Although it is already deeply implemented in the world of prototyping, 3D printing is still some years away from having a breakthrough in the world of manufacturing. This breakthrough would allow 3D printing to spread from just prototyping, with the exception of select COMPONENTS already being manufactured by 3D printers, to being widely implemented in everyday manufacturing processes all over the world.

The main aspect keeping this from happening sooner is the relatively LONG time it TAKES to 3D print something that can just as well be manufactured USING traditional methods (and we all know that time means money).

3D printing is also limited by the size of the 3D printer. Although there are some pretty BIG units 3D printing with cement, for example, high-quality and precision parts are limited to smaller machines which can also be very expensive depending on what they are designed to be capable of.

Although it is already deeply implemented in the world of prototyping, 3D printing is still some years away from having a breakthrough in the world of manufacturing. This breakthrough would allow 3D printing to spread from just prototyping, with the exception of select components already being manufactured by 3D printers, to being widely implemented in everyday manufacturing processes all over the world.

The main aspect keeping this from happening sooner is the relatively long time it takes to 3D print something that can just as well be manufactured using traditional methods (and we all know that time means money).

3D printing is also limited by the size of the 3D printer. Although there are some pretty big units 3D printing with cement, for example, high-quality and precision parts are limited to smaller machines which can also be very expensive depending on what they are designed to be capable of.