As with any technology which is a game changer for business, you have to ask yourself, will it be a long term bull or bear for the economy in general? Those against it say that it will eventually kill jobs, get rid of production line employees, and send unemployment rates skyward. In my opinion this is far from the case. 3D Printing has and will continue to open up new job areas for designers, bring manufacturing back to the US from China, and lower the costs of manufacturing and hence the price of goods substantially.

In the short term, there will be jobs lost, however instead of production line workers, we will have designers of all things. Instead of prototype manufacturers, we will have attorney's dealing with patents, and companies working specifically on computers which can speed up 3D Printing. Think about all the companies that have popped up in the last couple years around 3D Printing and multiple that by 20 within 3-4 years, and possibly 1000 within a decade. That's where I think we are headed.

Would love to hear your thoughts!