Ever wonder what would you do if you lose bricks of your LEGO playset. In the past you would have ordered new brick set from a supplier. But, with the advances in additive printing (3-D printing) technology you would be able to manufacture them at your own home.
What you need are a three dimensional design of the brick developed using a suitable software, a 3-D printer, and the correct material for fabrication. In 3-D printing, a 3-D software generated model of the object to be manufactured is inserted to the 3–D printer and the printer deposits material layer by layer to manufacture the object. Unlike moulding with a die, 3-D printing can manufacture objects of arbitrary complexity.
It has been shown that 3-D printing can be used to manufacture jet engine parts, automobile parts, medical devices, optical components, medicine, houses, human organs, and even food among other things.
With the development of technology, similar to the personnel computers, 3-D printers have grown better and cheaper. Today, it is possible to buy a reasonable quality 3-D printer under $ 1,000.
Cost advantage
Even though 3-D printing cannot compete with traditional manufacturing in mass scale production, it has a cost advantage over traditional manufacturing due to the low capital investment needed. It is possible to manufacture complex structures using 3-D printing which otherwise are impossible with traditional manufacturing.
In the near future the commercial applications of 3-D printing would be in niche, low volume, and high value products. But with the development of the technology, 3-D printing can enter into volume production.
It is predicted that by 2023 3-D printer speed will increase up to 90% from today’s speed. As a result, the manufacturing will be decentralized and a relevant information economy will be created. It is predicted that by 2025 the estimated economic impact of 3-D printing will be around 300 billion USD.
In every major technological leap in human history, be it automobiles, computing, internet, electronics, or nanotechnology, the countries that have benefited most economically are the countries that have invested in those technologies at the inception before the other countries entered the landscape.
Therefore, to economically benefit from the up and coming manufacturing paradigm shift due to additive (3-D) printing, countries need to invest fast and invest smart in the technology.
Sri Lanka, which strives to become a developed countries in the world needs to ride the waves of new technology. Due to the demographic situation in Sri Lanka, mass manufacturing will not be the path to development, because many other countries can do it more economically.
Sri Lanka benefited from the internet/computing revolution because of critical mass of youth entered into that technology landscape at the beginning and started doing new things.
This group started new companies and contributed to the Sri Lankan economy enormously. Sri Lanka did not benefit from electronic revolution because very few Sri Lankans had the knowhow of the technology at the inception.
For Sri Lanka to successfully ride the 3-D printing revolution, it should create a critical mass of people who have the technological know-how. Best place to start that process in my opinion is at the grass root level of the education. That is the school.
While universities and technical collages can introduce this technology simultaneously, maximum impact will come if the technology is introduced at the school level. Advanced level technology stream is the foundation over which technologist for various fields are trained. 3-D printing will be used in many diverse fields as mentioned earlier.
An advanced level technology stream is the best starting point to introduce 3-D printing technology in Sri Lanka. It would cost up to around Rs. 400,000 per school to introduce the 3-D printing technology stream curriculum.
If a school can introduce 20 students to this technology per year, it would be 5,000 people per year with a certain know-how of the 3-D printing technology. Some of them will further study this technology and provide the critical mass of people necessary to sustain 3-D printing related industries. Above is a rudimentary budgetary and impact estimate. A thorough budgetary and impact estimate is outstanding.
In summary, 3-D printing has the potential to be the next big technological revolution.
In order to reap maximum economic benefit from the technology it is necessary to train critical mass of people in the technology. That can most successfully be done if it is introduced at the school level. The cost for such program is well within the affordable limit of Sri Lanka. -
The writer is a senior lecturer attached to the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, University of Peradeniya. The writers’ views do not necessarily reflect the views of the University or this newspaper.