This is a guest post in our series looking at the future of 3D Printing. To celebrate 5 years of reporting on the 3D printing industry, we’ve invited industry leaders and 3D printing experts to give us their perspective on the next 5 years of 3D printing.
Tibor Van Melsem Kocsisis the CEO ofDiManEx. The Netherlands based enterprise focuses on digitization of the supply chain and the use of 3D printing to“revolutionise manufacturing supply chains the same way e-commerce has transformed retail.”
Dimanex首席执行官Tibor Van Melsem Kocsis的3D打印未来
大多数供应链高管可能不会完全意识到这一点，但是正如理查德·D’Aveni（Richard D’Aveni）states, industrial 3D printing is “about to go mainstream in a big way.” Digital transformation in industrial manufacturing supply chains will be further supported by3D打印的速度，成本和质量的进步。多年来，航空航天，医疗和汽车等行业领先的公司一直在尝试增材制造业。雷电竞充值不久之后，其他部门就开始赶上。
作为Dimanex的首席执行官，我有幸看到了这一过渡直接发生的。3D打印将很快像电子商务改变零售业一样彻底改变制造供应链，而这种雄心勃勃的愿景是我开始与我的联合创始人建立Dimanex。DiManEx是一个运行于软件和智能分析的全球数字供应平台，用于分布式3D制造。我们为使用工业质量添加剂制造合作伙伴网络提供零件和小型系列的按需生产提供端到端服务。雷电竞充值我们的客户是原始设备制造商（OEM），工业组件的分销商以及其他零件密集型公司。
供应链中3D打印的未来
Manufacturing is becoming more decentralized. Companies that are able to support decentralized manufacturing, both as a service and digitally, will be the ones that benefit most from 3D printing in their supply chain. Until recently, large companies, like GE and Caterpillar, have invested in 3D printing from an R&D point of view. Others, such as big names in the automotive domain, have decided to start producing their own parts in-house, using 3D printing. For most companies, however, buying additive manufacturing equipment does not make sense. The vast majority are already buying parts and outsourcing production to suppliers outside of their own business. In addition, to be able to justify the investment (ROI) in equipment, a 70-80% utilization rate would be required.
I believe we will see widespread adoption of advanced manufacturing techniques like 3D printing within increasingly digitized supply chains, as a service that is cloud-based and controlled. A key factor for widespread adoption is the extent to which legal and IP implications will be adequately addressed, making use of the technology at hand and arrangements within an ecosystem of partners. Successful execution will be spearheaded by providers that excel at IP protection, security, and quality. Using such a service on demand, companies will be able to build up virtual stock libraries to order parts only when and where they are needed. Let’s explore some use cases in detail.
Use cases
迄今为止，第一个系列生产是制造生命周期最早的阶段，一直是3D打印的主要用途。在短期内，添加剂制造空间中的成熟技术将使原型变得更加功能。雷电竞充值节省成本和较短的交货时间将使公司迫使公司为短系列生产运行提供3D打印和相关技术。
Something I expect to see more of in the near future is the use of additive manufacturing for mass customization, especially in consumer goods – where customization can be a significant revenue driver. Consumers are demanding increasingly personalized products. Additive manufacturing allows for shorter production runs and time to market, as well as production near or at the assembly location and unit-level customization. Adidas is one of several companies tapping into 3D printing to deliver customized products. TheirFuturecraft 4Dwill be the first customizable shoe to be mass produced using 3D printing.
When it comes to industry, mass customization will become a means to tune and optimize equipment without huge investments. For example, a sorting machine produced with additive manufacturing could be easily adjusted to sort different kinds of products. Something which would be much more costly and take more time with traditional manufacturing.
Spare and service parts present yet another use case we see maturing and growing in adoption. Manufacturing, storing and shipping spare parts is costly and time intensive. Why stock parts to meet uncertain demand at such a high expense? Building a virtual stock library offers a better way. One of our customers was able to reduce its Total Cost of Ownership for the production of industrial spare and service parts by up to 80% using 3D printing instead of traditional production. Other benefits companies gain by using additive manufacturing for spare parts include better service to customers, higher availability of parts, shorter lead times and lower environmental footprints – as a result of reduced waste and logistics miles traveled.
Besides its obvious benefits to optimize supply chain processes, 3D printing and related technologies will likely create nEW收入模型。例如，不难想象工业公司为备件发布技术设计并让客户自己打印。在这种情况下，可以根据每次使用的付费出售零件设计，可在线出售。公司的价值将在数字文件中。
Are you ready for it?
The shift to additive manufacturing can have a disruptive impact on your business model, so planning for it and seizing the opportunity soon is crucial. Ask yourself “what should my business strategy be in a world that’s being disrupted by advanced manufacturing and how will this impact my supply chain?” Start experimenting with the technology as part of a digital supply chain, learn through testing and then prepare to institutionalize it. The future is already upon us.
这是我们系列的来宾帖子，研究了3D打印的未来，如果您想参加本系列，请与我们联系以获取更多信息。有关3D印刷行业的更多见解，sign up to our free newsletterand关注我们活跃的社交媒体渠道.
Nominations for the 2018 3D Printing Industry Awards are open now,let us know which enterprises are leading.
