The State of 3D Printing 2019: professionals’ confidence in 3D printing is growing

The 3D printing service Sculpteo, has just published the 5th edition of its study entitled ‘The State of 3D Printing 2019’ which provides a comprehensive overview of the additive manufacturing industry worldwide. This year, more than 1,300 people participated in the survey, an unprecedented figure – making it the biggest survey in five years. It included people from all horizons, countries, sectors in order to generate a global overview of the industry – the report points out that 3D printing is increasingly being integrated into companies as a real means of production. In fact, in 2015 only 17% of participants used the technology as a final production method. This year, on the other hand, the same statistic stands at 51%. It is clear now that 3D printing is not solely considered a prototyping technology. Moreover, 80% of participants agreed that 3D printing had brought a significant improvement to their speed of innovation.

As mentioned, Sculpteo analysed the responses of 1,300 participants, mainly in Europe (64%), followed by Asia (20.2%) and the United States (16.6%). Additionally, 8 sectors are represented in this study including aeronautics, the agri-food industry, health, education and advanced technologies. The 2019 study also confirms that the proportion of women in the 3D printing market is increasing. A trend that we had also identified in 3Dnatives’ study of the 3D printing job market. Some of the most promising trends in 3D printing include: mass production, printing speed, affordability, software, education, generative design, bioprinting, sustainability, amongst others.

One of Sculpteo’s 3D printing factories | Photo credits: Sculpteo

How is additive manufacturing being used?

Just like the survey we covered back in March from Essentium, the industry has been slow at adopting 3D printing for mass-production – scale remains the limiting factor. While 3D printing was almost exclusively used for rapid prototyping a few years ago, it is clear that it is now more focused on final production. Sculpteo reveals that 3D printing remains highly prized for product development, especially for limited series and custom parts, as well as for rapid prototyping – although the trend is being revised downwards. This is not surprising when you consider the pace at which technologies and materials have developed recently.