Survey analysis for the adoption of 3D printing technology: consumers’ perspective

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Mavri ◽  
Evgenia Fronimaki ◽  
Athanasia Kadrefi

Purpose Although the adoption of 3D printing technology in many sectors such as medicine, aerospace, jewelry and the food industry is remarkable, the adoption of 3D printing technology by hobbyists remains unknown. The purpose of this paper is to map the attitude of individuals toward this new technology, define critical factors that have an impact on hobbyists’ behavior and, finally, explore the impact of 3D printing on social, economic and environmental changes, as 3D printing technology redesigns manufacturing, thereby impacting many sectors of day-to-day life. Design/methodology/approach A survey has been carried out on Greek hobbyists, and valuable conclusions have been drawn. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire survey performed on a sample of 344 Greek consumers in this sector. A questionnaire of 30 questions was distributed electronically. Findings This paper contributes to the determination of the percentage of individuals that know about 3D printing, the factors that have a significant contribution to adoption of the technology and, finally, identifies the profile of those that use 3D printing technology either in their work or for their hobby. Using a factor analysis, the authors classified users into five categories based on their attitudes towards 3D printing adoption: “innovators,” “informed,” “ecologists,” “engineers” and “re-users.” Research limitations/implications The authors believe that understanding the predictors of 3D printing technology adoption for personal use and its benefits will overcome a pertained research gap and establish an empirical nucleus for further studies in relevant contexts. This type of research is necessary to expand the survey to other European countries. Practical implications 3D printing is not new, but rather is an emerging technology. Individuals are willing to adopt this innovative technology. Based on the results of our survey, a desktop 3D printer will be necessary for every home and office in the near future. Social implications The impact of 3D printing technology on rural life and its social implications are open questions. In this paper, by identifying the groups of hobbyists, the authors determine their particular characteristics and their perspectives on this new technology. All of what is discussed above is valuable for mapping the characteristics of those who adopt this technology. Originality/value This study is attempting to determine the behavior of individuals towards 3D printing technology, their awareness and how familiar they are with this new technological innovation.

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 13-23 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Kobina Armoo ◽  
Lanna-Gaye Franklyn-Green ◽  
Atneil J. Braham

Purpose This paper aims to examine the floating dry dock and 3D printing technologies in relation to the ways in which they have the potential to complement each other. This relates to how the tourism and maritime industries in Jamaica could become more robust and competitive. Design/methodology/approach This study used a qualitative approach through the application of personal interviews and data from secondary sources. Findings Although Jamaica is positioning itself to become one of the leading maritime and logistics centres in the world, the government has not fully taken advantage of the fourth industrial revolution and its enabling factors. The integration of the floating dry dock with 3D printing technology has the ability to advance Jamaica from its current position to become a more economically viable country. Research limitations/implications Time was a limitation for the researchers in conducting this study. As a result, a more robust field study is needed to fully understand the impact of the fourth industrial revolution technologies on the maritime and tourism industries. Practical implications An investment in a floating dry dock and 3D printing technology will spur job creation. The researchers expect improved economic activity in Jamaica resulting from many businesses being created and/or improved. Social implications The quality of life is expected to increase because of the greater economic yields the country will receive from such investments. Originality/value This paper explored the combination of the floating dry dock and 3D printing technologies and their impact on the tourism and maritime industries in relation to increasing service value and economic yields.


2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 83-94
Author(s):  
Ruttiya Bhula-or

Purpose Previous studies have focused on migration and development from an economic perspective. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate sustainable migration and development in an integrative manner, including economic, social and environmental perspectives linking theoretical frameworks with empirical evidence in Thailand. Design/methodology/approach A framework of migration and sustainable development was developed in a structured and integrative manner, and the shift in migration and development patterns in Thailand was examined from an empirical and theoretical standpoint. Findings Migration contributes to Thailand’s economy in many ways. Migrant workers help to grow the economy, especially in labor-intensive sectors. This helps reduced income inequalities at the household level through remittances. Climate change will enhance migration, especially from neighboring countries and within Thailand itself, thus helping to reduce poverty and income inequality. Possible economic gains from migration, as well as circulating workers and international retirement migrants are highlighted. Research limitations/implications Only studies published in English or Thai were included, which may have resulted in the omission of some research. A need for rethinking policy design and implementation as a source of sustainable development is required. Originality/value Despite the recent influences of political and environmental changes, there has previously been no analysis of migration and sustainable development in Thailand in a structured and integrative manner as in this study. The impact of migration on the diffusion of new technology and brain drain issues was also addressed.


Polymers ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (11) ◽  
pp. 1800 ◽  
Author(s):  
Park ◽  
Lee

In this study, we present the development of fall-impact protection pads for elderly people using three-dimensional (3D) printing technology. To develop fall-impact protection clothing, it is important to maintain the functionality of the protection pad while ensuring that its effectiveness and appearance remain optimal in the process of inserting it. Therefore, this study explores the benefit of exploiting 3D scan data of the human body using 3D printing technology to develop a fall-impact protection pad that is highly suited to the human body shape. The purpose of this study was to present a 3D modeling process for creating curved protective pads comprising a hexagonal mesh with a spacer fabric structure and to verify the impact protection performance by printing curved pads. To this end, we set up a section that includes pads in the 3D human body scan data and extracted body surface information to be applied in the generation of the pad surface. The sheet-shaped hexagonal mesh structure was cut and separated according to the pad outline, and then deformed according to the curved surface of the human body. The pads were printed, and their protection performance was evaluated; a 79.2–81.8% reduction in impact force was observed compared to similar cases in which the pads were not used.


2016 ◽  
Vol 116 (1) ◽  
pp. 122-146 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sangsung Park ◽  
Juhwan Kim ◽  
Hongchul Lee ◽  
Dongsik Jang ◽  
Sunghae Jun

Purpose – An increasing amount of attention is being paid to three-dimensional (3D) printing technology. The technology itself is based on diverse technologies such as laser beams and materials. Hence, 3D printing technology is a converging technology that produces 3D objects using a 3D printer. To become technologically competitive, many companies and nations are developing technologies for 3D printing. So to know its technological evolution is meaningful for developing 3D printing in the future. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach – To get technological competitiveness of 3D printing, the authors should know the most important and essential technology for 3D printing. An understanding of the technological evolution of 3D printing is needed to forecast its future technologies and build the R & D planning needed for 3D printing. In this paper, the authors propose a methodology to analyze the technological evolution of 3D printing. The authors analyze entire patent documents related to 3D printing to construct a technological evolution model. The authors use the statistical methods such as time series regression, association analysis based on graph theory, and principal component analysis for patent analysis of 3D printing technology. Findings – Using the proposed methodology, the authors show the technological analysis results of 3D printing and predict its future aspects. Though many and diverse technologies are developed and involved in 3D printing, the authors know only a few technologies take lead the technological evolution of 3D printing. In this paper, the authors find this evolution of technology management for 3D printing. Practical implications – If not all, most people would agree that 3D printing technology is one of the leading technologies to improve the quality of life. So, many companies have developed a number of technologies if they were related to 3D printing. But, most of them have not been considered practical. These were not effective research and development for 3D printing technology. In the study, the authors serve a methodology to select the specific technologies for practical used of 3D printing. Originality/value – Diverse predictions for 3D printing technology have been introduced in many academic and industrial fields. Most of them were made by subjective approaches depended on the knowledge and experience of the experts concerning 3D printing technology. So, they could be fluctuated according to the congregated expert groups, and be unstable for efficient R & D planning. To solve this problem, the authors study on more objective approach to predict the future state of 3D printing by analyzing the patent data of the developed results so far achieved. The contribution of this research is to take a new departure for understanding 3D printing technology using objective and quantitative methods.


2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 87-103 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zericho R Marak ◽  
Ashish Tiwari ◽  
Shalini Tiwari

While every new technology faces multiple challenges during market penetration, some technologies could be viewed by the adopters very differently than most others. The 3D Printing also called as Additive Manufacturing (AM), has been in the market for over a decade now, and is touted to be the next revolution in the industry. Technology has found wide applications in various industries, such as consumer electronics, automotive, medical devices, manufacturing and among many others. However, less is known with regards to the adoption and diffusion of 3D Printing technology, especially from the emerging economies. Using a survey method, this study aims to examine the adoption of 3D Printing technology in select industries in India. We found Relative Advantage, Ease of Use and Trialability to be significant. Whereas, Compatibility and Observability emerged as non-significant. We also explored the challenges with respect to 3D Printing Adoption. The knowledge of the major challenges along with the significant factors affecting adoption can help the manufacturers and suppliers of 3D Printing technology to focus on for increasing the rate of adoption.


Naše more ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 62 (4) ◽  
pp. 93-96
Author(s):  
Igor Vujović ◽  
◽  
Joško Šoda ◽  
Ivica Kuzmanić

Author(s):  
Ranjit Barua ◽  
Sudipto Datta ◽  
Amit Roychowdhury ◽  
Pallab Datta

Three-dimensional or 3D printing technology is a growing interest in medical fields like tissue engineering, dental, drug delivery, prosthetics, and implants. It is also known as the additive manufacturing (AM) process because the objects are done by extruding or depositing the material layer by layer, and the material may be like biomaterials, plastics, living cells, or powder ceramics. Specially in the medical field, this new technology has importance rewards in contrast with conventional technologies, such as the capability to fabricate patient-explicit difficult components, desire scaffolds for tissue engineering, and proper material consumption. In this chapter, different types of additive manufacturing (AM) techniques are described that are applied in the medical field, especially in community health and precision medicine.


2020 ◽  
Vol 26 (7) ◽  
pp. 1305-1312 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laylay Mustafa Alhallak ◽  
Seha Tirkes ◽  
Umit Tayfun

Purpose This study aims to investigate the mechanical, thermal, melt-flow and morphological behavior of acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS)-based composites after bentonite inclusions. Melt mixing is the most preferred production method in industrial scale and basically it has very near processing parameters compared to 3D printing applications. Rheological parameters of ABS and its composites are important for 3D applications. Melt flow behavior of ABS effects the fabrication of 3D printed product at desired levels. Shear thinning and non-Newtonian viscosity characteristics of ABS make viscosity control easier and more flexible for several processing techniques including injection molding, compression molding and 3D printing. Design/methodology/approach ABS copolymer was reinforced with bentonite mineral (BNT) at four different loading ratios of 5%, 10%, 15% and 20%. ABS/BNT composites were fabricated by lab-scale micro-compounder followed by injection molding process. Mechanical, thermo-mechanical, thermal, melt-flow and morphological properties of composites were investigated by tensile, hardness and impact tests, dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA), thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA), melt flow index (MFI) test and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), respectively. Findings Mechanical tests revealed that tensile strength, elongation and hardness of ABS were enhanced as BNT content increased. Glass transition temperature and storage modulus of ABS exhibited increasing trend with the additions of BNT. However, impact strength values dropped down with BNT inclusion. According to MFI test measurements, BNT incorporation displayed no significant change for MFI value of ABS. Homogeneous dispersion of BNT particles into ABS phase was deduced from SEM micrographs of composites. Loading ratio of 15% BNT was remarked as the most suitable candidate among fabricated ABS-based composites according to findings. Research limitations/implications The advanced mechanical properties and easy processing characteristics are the reasons for usage of ABS as an engineering plastic. Owing to the increase in its usage for 3D printing technology, the ABS became popular in recent years. The utilization of ABS in this technology is in filament form with various colors and dimensions. This is because of its proper rheological features. Practical implications Melt-mixing technique was used as preparation of composites, as this processing method is widely applied in industry. This method is also providing similar processing methodology with 3D printing technology. Originality/value According to the literature survey, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first research work regarding the melt-flow performance of ABS-based composites to evaluate their 3D printing applications and processability. ABS and BNT containing composites were characterized by tensile, impact and shore hardness tests, DMA, TGA), MFI test and SEM techniques.


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