As the preference and needs of people change, so must the design of and functionalities offered by various products. To achieve this, even the manufacturing technology must change, because the processes once relevant won’t always continue to be for long. Thus, with the increasing demand for customized products that not only suit people’s varied requirements but also complement their personality, industrialists are rapidly innovating their technology.
P&S Intelligence, therefore, considers the need for mass product customization a key factor that will propel the 3D printing filament market from $693.1 million in 2019 to $7,082.0 million by 2030, at a healthy 26.8% CAGR during 2020 and 2030. This is because 3D printing, or additive manufacturing, is a modern production technology that reduces the need for pre-casting and making molds for customizing products. This not only speeds up the actual manufacturing process but also makes it cost-effective for companies, which ultimately leads to a cost reduction for the end user.
The filament is one of the types in which the feedstock for 3D printers is available. Among metallic, ceramic, plastic, and other types of filaments, plastic materials find the widest application across industries. Due to the wide application of various kinds of plastics, including acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), polylactic acid (PLA), thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU), polyethylene terephthalate glycol (PETG), thermoplastic elastomers, acrylonitrile styrene acrylate (ASA) and nylon, filaments made from them are widely used in 3D printing.
Aerospace & defense, industrial, automotive, healthcare, consumer goods, and others are the categories under the application segment. Among these, the aerospace & defense category dominated the 3D printing filament market during the historical period (2014–2019) because such companies are using this manufacturing technique to save on operational costs. Moreover, aerospace & defense components are becoming increasingly complex, which is making it difficult to produce them via conventional techniques. For instance, GE is using 3D printing for miniature jet engines and aircraft fuel nozzles, while Boeing is using 3D-printed components in the flight deck of the 777X.
To serve these industries better, advanced kinds of 3D printing filaments are being introduced. For instance, filaments made from organic tissues can potentially reduce the waiting time for organ transplants, as they would reduce the need for the organs to come from another human being. Additionally, providers of such materials are experimenting on new variants for the consumer electronics industry, considering the high rate at which it is growing around the world. As a result, the usage of such filaments is predicted to increase the fastest in the consumer goods industry in the years to come.
Till 2019, North America dominated the 3D printing filament market because of its advanced manufacturing industry and increasing investments in the additive manufacturing technology. The region is home to numerous aerospace & defense companies, which are using the technology for prototyping and mass production. Similarly, healthcare firms are creating 3D-printed human organs for cutting down the waiting period for transplantation. Additionally, the high disposable income of people here allows them to purchase customized products, which are usually more expensive than mass-produced ones.
In the coming years, the demand for 3D printing filaments will shoot up in Asia-Pacific. The manufacturing industry of APAC, though the largest in the world, still lags behind in the adoption of the latest technologies. However, with government initiatives to augment the manufacturing output, such as the Made in China 2025, Making Indonesia 4.0., and Make in India initiatives, industrialists are receiving heavy funding, which is allowing them to innovate their processes and procure expensive machines, such as 3D printers.
Hence, with advancements in the manufacturing technology, the demand for 3D printing filaments will keep increasing.
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