In the blink of an eye……

By Sunitha Srinivasan

Imagine reversing Houdini’s famous line- “Now you see me… now you don’t.” That would perfectly describe additive manufacturing to someone unfamiliar with it! In the bustling heart of Bangalore, there’s a busy suburb home to a vacant plot of government land for the longest time—a familiar, unremarkable sight for residents. One day, curiosity sparked as they noticed the plot being cleared. Word soon spread- a new post office would be built there. For the residents living nearby, the news wasn’t exactly welcome. They braced themselves for months of disruption—dust and grime filling the air, the clamour of concrete mixers rumbling up and down the street, drilling machines breaking the peace of their afternoon naps, and the general chaos accompanying a typical construction project.

In fact, what happened was a case of now you don’t see it…. now you do! The construction was completed in less than a week, with minimal mess and noise and if you didn’t know what was going on, it was rather like a group of Elves had been at work to create some sort of magic! The fact of the matter was that 3D printing and Additive Manufacturing (AM) had been used to construct this building. AM uses a computer-aided design (CAD) or a 3D object scan to create a layer-by-layer framework – hence the term Additive Manufacturing. This framework is subsequently sent to a 3D printer, that creates a physical object directly from the digital design. Just advanced technology at play! Nothing to do with the Elves or any of those wonderful fantasies!

Apart from its obvious application in construction, AM is now being used extensively in key sectors like automobile, defense, and aerospace. The Medical industry especially dentistry is finding it invaluable for creating Dentures and implants for instance. To quote Dr Suresh Sridharan a leading Dentist in Chennai – “3D printing and CAD/CAM technologies have made a huge impact in dentistry. Along with the use of Computed Tomography, we can accurately replicate and create both soft and hard tissue structures in the mouth and face.

The Additive Printing technology available for both metal and plastics today helps us create Prostheses and guides for surgical procedures. Replacement of missing teeth is now possible in a span of two hours by Subtractive (milling) and Additive Printing. 3D Printing of Aligners has also increased accuracy and comfort in the field of Orthodontics. As costs of in-house printers come down the affordability and access to this rising technology will be a boon to all dental patients.”

However, experts opine that we have just scratched the surface-they believe that with the incorporation of emerging technologies like Artificial Intelligence (AI) and 4D Printing, AM is poised to become one of the primary drivers of industrial growth in the future. AM technology is currently a US$13.16 billion industry, with a compound annual growth rate of 22 percent. The incorporation of AI is further aiding in the digital design process and will continue streamlining it in the future.

The advent of 4D printing also presents exciting new prospects. While AM builds 3D objects that remain fixed, 4D printing can create objects with the added ability to evolve or reconfigure themselves over time. This is typically achieved by using “smart materials” like shape memory polymers, that can undergo shape transformation when exposed to external environmental stimuli like temperature, pressure, or light. Perhaps we now have a solution for the cracks in old buildings.

The question is whether AI or any technology for that matter would be able to prise away the Neem or Banyan trees that always find their way into these cracks and replant them! Jokes apart, the use of “smart materials” can have potential applications in extreme environments like space or even biomedical applications like self-reconfiguring proteins. MIT’s Self-Assembly Lab is one of the pioneering institutions in this domain.

In comparison to traditional manufacturing, AM can produce small to medium lot sizes. This is a huge advantage over the MOQ barriers of conventional manufacturing that has to grapple with set-up costs. AM eliminates most of these costs and makes it significantly cheaper to manufacture customized products. This is particularly useful for medical applications, where Prosthetics, Implants, and artificial organs specifically tailored to individuals are required. Hearing aids, for example, are now almost exclusively 3D-printed.

Despite the apparent advantages of 3D printing and Additive manufacturing, there are some inherent challenges when it comes to their adoption in India. For a start, there is a limited awareness and understanding of 3D printing technologies. Many businesses are yet to grasp the full potential and applications of AM, leading to hesitancy in adoption.

Secondly, there are some concerns regarding the material quality and the post-processing requirements of 3D-printed objects. Developing and standardizing high-quality materials, coupled with efficient post-processing techniques, is imperative to overcome this challenge. The initial investment requirements can be prohibitive, especially for SMEs besides the fact that the adoption of these technologies requires suitably trained manpower which are currently in short supply in the country.

Nonetheless, projections indicate that the Indian additive manufacturing market will reach USD 1.79 billion by 2030, growing at an impressive compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 28.1%. This strong growth underscores the sector’s importance in shaping India’s industrial and technological future.

All pictures, courtesy AM Chronicle, COBOD