How does being the first service bureau with the capacity for full-run 3D production with Multi Jet Fusion change your business now, and your outlook for the future?
Being the first to have this capacity has changed the way we think about 3D printing entirely. We’ve done small production jobs before, but the time and cost required by existing technologies made it impractical for anything beyond a few hundred parts. But with the installation of 12 Multi Jet Fusion units at our new facility, we now have the capacity to produce 600,000 parts in a single week. That’s the most significant leap that I’ve ever seen in 3D printing: going from prototyping and small batch production to full-run, large-scale 3D manufacturing. It’s drastically expanded the type and range of opportunities we can pursue, and it’s a microcosm for the way 3D printing is going to transform the entire global manufacturing industry.
Where do you see the 3D printing industry 5 years from now?
For decades, 3D printing has only been viewed as a viable manufacturing option by a small number of forward-thinking companies. But Multi Jet Fusion has turned that promise into a reality and opened the doors for the industry to grow at mass scale. I predict that in 5 years, 3D printing will already be a primary manufacturing process for at least 25% of companies in the world. Considering the size of the manufacturing industry, that is a mind-boggling amount of growth that will only continue to gain speed.
Ultimately, how do you think 3D printing’s transformation of the manufacturing industry will change the global business landscape, and change people’s lives on a personal level.
I think one of the greatest transformations that 3D printing will have on global business will be a push towards local manufacturing. Companies will be able to bring much of their manufacturing home, which will be positive in so many ways, especially in terms of the natural resources it requires to transport mass volumes of products overseas.
On a more personal level, kids these days are growing up with 3D printing as a household word, and getting introduced to the concept of computer-aided design at an early age. I think this will start a generational shift where today’s tech-savvy kids will be more inclined to make things rather than simply buy them. Right now, consumer technology often means just going online to buy stuff. But in the future, I think people will have a less passive relationship with technology and will use it to make more things for themselves, customized to their own personal tastes.
I’ve custom-designed and printed many things for myself because they didn’t exist in the form that I needed them, from a cup holder for my ’68 Charger to a tool that cleans the leaves off my tile roof. Multi Jet Fusion gives you the power to create things quickly, at low cost, to the specifications of individual people, from my cup holder to a future with custom-printed shoes, cars, medical devices, household goods, and beyond. The possibilities are truly staggering.