IBM Feels 3D Printing Has Started A Revolution

[Brian_Krassenstein]

Last week IBM released a report titled "The New Software Defined Supply Chain." In it, they outlined why they think 3D Printing is about to revolutionize the entire manufacturing industry. They also feel that many current supply chain leaders are not prepared for the competition they will soon face from smaller companies. Here are some bullet points from their report:

• Within 10 years, the cost of churning out products using these new technologies will be 23 percent cheaper than today's traditional manufacturing approach. For example, by 2022, making hearing aids by using 3D printers and open source electronics would cost 65 percent as compared with current prices.
• The minimum volume of production needed to enter a market will drop by 90 percent. Which means that existing manufacturers could face a flood of new competitors setting up in small niche markets.
• The design cycle will speed up dramatically. Companies will use open source electronics to iterate and experiment more quickly with prototypes and 3D printing. They will then decide on the appropriate design, bypassing the need to build standardized parts, create dedicated molds, or design every piece in house.
• 3D printing and robotic assembly will upend far-flung manufacturing operations, undercutting the need for large supplier networks and extended supply chains. By 2022, the ideal manufacturing location will be local or regional.

Things are chaining, and changing fast. It will only be a matter of time before smaller companies are able to compete with the large supply chain leaders. In the end this will be cheaper prices for consumes, but also likely less jobs. It will be interesting to see if the current jobs with laborous manufacturing transition to technical jobs. Opinions?

[irie88s]

I fully agree but I am more inclined to think that the shift will be closer to 5 years than 10 years. Couple Moore's law with open source sharing of .stl files and the industry is primed for take off.
The job market will indeed shift. It will be interesting to see how it is impacted. Since change and growth in the tech industry is exponential, the changes in the market place will come fast. The markets will have a had time adjusting and high volatility will become the norm. While many jobs will quickly become extinct, new technologies will become easily accessible to the modern man opening entire new industries.
Exciting times.

[irie88s]

Great report from IBM by the way. Thanks for sharing.

[WildZBill]

With the rapid advance of technology there will a rapid decline of jobs. More people will be replaced by software and hardware. There will be a growth in design jobs for a while, until AI comes into widespread usage.
If you look towards the day when there are NO jobs, you realize that our current society/civilization could not function in that environment. So there will be transition problems.
We need to have social innovation rather than the social upheaval that occurred in similar times in the past.

[squadus]

Great! About time IBM catches onto new technology.

Just hope they take advantage of it in some form or shape instead of staying on the sidelines.