Apple-And-Microsoft-Computers

3-D Printing and the Product Design Revolution

Aug. 26, 2014
What's really interesting about 3-D printing is not how it's augmenting the way things are done traditionally. It's the way designers are utilizing 3-D printing as a new paradigm to help design a new kind of object, says Jon Cobb of Stratasys.

. >eek IndustryWeek is an NED companion site within Penton\u2019s Manufacturing & Supply Chain Group. eek\r\n"}" data-sheets-userformat="{"2":15165,"3":{"1":0},"5":{"1":[{"1":2,"2":0,"5":{"1":2,"2":0}},{"1":0,"2":0,"3":1},{"1":1,"2":0,"4":1}]},"6":{"1":[{"1":2,"2":0,"5":{"1":2,"2":0}},{"1":0,"2":0,"3":1},{"1":1,"2":0,"4":1}]},"7":{"1":[{"1":2,"2":0,"5":{"1":2,"2":0}},{"1":0,"2":0,"3":1},{"1":1,"2":0,"4":1}]},"8":{"1":[{"1":2,"2":0,"5":{"1":2,"2":0}},{"1":0,"2":0,"3":1},{"1":1,"2":0,"4":1}]},"11":3,"12":0,"14":{"1":2,"2":0},"15":"Arial","16":10}">3-D printing is much more than a new way of making; it's an opportunity to rethink everything we know about design and product engineering.
. >eek IndustryWeek is an NED companion site within Penton\u2019s Manufacturing & Supply Chain Group. eek\r\n"}" data-sheets-userformat="{"2":15165,"3":{"1":0},"5":{"1":[{"1":2,"2":0,"5":{"1":2,"2":0}},{"1":0,"2":0,"3":1},{"1":1,"2":0,"4":1}]},"6":{"1":[{"1":2,"2":0,"5":{"1":2,"2":0}},{"1":0,"2":0,"3":1},{"1":1,"2":0,"4":1}]},"7":{"1":[{"1":2,"2":0,"5":{"1":2,"2":0}},{"1":0,"2":0,"3":1},{"1":1,"2":0,"4":1}]},"8":{"1":[{"1":2,"2":0,"5":{"1":2,"2":0}},{"1":0,"2":0,"3":1},{"1":1,"2":0,"4":1}]},"11":3,"12":0,"14":{"1":2,"2":0},"15":"Arial","16":10}">Today, GE is prepping its engines for 3-D printed fuel nozzles, athletes are running on custom printed cleats, 3-D printed jigs and fixtures are already commonplace on the machines running the shop.
. >eek IndustryWeek is an NED companion site within Penton\u2019s Manufacturing & Supply Chain Group. eek\r\n"}" data-sheets-userformat="{"2":15165,"3":{"1":0},"5":{"1":[{"1":2,"2":0,"5":{"1":2,"2":0}},{"1":0,"2":0,"3":1},{"1":1,"2":0,"4":1}]},"6":{"1":[{"1":2,"2":0,"5":{"1":2,"2":0}},{"1":0,"2":0,"3":1},{"1":1,"2":0,"4":1}]},"7":{"1":[{"1":2,"2":0,"5":{"1":2,"2":0}},{"1":0,"2":0,"3":1},{"1":1,"2":0,"4":1}]},"8":{"1":[{"1":2,"2":0,"5":{"1":2,"2":0}},{"1":0,"2":0,"3":1},{"1":1,"2":0,"4":1}]},"11":3,"12":0,"14":{"1":2,"2":0},"15":"Arial","16":10}">But that's only half of the story, and telling focusing on those products alone misses the real point of the revolution. To Jon Cobb, executive vice president, Corporate Affairs, for 3-D printing giant, Stratasys, it might be missing the revolution itself.
. >eek IndustryWeek is an NED companion site within Penton\u2019s Manufacturing & Supply Chain Group. eek\r\n"}" data-sheets-userformat="{"2":15165,"3":{"1":0},"5":{"1":[{"1":2,"2":0,"5":{"1":2,"2":0}},{"1":0,"2":0,"3":1},{"1":1,"2":0,"4":1}]},"6":{"1":[{"1":2,"2":0,"5":{"1":2,"2":0}},{"1":0,"2":0,"3":1},{"1":1,"2":0,"4":1}]},"7":{"1":[{"1":2,"2":0,"5":{"1":2,"2":0}},{"1":0,"2":0,"3":1},{"1":1,"2":0,"4":1}]},"8":{"1":[{"1":2,"2":0,"5":{"1":2,"2":0}},{"1":0,"2":0,"3":1},{"1":1,"2":0,"4":1}]},"11":3,"12":0,"14":{"1":2,"2":0},"15":"Arial","16":10}">"Many people look at end use parts as the nirvana of 3-D printing," Cobb explained at ASME's Advanced Design and Manufacturing Impact Forum in Buffalo last week. "But what's really interesting about 3-D printing is not how it's augmenting the way things are done traditionally. It's the way designers are utilizing 3-D printing as a new paradigm to help design a new kind of object."
. >eek IndustryWeek is an NED companion site within Penton\u2019s Manufacturing & Supply Chain Group. eek\r\n"}" data-sheets-userformat="{"2":15165,"3":{"1":0},"5":{"1":[{"1":2,"2":0,"5":{"1":2,"2":0}},{"1":0,"2":0,"3":1},{"1":1,"2":0,"4":1}]},"6":{"1":[{"1":2,"2":0,"5":{"1":2,"2":0}},{"1":0,"2":0,"3":1},{"1":1,"2":0,"4":1}]},"7":{"1":[{"1":2,"2":0,"5":{"1":2,"2":0}},{"1":0,"2":0,"3":1},{"1":1,"2":0,"4":1}]},"8":{"1":[{"1":2,"2":0,"5":{"1":2,"2":0}},{"1":0,"2":0,"3":1},{"1":1,"2":0,"4":1}]},"11":3,"12":0,"14":{"1":2,"2":0},"15":"Arial","16":10}">It turns out that the important change 3-D printing offers the world isn't just the objects themselves. As Cobb explained, it's not simply a matter of replacing an injection molded part for an printed part; it's throwing out everything we know about part architecture and the limitations of the past and learning to design for 3-D.
. >eek IndustryWeek is an NED companion site within Penton\u2019s Manufacturing & Supply Chain Group. eek\r\n"}" data-sheets-userformat="{"2":15165,"3":{"1":0},"5":{"1":[{"1":2,"2":0,"5":{"1":2,"2":0}},{"1":0,"2":0,"3":1},{"1":1,"2":0,"4":1}]},"6":{"1":[{"1":2,"2":0,"5":{"1":2,"2":0}},{"1":0,"2":0,"3":1},{"1":1,"2":0,"4":1}]},"7":{"1":[{"1":2,"2":0,"5":{"1":2,"2":0}},{"1":0,"2":0,"3":1},{"1":1,"2":0,"4":1}]},"8":{"1":[{"1":2,"2":0,"5":{"1":2,"2":0}},{"1":0,"2":0,"3":1},{"1":1,"2":0,"4":1}]},"11":3,"12":0,"14":{"1":2,"2":0},"15":"Arial","16":10}">More on 3-D printing on IndustryWeek . >eek IndustryWeek is an NED companion site within Penton\u2019s Manufacturing & Supply Chain Group. eek\r\n"}" data-sheets-userformat="{"2":15165,"3":{"1":0},"5":{"1":[{"1":2,"2":0,"5":{"1":2,"2":0}},{"1":0,"2":0,"3":1},{"1":1,"2":0,"4":1}]},"6":{"1":[{"1":2,"2":0,"5":{"1":2,"2":0}},{"1":0,"2":0,"3":1},{"1":1,"2":0,"4":1}]},"7":{"1":[{"1":2,"2":0,"5":{"1":2,"2":0}},{"1":0,"2":0,"3":1},{"1":1,"2":0,"4":1}]},"8":{"1":[{"1":2,"2":0,"5":{"1":2,"2":0}},{"1":0,"2":0,"3":1},{"1":1,"2":0,"4":1}]},"11":3,"12":0,"14":{"1":2,"2":0},"15":"Arial","16":10}">IndustryWeek is an NED companion site within Penton’s Manufacturing & Supply Chain Group

 

 

About the Author

Travis Hessman | VP of Content, Endeavor Business Media

Travis Hessman is the VP of Content for Endeavor Business Media. Previously, Travis was the Editor-in-Chief for Industry Week and New Equipment Digest as well as the Group Editorial Director for Endeavor's Manufacturing Group.

He began his career as an intern at IndustryWeek in 2001 and later served as IW's technology and innovation editor. Today, he combines his experience as an educator, a writer, and a journalist to help address some of the most significant challenges in the manufacturing industry, with a particular focus on leadership, training, and the technologies of smart manufacturing.