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Principle four: Zero lead time . A 3D printer can print on demand when an
object is needed. The capacity for on-the-spot manufacturing reduces the need
for companies to stockpile physical inventory. New types of business ser-
vices become possible as 3D printers enable a business to make specialty—or
custom—objects on demand in response to customer orders. Zero-lead-time
manufacturing could minimize the cost of long-distance shipping if printed
goods are made when they are needed and near where they are needed.
Principle ive: Unlimited design space . Traditional manufacturing technolo-
gies and human artisans can make only a inite repertoire of shapes. Our
capacity to form shapes is limited by the tools available to us. For example,
a traditional wood lathe can make only round objects. A mill can make only
parts that can be accessed with a milling tool. A molding machine can make
only shapes that can be poured into and then extracted from a mold. A 3D
printer removes these barriers, opening up vast new design spaces. A printer
can fabricate shapes that until now have been possible only in nature.
Principle six: Zero skill manufacturing . Traditional artisans train as appren-
tices for years to gain the skills they needed. Mass production and computer-
guided manufacturing machines diminish the need for skilled production.
However traditional manufacturing machines still demand a skilled expert to
adjust and calibrate them. A 3D printer gets most of its guidance from a design
ile. To make an object of equal complexity, a 3D printer requires less operator
skill than does an injection molding machine. Unskilled manufacturing opens
up new business models and could offer new modes of production for people
in remote environments or extreme circumstances.
Principle seven: Compact, portable manufacturing. Per volume of produc-
tion space, a 3D printer has more manufacturing capacity than a traditional
manufacturing machine. For example, an injection molding machine can only
make objects signiicantly smaller than itself. In contrast, a 3D printer can
fabricate objects as large as its print bed. If a 3D printer is arranged so its print-
ing apparatus can move freely, a 3D printer can fabricate objects larger than
itself. A high production capacity per square foot makes 3D printers ideal for
home use or ofice use since they offer a small physical footprint.
Principle eight: Less waste by-product . 3D printers that work in metal create
less waste by-product than do traditional metal manufacturing techniques.
Machining metal is highly wasteful as an estimated 90 percent of the original
metal gets ground off and ends up on the factory loor. 3D printing is more
 
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