3D printing has made life's most significant vocations such as architecture, engineering, advertising, marketing, education, medicine, archaeology, paleontology, and forensic pathology fast and easy today. In contrast with the previous years where prototyping is yet done by scrupulously gluing woods together; today, 3D models have become an exhibition of time and creativity through the inkjet technology.
Most people may ask, what is 3D printing? Well, 3D printing basically makes use of freeform fabrication to build up successive layers of materials. From designing a model through 3D graphic software on a computer, images are rendered to the 3D printer to create the desired result. From a simple computer set to sophisticated 3D printers available in Objet Geometries, Startasys, 3DSystems, and Z-corp, prototyping is just a matter of manipulating fine powder, resin and cornstarch to build cross-sections of the image. Online companies like Shapeways, Sculteo, Ponoko, and Quick Force also offer online-printing services that allow customers to send electronic 3D designs via their websites and then simply ships back the finish product. There are different methods involved in 3D printing, for instance; selective laser sintering (SLS), Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM), Laminated Object Manufacturing, and Fused Deposition Modeling.
While 3D printing has become a hip of today's generation, the price has even become more and more affordable. This is just one of the reasons why it is practical to utilize 3D printing in coming up with various projects like jewelries, footwear, industrial designs, fossil reconstruction, and artifacts. The following are some more reasons which make 3D printing a practical choice for today's generation.
1. 3D printing preserves environment - Aside from the industrial benefits of 3D printing, it helps safeguard the environment by recycling plastics, papers, and metals. In some ways, 3D printing is considered as an added recycling technique by pulverizing metal sheets for metal casting, or from papers and plastics to polymers in replicating artistic artifacts that are basically displayed in museums, exhibits, and fares; or used as miniature models for robotics, human dummies, and building structures and facades. Its new hip in technology today which includes utilizing old and broken sheets of glass which may seem not usable anymore has given 3D printing more advantage. The broken glasses are, however; macerated to make up new glass powder which are made into a new 3D glass material design that stores food whilst can be also used for cooking like the Cornucopia. This environment saving potential of 3D printing has also made it an attraction and a good investment to some business establishments. While waste reduction is one dynamic and scorching initiative in the society today, businessmen have also discovered the 3D printing's profitable cause. When this happens, various establishments would one by one sprawl to commit into two indispensable functions in the society, the "buy and sell" as well as "recycle and save".
2. 3D printing is cost worthy - 3D printing helps reduce the possibility of costly expenditures brought by poor communication, extensive changes under short time pressures, as well as missed deadlines and late project submission. In a Wohler's Industry Report, a single change decision can change a hundred dollar to surge into millions. Sudden change in project-making can cause 80 percent of the product's summary cost upon making adjustments to the materials used, proposing new designs, and prolonging of project timeline while late submission makes up 30 percent profit loss of its potential gross profit over the upcoming years. This can be a pain in a company's budget and financial stability but with 3D printing, aside that proper communication flows reliably from customer to vendor, depending on the type, brand, and feature, 3D printers deliver outputs with high quality assurance and less time constraints.
3. 3D printing has high durability and greater detail - When compared to other additive manufacturing technology; 3D printers have higher level of details displaying higher resolution of prototypes. This allows designers to build artistic replicas with more sophisticated and well done features. They also comprise of tough materials enough to work on 3D models with prototypes that do not simply distort and shrivel. That is why 3D printers hold pride for its competitive aspect which can endure through task and testing.
4. 3D printing is easy and fast inkless printers - From the simple 1-dimension to 2-dimension colored or grayscale images, 3D printers have transitioned the way to make an electronic dream a one real object. For instance, when visual aids and structures like atomic figures, chemical bonds, and more as of educational subjects like chemistry and physics are better off sampled as 3D, schools and various other institutions can simply resort to 3D images which is more accessible and conducive to learning. 3D printers can be also be operated alone without any necessary supervision while producing fast and quick output. Through 3D printing complex parts like bearings, engineering parts, and complex working models can be assembled in less than one day while all corners of the output are physically exposed to be scrutinized and touched by the possessor.
5. 3D printing is a pro to profitable action figures - 3D is the best key element to the action figures anyone sees on screen. For instance, 3D printing has made World of Warcraft, Final Fantasy, or Lord of the Rings possible and available to both youth and adults. Film and gaming industries have already made great profits by manipulating its capability while the results have given out unsurpassed luxury and entertainment to the wider audience. Not only the big industries have been benefited by its capabilities, but even single employees and household people are able to do so. In fact, lovers and avid collectors of action figures can save a fortune out of making examples through 3D printers which then leads to a better and profitable home-based business.