Additive Manufacturing increasingly being used for Functional Parts production

In an excerpt from the recent publication Wohlers Report 2017, it was reported that customers are increasingly turning to Additive Manufacturing (AM) for functional parts production.

As the undisputed industry-leading report regarding 3D manufacturing and Additive Manufacturing for 22 consecutive years, the Wohlers Report tabulates trends, analysis, and forecasts based on years of hard data, input, and analysis from global experts.

In one of the charts that were excerpted from the 2017 report, the survey question polled respondents on “how do your customers use the parts built on your AM systems?”

The survey polled respondents that consisted of 61 manufacturers of industrial AM systems (costing $5000 or more) and 100 service worldwide providers.

The survey showed that Additive Manufacturing is increasingly being used for the production of functional parts (33.8%) over everything else. This result shows the increasing confidence and interest in AM systems and materials that produce strong, accurate, and durable parts for functional use instead of just prototyping.

To conclude, the likelihood of more companies turning to AM for production applications is projected to rise further in the near future.

Source: Wohlers Associates