Current Applications

What are some current applications?
3D printing is used in a large range of industries. Its primary commercial application is creating prototypes, allowing designers to identify design flaws quickly and inexpensively. 3D printing is also revolutionizing the medical field; it is used to manufacture crowns, bridges, hearing aids, and prostheses.

3D cars will set new standards

Furthermore, there are several major car manufacturers such as GM, Jaguar Land Rover, and Audi that 3D print their auto parts. Likewise, Airbus and Boeing use 3D printing to manufacture environmental control ducting for their air crafts. (As of now, aircraft manufacturing companies are exploring the use of a titanium-powder-based additive for more complex projects.) Additionally, 3D printing is used by NASA in their space launch system: the Mars Rover has a total of seventy printed parts. NASA is currently exploring the use of manufacturing spare parts on the spot at the International Space Station.

Saved dying baby with a help of 3D printing

An extraordinary application of 3D printing took place in February 2012, when doctors saved 20-month old Kaiba Gionfriddo. Suffering from a rare case of severe tracheobronchomalacia, Kaiba breathing stopped on a regular basis and thus needed almost daily resuscitation. Doctors in Michigan printed an airway splint modeled after a CT scan of a pig’s trachea. The splint, which was printed from polycaprolactone, a biodegradable material, was sewn around the airway to expand Kaiba’s defective bronchus. The operation was considered a major success.