The research company SmarTech Analysis has published a new report that analyzes the post-processing sector for the 3D printing industry – “Post-Processing for Additive Manufacturing: Market Analysis and Forecast“. This often overlooked and underestimated area of additive technology is expected to be worth nearly $ 2 billion within a decade, analysts say.
The post-processing industry can be divided into two sectors – polymer and metal processing. The polymer post-processing sector today is worth over $ 145 million annually, with the automotive industry as a leading audience. The metal post-processing sector is estimated at $ 175 million annually, and the main application area is in aviation. SmarTech predicts that over the ten-year forecasting period covered by the report, post-processing for additive manufacturing will reach $ 1.8 billion by 2031.
Post-processing covers a wide set of operations that 3D prints undergo after taking them out of the 3D printer – cleaning, staining, surface finishing, curing, heat treatment and other production operations. This means that once a part enters post-processing, the quality of automation associated with the 3D printing process usually becomes a manual operation, with a significant impact on quality, cost and time. However, SmarTech believes that post-processing is no longer an obstacle to the adoption or expansion of 3D printing applications.
The effects of the shift in workforce dynamics have driven the industry toward automation to minimize manual labor but also increase overall throughput in high-production applications. One of the reasons post-processing is gaining in popularity is automatic finishing, which has countless advantages, including the overall reduction of errors and defects in 3D prints. As more and more industries adopt 3D printing, post-processing will develop even more.
The report can be purchased from this link. It costs $ 1,850.
Source: www.3dprint.com