Three Things You Need to Understand About 3D Printing to Talk About it Intelligently
Designer Penelope Kupfer displays a 3D printed biscuit. Kirsty Wigglesworth/AP
Customization is effectively free with 3D printing.
Several of the biggest brains in 3D printing joined Quartz for a discussion about the future of the technology at General Assembly in New York City on July 16. Here are the three most interesting things we learned.
1. Customization is effectively free with 3D printing
The upsides of 3D printing are all about total customization. Joergen Geerds, an artist and entrepreneur known for his use of 3D printers to make panoramic photography, pointed out that the NASA US space agency is now using 3D printers to make otherwise expensive rocket components. And doctors are using 3D printers to produce custom hip replacements that fit patients perfectly.
“Complexity is free,” said Duann Scott of 3D printing market Shapeways. ”So customization is free.” A room full of identical chairs costs much less than a room full of custom-fit seats when you use traditional manufacturing methods—but with 3D printing they cost exactly the same as their bespoke counterparts, as long as the materials are the same. That’s because you can use a different design for each individual item without resetting machinery or making new molds.