Formlabs’ Latest Report Shows Increasing Adoption of Additive Manufacturing

Formlabs recently released its first-ever study, the aptly-named “2022 3D Printing Application Report.” The market research was conducted by the company in conjunction with Industry Week and Machine Design in November 2021 and received more than 400 responses. The report specifically shows how much the adoption and attitude toward 3D printing has changed. Over the past two years, the use of additive manufacturing has continued to evolve, according to Formlabs. This is thanks to new consumer behavior and changing requirements. Additionally, the study clearly showed what we have already started to see, that 3D printers are not only used for the production of protoytypes but for more industrial applications, including end-use parts.

In the introduction of the study, co-founder and CEO of Formlabs, Maxim Lobovsky, explained that the pandemic was a crucial turning point for the digital revolution. He commented, “Over the past few years, we have seen a rapid expansion of digital fabrication applications into manufacturing processes. Accelerated by COVID supply chain disruptions, we’ve seen 3D printing add flexibility, mitigate risk, streamline workflows, and support traditional manufacturing methods in new and exciting way.” Manufacturing in particular has benefited, he continued, with companies steadily expanding their own 3D printer capabilities.

More and more companies are using additive manufacturing for the production of end-use parts (photo credits: Formlabs)

In fact, almost half of the companies surveyed said they had already set up their own teams dedicated exclusively to additive manufacturing. This perhaps gives reason to believe that 3D printing has ushered in and brought together the era of mass production and customization. This combination is enabling more and more companies to move away from prototypes and towards 3D printing end-use parts. In this case, the survey data shows that rapid prototyping (58%) and the creation of models and props (53%) are still important applications, though the boundaries of prototyping are already being greatly expanded. Greater flexibility, more durability and other features are enabling companies to use additive manufacturing to create final products. Indeed, over 60% of existing 3D printing users are already using this for their end products, with one-third of new users also using the technology in this way.