Graphics Reference
In-Depth Information
Warehouses that hold unsold and unused inventory consume electricity
for heating, cooling, and lighting. Replacing physical inventory with digital
inventory would green the supply chain. Physical inventory not only needs to
be transported, it also takes up a lot of shelf space while it waits. In contrast,
a digital inventory—or design iles for a 3D printed machine part—is cheap
and easy to store and transport.
3D printing technologies could help clean up the manufacturing process
if their unique capabilities are put to use. A looming challenge, however, is
the end of a product's lifecycle. Think back to the hypothetical example of
the two plastic toys earlier in this chapter. Both were made using standard
industrial plastics.
If both toys were thrown away, would they end up in the same place?
Sadly, the answer is probably yes. The problem lies in plastics. 3D printers use
essentially the same sort of commercial plastic as injection molding machines
do. Like a younger sibling eating the same food as his older siblings, since 3D
printers grew up on the factory loor, they have retained an appetite for the
same raw materials used in mass manufacturing.
3D printing a more beautiful landill
Exotic 3D printing materials get a lot of media attention, for example chocolate
or gels containing living cells. Other printing materials such as metal, ceramic,
and glass are slowly inding their way into some industrial uses. Yet according to
market data tracking the sale of printing materials, plastic still reigns supreme.
Lurking near a 3D printer are bound to be buckets full of plastic powder
or spools the size of a hubcap wrapped in brightly colored plastic strands.
Powdered forms of nylon are popular. Other popular printing plastics in pow-
der form are polypropylene (same as the plastic that makes up your yogurt
containers) and polyethylene (found in trash bags).
MakerBot test-drives each new printer before shipping it to its buyer. When
I visited its former production facility in 2012, in Brooklyn, New York, rows
of brightly colored spools of ABS plastic were suspended over the printers,
lending the scene a cheerful appearance, reminiscent of a brand new box of
crayons. Similar to MakerBot's printers, most low-cost 3D printers popular
