(cont'd)
Not only will 3D printing enable you do quirky things like make shoes for your kids (per yesterday's post), but 3D printing can optimize manufacturing and distribution of goods.
In his Forbes series on 3D printing (3Dp), Rick Smith explains its "disruptive" advantages over mass production. 3Dp does not require huge production quantities in order to reduce cost per unit, so you can make a small number or just one without price penalty. And it can be customized with no extra cost or effort. Just enter the software.
This stuff is not just theory. Ford Motors has been using it for some time to make part prototypes like engine covers for the Mustang and rotor supports for Fusion hybrid. A new intake manifold design can go from design to prototype in four days for $3000, rather than in four months at a cost of $500,000.
Now, that's disruptive - it's permanently changing the industry.
Watch this to see how 3Dp works:
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