Printing Revolution

Mass goods were finally able to be produced through the Industrial revolution of the late 18th century, thus creating economies of scale which changed society for ever, in a manner that no one could have predicted at the time. A new manufacturing technology has emerged which does the absolute opposite.

Additive manufacturing, or 3-dimensional printing, now makes it just as cheap to produce single items, as it is takes to produce huge quantities. This may have as great an influence around the globe, as the Industrial Revolution did.

A three dimension printer operates by taking a 3D computer file and using it to make a series of cross-sectional slices. Each slice is then printed, one on top of the other, to arrive at the 3D object.

First you have the chance to modify colour and shape where required, before you press the ‘print' button. The 3D printer commences to build up the article gradually, one layer at a time, either through selectively solidifying a thin layer of plastic, or metal dust, or by depositing material from a nozzle, using tiny drops of glue, or a tightly focused beam.

The object that finally becomes visible could be a spare part for your car, a lampshade, or a violin.

Small articles can be formed by a machine similar to a desktop printer, in the corner of an office, a house, or a shop. Larger articles such as bike frames, aircraft parts, or panels for cars, require a larger machine and a lot more area.

A big number of technologies are available to create 3D printing, the major difference being in the manner the layers are created to build parts. Some processes use softening material, or melting, to create the layers (SLS, FDM), while others lay liquid materials that are treated with different technologies. In lamination systems, thin layers are cut to shape and joined together.

The process is currently possible only with certain materials (resin, plastics and metals) and with a preciseness of approximately a tenth of a millimeter.

The same as computing was in the late 1970s, it is currently the domain of hobbyists and workers in a few academic and industrial niches. 3D printing is spreading rapidly though, as the technology improves and costs lessen. The technology is being used in footwear, jewellrey, industrial design, engineering, aerospace, architecture, automotive, dental and medical industries and construction.

Original articles can be produced by an artist or engineer etc., then duplicated using a 3D Scanner and printed out with a 3D printer, known also as a fabricator or "fabber", which now costs less than a laser printer did in 1985. The scope of this new technology is merely as limited as the imagination.