How 3D Printing Is Changing Our Lives!

It’s the technology of the future which is still in its infancy in the country. But constant innovation and developments in the field have made 3D printing a game changer which is disrupting industry and affecting lives in ways never thought of before.

- Abhik Sen With Ashish Gupta

It could be a box or a hat or even a piece of art. The comic book, based on the film released in 1972, described hilarious situations that arose because the soap was an unstable compound and often reverted to its original state.

Sure, the comic book didn’t call it 3D printing; in fact, science hasn’t produced a portable 3D scanner and printer even today. But the basic idea was similar to 3D printing, one of the most disruptive technologies of the digital age that involves assembling complex three-dimensional objects layer by layer using a digital model as the source. The technology was invented by U.S. engineer Charles Hull more than three decades ago, but for years it was seen as an obscure industrial process. Today, it is slowly changing the way we live and work. Globally, it’s shaking up manufacturing in sectors such as aerospace, healthcare, automobiles, and construction. In what some experts have enthusiastically described as the next Industrial Revolution, companies are experimenting with 3D printed products such as homes, car parts, and even prosthetic limbs. “3D printing has the potential to revolutionise traditional manufacturing, allowing companies to produce almost anything, layer by layer within the boundaries of a single 3D printer,” says Mahesh Makhija, partner and leader, digital and emerging tech at EY.