Many people still think of 3D printing (3DP) as a toy for the \u201cmaker\u201d geeks crowd. Today, that toy status of 3DP is official. Mattel recently introduced a 3D printer for kids called the ThingMaker, which runs on cuttingedge 3D design and printing technology from Autodesk, the same company that brought the world AutoCAD.
\nThe Autodesk\/Mattel collaboration will provide kids of all ages with a new, immersive experience by combining beloved physical toys with digital adventures. ThingMaker is fun, but it is also serious \u2013 it\u2019s a training tool to prepare today\u2019s kids for tomorrow\u2019s essential tech skills. For over the next few decades, the technology is expected to transform the manufacturing sector as we know it today.
\nBy the time these ThingMaker kids are adults, some of them may be operating more advanced 3DPs to build everything from custom-made replacement auto parts to space station components to new human organs whenever they\u2019re needed, wherever they\u2019re needed. What today takes aircraft to fly half-way around the world in less than a day, this technology might be able to do with the click of a mouse in seconds.
\nBecause of its potential for on-demand, custom-made manufacturing capabilities, 3DP technology, to some in the airfreight business, represents a dark cloud on the horizon, threatening disruptive changes for the logistics status quo. There is no question that changes will occur \u2013 what is difficult to predict is the scale of the disruption, the forms it will take, and the timeline for the full impact to be felt.
\nSome say it\u2019s already here. Digital disruption is \u201ceverywhere but operating at different speeds,\u201d said Angus Dawson, who leads McKinsey & Co.\u2019s Strategy and Corporate Finance Practice across Asia. \u201cThe fact that disruption is happening at different speeds for different industries shouldn\u2019t lead those industries where it\u2019s happening slower to assume it\u2019s not happening.\u201d
\nThe full potential impact of 3DP is still a flyspeck on the radar screens of the global logistics community \u2013 most executives and managers know a little about the technology but are not aware that it represents a disruptive game changer to their business models.
\n\u201cI think it\u2019s difficult to say how it will play out in the long run,\u201d said Thomas Bek, global manager of oil, gas and industrial projects at Blue Water Shipping, a global heavy-lift logistics and transport services provider. \u201cWe use a lot of 3D visualization to plan our equipment moves, and are about to use 3D-printed ship and equipment models for a large, complex move, but the long-term implications of 3D printing technology are something we have not really focused on.\u201d
\nBlue Water is not the only logistics services provider that is late to the gate regarding 3DP. \u201cI know a little about the technology,\u201d said logistics consultant Skip Grindall, who recently retired from his position as vice president of mining logistics at C.H. Robinson. \u201cBut the implications of 3D printing for the logistics industry is not something I can recall ever being discussed as a potential game-changer.\u201d
\nSource: aircargoworld<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Many people still think of 3D printing (3DP) as a toy for the \u201cmaker\u201d geeks crowd. Today, that toy status of 3DP is official. Mattel recently introduced a 3D printer for kids called the ThingMaker, which runs on cuttingedge 3D design and printing technology from Autodesk, the same company that brought the world AutoCAD. The[…]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"false","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[49],"class_list":["post-1436","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-airport-code"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.actlogistics.vn\/vn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1436","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.actlogistics.vn\/vn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.actlogistics.vn\/vn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.actlogistics.vn\/vn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.actlogistics.vn\/vn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1436"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.actlogistics.vn\/vn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1436\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.actlogistics.vn\/vn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1436"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.actlogistics.vn\/vn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1436"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.actlogistics.vn\/vn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1436"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}