I remember the first time I saw a 3D printer.\u00a0 I was on a tour of the Plantronics facilities when I was 18, and I was walked outside to a building separate from the main hall.\u00a0 There we came across a giant machine with clear sides and complex pieces inside.\u00a0 I had never seen anything like it, and had never even heard of 3D printing, despite the technology being around for some time.\u00a0 Only the most innovative companies were experimenting with them at the time, and I was lucky enough to see one in action.\u00a0 They loaded a CAD drawing into it of a crescent wrench, and before my eyes this machine created it.\u00a0 I was even more amazed when I realized it could actually open and close. \u00a0It was at this point I thought, \u201cThis is going to be big in the future.\u201d Unlike Nintendo\u2019s Power Glove and HD-DVD\u2019s, this prediction was actually correct.<\/p>\n
3D printing has skyrocketed in popularity.\u00a0 It is no longer just an enthusiast\u2019s toy but a marketable machine.\u00a0 The prices have come down as more manufactures enter the market, and we may even see consumer models this year.\u00a0 At CES we saw multiple companies showing off different designs, with prices going as low as $499.<\/p>\n
3D printing\u2019s strength is in its ability to make unique parts quickly, based off a drawing that probably already exists.\u00a0 Its strength is not to mass produce.\u00a0 If you need half a million Toyota parts in 2 weeks, 3D printing isn\u2019t the method of choice.\u00a0 However, it has its applications.\u00a0 When there is a unique or oddly shaped part, and you need anywhere between 1 and a few hundred of them, 3D printing may be your answer.<\/p>\n
The biggest, and probably earliest adopter of 3D printing, has been Boeing.\u00a0 They have used the system to help create parts for years, creating over 22,000 parts for both civilian and military aircraft.\u00a0 Other companies have been left in their wake until recently, and now have to play catch up by purchasing 3D printing companies left and right.\u00a0 Medical facilities are also looking into the technology to design and build extremely accurate and unique medical devices for patients.\u00a0 Knee replacements and other parts will be able to be loaded in and built easily by the printers, lowering both the cost and work of the staff tremendously.<\/p>\n
A Reddit post also showed the power of this technology, when a user showed distaste with the cost of a plastic cable organizer.\u00a0 After he mentioned his discontent with its high price, another user uploaded a CAD drawing of the device, allowing him to simply toss the drawing into his 3D printer and turn a $50 product into an (almost) free device.<\/p>\n
3D printing may very well spark a manufacturing rise in the US.\u00a0 Made in USA is something we don\u2019t see often anymore, and these printers may be at the center of an increase to more domestic manufacturing.\u00a0 The \u201ctech belt\u201d in the mid-west is growing, and at the source of it is this technology.\u00a0 Good or bad, it is going to be important, and it is going to cause change in the way we look at products.<\/p>\n
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