recent survey, leading independent consultants Wohlers Associates asked 31 manufacturers of professional-grade AM systems and 74 service providers what their parts were being used for. The perhaps surprising result is that the largest category (28%) is for functional parts, whereas prototypes for fit and assembly was 18% and for prototype tooling 11%. The implication here is that 3D printing is no longer just a ‘design tool’ and has already found its niche in mainstream manufacturing."

Vai ser interessante quando os consumidores perceberem o que pode ser feito por eles ou sob as suas indicações:

Acho sempre interessante, nestas análises, nunca colocarem a questão de as próprias indústrias serem afectadas por uma verticalização feita na óptica do consumidor ou de "novos artesãos".