Thursday 29 March 2018

3D Printing - creating a job market


Recently one of my friends and I were discussing about unemployment in India. The main point was, will all current technological advancement bring unemployment? Since we are working in the field of Additive Manufacturing (AM), we laid down some points about employment in the field of AM or 3D Printing.

According to the market research report AM market will see a compound annual growth rate of 25.76% between 2017 and 2023 and market worth will be 32.78 billion USD. With growth follows money and demand for talent.

Let us go deep into the matter and few studies like Delphi survey. In one of the arguments in the Delphi survey, experts said, till 2030 a significant number of consumers will use online database to purchase product design for additive manufacturing printing purposes. The major support for the argument was that it is already emerging and people are doing it. AM will be taught to children and it has already been started.

AM is still finding its roots within the fields of tech, design, manufacturing and many more. Let's start with job opportunities in this field. Some of the branches where one can work are:

1. 3D design and CAD modeling:

AM depends on designers who can bring an idea to life. This industry has potential to create jobs for 3D designers in companies as part of creative teams and also as freelancers.

AM exists is only because of CAD (computer aided design) experts who convert product designs into digital blueprints that 3D printers need. Also, the demand for 3D CAD modelers is increasing. AM business performs research and development on 3D printing
hardware and new materials generating more demand for CAD and 3D modeling jobs.

2. Research and development (R&D)

After agriculture the most employment generation industry in India is textile industry. It offers direct employment to over 35 million people. Fashion is all the buzz - 3D printing is the fashion of the future. Overproduction and deadstock are the biggest problems in textile industry, this can be minimized or elimated over time.

Reebok has recently released 3D printed floatride run sneakers. The possibilities seems to have no limits. In addition many other aritistic and consumer products industries such as fashion design and jewelry design will need people to push the boundaries of 3D printing.

3. Biological and scientific modeling

Last year I lost a person very close to me. She was suffering from Multi-drug-resistant tuberculosis. Already working in the field of Additive Manufacturing, I started looking for answers to save her and I came across an article, where a woman was saved by 3D printed vertebra. Though it was late and we couldn't save my little sister, I made a decision of spreading this technology through out India, so that we don't lose our loved ones just because of the lack of technological advancement.


3D printing industry needs more engineers, designers and modelers who can bring further advancement and innovation with their biomedical or scientific background.

4. Architecture/construction modeling

A 650 square feet and consists of a living room, kitchen, bedroom, bathroom, and shaded porch can be constructed in countries like India under $4000 (2.5 lakhs - 3 lakhs INR). A model has already been made by ICON and New Story in Texas.


The construction industry will get a boost with the use of 3D printers. 3D printers can produce true-to-life models which can replace 2D CAD modeling on paper.

New Story is in the process of raising $600,000 to fund a planned 100-home community in El Salvador. It will be the first-ever community of 3D printed homes. Donors can fund a full house with just $4,000.

5. Operations and administrative positions

Additive Manufacturing companies don't run on engineers and technical people alone and require operations and administrative staff, analysts, finance and sales professionals, and retail employees, among others.

AM is generating new business models and will continue to do that. The need for jobs like marketing, shipping will increase tremedously. All types of AM companies need vendors, manufacturers and retail stores.

SKILLS AND TRAINING FROM 3D PROTOTYPERZ

To stay competitive, a candidate should gain hands-on experience in 3D printing and stay up to date on how companies are using the technology. What good are these jobs if no one has the qualifications to fill them? As mentioned in Delphi survey, to fill the skills gap, schools are developing (and some have already launched) 3D printing programs at all grade levels.


Currently, we the team at 3D Prototyperz have started providing training programmes for schools, engineering graduates and professionals. We also manufacture our own 3D printers. One of the goals of 3D Prototyperz is to build AM labs for everyone who wants to print their design.
We are happy to make you the member of our FUN WITH LAYERS 3D printing club and training module.
Click to here to Enroll.
For more information about the training and enrollment please see the file below.
 https://www.slideshare.net/niketshah754/fun-with-layers3dprintingtraining