RAPID + TCT Event News

Additive manufacturing examples abound throughout the modern industrial sector, with use cases in several different manufacturing verticals. From automotive to defense to healthcare, industrial 3D printing is becoming prevalent in manufacturing. As significant global events shake up supply chains, manufacturers are turning to additive to remain flexible, and ensure they can continue to meet production schedules and deadlines despite the disruption.

Prominent automotive manufacturers, from General Motors to BMW, are embracing industrial 3D printing technologies to create innovative products. They have adopted these technologies in their production and design workflows to incorporate 3D printed end-use parts into their vehicles. The automotive sector has long used additive manufacturing (AM), initially for prototyping, but now as a full-fledged production technology.

A milestone has been reached in additive manufacturing (AM) with the United States Navy using this technology to successfully manufacture functional parts while afloat. Using a 3D printer onboard a Navy vessel, sailors were able to print essential parts. These parts passed quality and performance checks and were able to be used for their intended application.

Additive manufacturing applications are growing in the industrial sector, with several examples of 3D printed parts used in different manufacturing industries. Though this technology was once primarily used for rapid prototyping, additive manufacturing is now implemented throughout the production cycle. Examples of these applications can be found in the aerospace, defense, automotive, and energy industries, to name a few.

3D printing technologies are becoming more prevalent in several different sectors, including varying applications within consumer goods. The customization capabilities in particular lend themselves to the production of several different consumer goods, from figurine replicas based off 3D scans to personalized medical devices. Beyond these applications, 3D printers are also capable of creating new designs for consumer goods products.

RAPID + TCT 2024 may be a few months away, but several exhibitors are showing their latest technology to a different audience at the 2024 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

Metal 3D printing allows companies to design outside of traditional manufacturing constraints. This gives engineers the opportunity to improve part performance by making lighter parts, for example. Despite this advantage amongst others, the manufacturing industry has been slow to adopt this technology. One of the main reasons for this is the cost of metal 3D printing. As a newer technology, metal 3D printers tend to have a higher associated up-front cost compared to their plastic counterparts.

By Laura Griffiths Head of Content – TCT RAPID News Group Throughout its 35-year history, RAPID + TCT’s mission has remained the same: to keep driving the additive manufacturing (AM) industry forward. The event has always been, and continues to be, at the forefront of AM innovation, with the most cutting-edge technologies and biggest power players sharing unmatched insights and real-life applications on North America’s main stage for AM.

As RAPID + TCT heads to Hollywood, we're spotlighting the role of industrial 3D printing in the entertainment industry. The role of digital scanning in the world of additive manufacturing (AM) is well known and clearly established. But companies on the cutting edge of these rapidly evolving technologies are also performing remarkable feats in the world of entertainment.

SME Media sat down with Materialise NV CEO Brigitte de Vet-Veithen recently to discuss the current and future state of additive manufacturing (AM). One main focus was scalability — manufacturers need to create a profitable, scalable business model for AM in their operations. As a result, de Vet-Veithen believes that AM's growth over the next few years will focus less on flashy applications and more on realistic expectations for the technology.