The Importance of 3D Printers and Their Impact on the World

Ever since its beginning, 3D printing has been revolutionising every aspect of our lives. It started slowly, but in recent years people are seeing how much of a positive impact 3D technology can have in our everyday lives. The sophisticated process of 3D printing changes the way we build houses, work, eat, and have fun print by print.

What are 3D Printers?

In short, 3D printing is a manufacturing technique with specialised printers that involves slowly depositing a material. The process is laborious and it’s done layer by layer to produce a three-dimensional piece. This whole process is referred to as an additive process because of the layering, and because everything is built from scratch. Other building methods are subtractive because the materials are cut, drilled, milled or shaped.

The 3D printers use materials such as metal and plastic to build the objects. The building techniques can be different but one common thing is that they can turn 3D data into a visible, physical object. This data can be brought by a 3D scanner and can be made of CAD (computer-aided design) or CAM (computer-designed manufacturing).

Nowadays these printers are widely accessible. You can find and buy high-quality 3D printers online and try them on your own. The most common technique these printers use is FDM or fused filament fabrication. The filament inside is heated up, melted, and then deposited to create the object. Multi-jet modelling is another technique where the printer’s system sprays a binder to keep everything together.

There’s also sensitive laser sintering or SLS. In this case, a high-powered laser fuses the building material together. All printers use one of the three main software packages:

• Ultimaker Cure – suitable for FDM;
• PreForm – good for SLA parts;
• 3S Sprint – good for FDM, SLS, and SLA machines.

How is 3D Printing Changing the World?

The production industry is evolving greatly thanks to 3D printing technology and advancements. However, this technology has the power to bring about far more significant changes in society through modifying business models, revamping workplaces, and providing sustainability and extra value.

Possibilities for Local Production

Corporate outsourcing has been a major factor in the manufacturing industry’s transformation since the 1980s. Big businesses occasionally save costs by establishing factories in several different locations. All of these locations make one component that makes up the businesses’ final product.

With the emergence of 3D printing, one company can make the entire car in one location. This is a task that needs just a few people to work on. This means that labour laws and engagement won’t be the same as they are now in this traditional world. Once technology improves to a certain point, it’ll also become cheaper and easily accessible for all companies. This will make local manufacturing come true.

On a global level, this means restrictions and economic restructuring for larger countries like China that have economies dependent on cheap labour and mass production. As a result, they’ll need to find other forms of economic value production to maintain and improve their GDP.

A Big Impact on the Medical World

3D printing has the potential to completely transform the medical industry, from surgery to prosthetics to pharmaceuticals. Scientists have already made functional prosthetics using 3D printing. Some companies managed to make prosthetics for less than $100 and they’re using them in war-torn regions for amputees.

All of this progress will make prosthetics more affordable worldwide and change the lives of many people. 3D printing is also used for surgery. Doctors are using replicas of hearts and other internal organs to practise their techniques and precision. There’s also massive progress in bioprinting. This is a printing method that uses human cells and tissue as “ink”.

There are some experts who believe that functional 3D-printed organs will be a real thing and massively used in surgeries to save people’s lives. In 2014, a surgeon used a 3D printer to mend broken bone and cartilage on a man’s face. There are even 3D-printed pills. Spiritam is one of them and it’s used as an anti-seizure medication. The future of medicine looks bright and promising.

Might Start a Creative Renaissance

As 3D printing is spreading all over the world and people are finding more and more purposes for it, a lot of creatives and investors can turn their ideas into reality. They can simply choose some of the 3D printers online and make their dream come true (with some hard work, of course).

The printers we have nowadays are already helping inventors make prototypes of their ideas and products. Making them easily accessible can also open new opportunities for developing new types of art and self-expression. Who knows, in several decades we might be shopping for only 3D-made products.

Might Solve the Housing Crisis

As prices of houses are rising more and more every day, people need a solution that will save them some money and give them affordable living options. Building companies are starting to invest in some 3D printer models that can build houses. These printers use materials such as steel, fibreglass, cement, binder and even recycled rubble. In the near future, this will change housing prices and give people the opportunity to have something they can call their own.

Benefits of 3D Printing

Cost-Effective

3D printing is a very economical way of making products. Traditional CNC machining is expensive, needs many operators, and is more expensive to fix and maintain. 3D printing requires only one or two machines and the same number of operators. They also produce a lot less waste.

Flexibility

These printers can print anything within the range of their building volume. There’s no need for a special machine or a tool to make several different parts of one object. 3D printing eliminates all of this and does everything on its own. It can include several materials into one, add colours, textures and patterns, and create unique and customisable parts.

Consistency

With traditional manufacturing, there’s always room for mistakes. In mass production, there will always be products that are defective and can’t be used. With 3D printing, you have the opportunity to prevent mistakes before they become a bigger problem. With the right supervision, you can make hundreds of different parts and all of them will be the same.

Accessibility

Compared to normal production setups, 3D printing devices are far more accessible and usable by a bigger range of people. 3D printing equipment is far less expensive than the massive setup of traditional production technologies. Plus, the whole process is almost completely automated and requires fewer people to operate it.