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MARKET RESEARCH BLOG

5 Key Trends in 3D Printing Materials

by Ajay Duppaliwar, on July 11, 2018

3D printing has been identified as one

of the major disruptive technologies
of this century that has the potential
to change manufacturing activities
across various industries. 3D printing
technologies can help companies
differentiate their business and gain a
powerful competitive advantage.

Learn about five leading trends in 3D

printing materials, based on the findings from multiple syndicated research reports
published by MarketsandMarkets, a global market research company.

1. Increasing adoption of 3D printing as a commercial manufacturing

technology is likely to drive the demand for 3D printing materials.

Major industries that have been early adopters of 3D printing technology include
aerospace & defense and healthcare for production of various parts and components.
This has resulted in increasing demand for the materials that are used for various 3D
printing technologies. Major materials types include metals, plastics, and ceramics that
are used in aircraft components, orthopedic implants, and other industry components.

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Major material manufacturers have developed specialized grades to cater to different

industry requirements.

2. Material manufacturers are adopting forward integration through

organic and inorganic growth strategies to improve market presence.

Major manufacturers of 3D printing materials have adopted forward integration through

organic growth strategies such as expansions, as well as inorganic growth strategies such
as mergers & acquisitions, collaborations, and other activities to promote their material
grades, subsequently increasing their market presence. This dynamic can be observed in
the case of 3D printing metals and 3D printing plastics — which have been the major
material types — and will lead to an increase in the supply of material grades, thus
reducing production costs.  

3. Polyamides are expected to dominate the 3D printing plastics market.

Plastics or polymers are the major materials used for 3D printing. Acrylonitrile Butadiene
Styrene (ABS), Polylactic Acid (PLA), and polyamides are the major polymers that are used
in both commercial as well as general applications. ABS and PLA are extensively used in
the Fusible Deposition Modelling (FDM) technology in 3D printing; many patents related
to this technology expired in 2008. Polyamides are used in powder form in the Selective
Laser Sintering (SLS) technology; a majority of patents related to this technology expired
in 2014. SLS is widely used in commercial practices and is expected to dominate the 3D
printing market in terms of technology. Polyamides such as PA11 and PA12 are major
polymers that can be used in powdered form. Major companies manufacturing PA11 and
PA12 such as Arkema SA (France) and Evonik AG (Germany) have been largely
instrumental in promoting these grades, along with major companies operational in the
3D printing market, including 3D Systems Corporations (U.S.), and EOS GmbH (Germany),
among others. These factors are expected to boost the demand of polyamides as major
3D printing plastics in near future. 

Snapshot: 3D printing plastics market: Technologies & end-use industry

applications

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4. Powder form is predicted to drive the growth of the 3D printing metals

market.

The growth of the 3D printing metals market is expected to be driven by the expiration of
key patents in 2014 related to powder-based additive manufacturing. Significant
investments have been made by companies operational in the 3D printing metals market
to manufacture parts of jet engines and other aircraft components using 3D printing
metal powders. Titanium is one of the most preferred metal powders used across
different end-use industries. Metal powder manufacturers and suppliers are investing in
capacity expansions to meet the rising demand from their end users. Major companies in
the 3D printing metals market include Metallysis (U.K.) and Arcam AB (Sweden). Major
companies such as Sandvik AB (Sweden), GKN PLC (U.K.), and Hoganas AB (Sweden) are
developing various metals powder grades for different functions.

5. Rapid prototyping is expected to remain a major application of 3D

printing technology in the near future.

Major applications for 3D printing include tooling, manufacturing, and rapid prototyping.
Rapid prototyping among these applications is expected to remain the major application
due to its use in new product development testing and other research activities. 3D
printing has been one of the established prototyping technologies that traditionally saves
production costs in the case of developing testing models by various industries. Other
major applications include tooling and manufacturing that promise high growth in the
strategic future.       

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Access additional research

To access global market forecasts and more in-depth research into these subjects, please
see the following reports published on 3D printing materials. Links are included below:

3D Printing Materials Market

Polyamide 11 & 12 Market in 3D Printing
3D Printing Plastic Market
3D Printing Metal Market
3D Printing Ceramics Market
Rapid Prototyping Materials Market

These reports are designed to help stakeholders to understand the pulse of the

market and access expert information on key market drivers, restraints, challenges, and
opportunities.

About the Author:  Ajay Duppaliwar is a Senior Research Analyst at MarketsandMarkets.

Related reading
Tracking Disruption and Innovation Across Multiple Industries
3D Printing Soars in the Aerospace Industry
Back to the Future: How 3D Printing Brings the Manufacturing Industry Full Circle
3D Printing in Education: Bringing Additive Manufacturing to Consumers

Topics: Materials & Chemicals Manufacturing & Construction Industry Insights

Heavy Industry

Tweet Share Like 9 Share

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Tanna Dietrich 7/13/2018 2:47:52 AM

How to take advantage is the main factor for a business. In this post, 3d
printing can help to business to improve their product as per market need or
trends. So this is very useful post for me

REPLY TO TANNA DIETRICH

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