In 2012, Ti Insight originally published a white paper describing the potential impact on the logistics industry from 3D Printing (Additive Manufacturing). It’s a topic I have covered for Ti a few times since as well.
It was clear to us that 3D Printing is a major technological innovation with significant implications for the logistics and supply chain industry. However, the dramatic progress we witnessed as this technology became more widespread has somewhat tailed off, with market share still around 1% of global manufacturing. Nonetheless, the technology and its adoption has continued to accelerate and the following pages will attempt to provide some insight and clarity into the present state of play.
Also, it’s worth keeping in mind that when Apple launched the iPhone in 2007, the market share for phones using swipe gestures to manipulate the interface were zero. By 2019, over 1.5 billion were being sold annually, with over 4 billion people already owning one. This has resulted in the collapse in costs and explosive innovation related to the underlying technologies that Ti has often highlighted.
