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The manufacturing model that has characterized the last two centuries was one of irrepressible rush to satisfy the demands of the market. Factories constantly spewed products and parts, even when all orders were satisfied, trusting on times when these might be requested again. Needless to say, this model is very wasteful and contains surplus expenses for stocking and unneeded manufacturing, the infamous “bullwhip effect”, that partake in a feeling of gambling on the market’s ups and downs. Both customers and companies are left unsatisfied. Zara, which makes 50% of its inventory close to the point of use, only sells 10% of its inventory at a discount. Its competitors, 30%.
Additive manufacturing provides the means for a more agile manufacturing framework, one that is capable of flexibly addressing new, and sudden, needs without falling back on warehouse stock. The concept can be applied to every industry on the planet: pharma companies can 3D print drugs on the fly and locally to address an urgent outbreak, constructions can be tailored to local requirements without shipping prefabs. To realize the potential of AM in addressing these demands, the pipeline must be enabled by software capable to provide a holistic overview of operations to nimbly set about whatever request it might face. That’s what we’re focused on at Authentise. Talk to us if you want to know more.
New ‘Reactionware’ 3D Printing System Spits Out Pharmaceuticals On-Demand
Philip Kitson and colleagues at the University of Glasgow have developed a new framework for 3D printing drug manufacturing devices on-site on an as-needed basis. All it requires is a $2,000 3D printer and a drug specification (the manufacturing processes required to produce it). Given such a specification, software created by Kitson’s group dictates to the printer exactly what sort of manufacturing hardware it needs to print that is then capable of producing a particular drug.
Read the rest of the article on Motherboard.
World’s First 3D Printed Toilets Coming to India With Singapore’s Hamilton Labs
In a new agreement with India’s Center for Rural Information and Action (CRIA) Hamilton Labs will be providing a robot operated 3D printer to “build fast, beautiful and comfortable toilets,” for the Madhubani district in Bihar which sprawls Eastern and Northern India.
Read more about it here.
Mass Production – Is 3D Printing Up To The Supply-Chain Challenge?
The Bullwhip Effect describes a phenomenon in which manufacturers build a huge inventory of products based on a forecast of customer demand. From the assumed position high on the supply chain, a manufacturer can misinterpret consumer purchasing behavior at retail level – resulting in a mass of unsaleable stock. Mass customization, i.e. making products to exact customer specifications, low-labor demands and product consolidation, gives 3D printing the potential to break free of the Bullwhip Effect, therefore leading to the question:
“If the Bullwhip Effect is a critical problem in any supply chain, would 3D printing be a solution?”
Read the full article here.
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