Originally Posted by
rickair7777
That's an interesting point but it's a very long way off. Probably someday, to some degree.
My brother-in-law is an engineer for a very large printer company and they are aggressively expanding into 3D printers (aka AM). But almost their entire market focus is for rapid prototyping and very small niche production runs. For large mass-market production 3D printers aren't economical by a long shot, and I'm sure that cost delta is more than enough to cover shipping.
Also good 3D printers are expensive.
A typical 3D printer works in one material. To make anything even slightly complicated (moving parts, electronics) you'd need multiple printers, or modules within one printer. Now it's getting large and really expensive.
Then if you build multiple parts, is the printer going to assemble them for you? How about painting/coating?
Also many products probably can't be made via home AM at all, without stocks of MANY raw materials. Shampoo, food, electronic components, especially semi-conductor chips. Some metal applications require forging/heat treating to get the desired properties (ex bearings and races).
Home AM might cut into the delivery business for drink coasters, cast-iron pans, door hinges, and metal shelf brackets, but anything else is a very long way off.
All valid points. Keep in mind twenty years ago I had a cell phone that was an inch thick and had the computing power of a casio calculator. Now my phone is no more that 1/4 in. thick and has more computer power than the best mainframes from the sixties. Technology accelerates very quickly.
Auto parts are being made today with 3D. Think how many parts are purely plastic in our world. Plastic interior parts that are now shipping from Asia to the US to be installed could simply be licensed with a CAD file and be produced locally with no need for labor. There is a factory not too far from me that makes plastic interior parts for Ford. They have lots of employees and go through many molds each year due to the wear caused in the injection molding process. What if they could do the same thing with ten printers and a couple of people to manage the computers? It is coming. Business will always drive towards higher productivity with lower labor costs. If fuels lots of innovation. Labor is the highest cost and the biggest source of headaches for business. Get them out and profits soar.
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