Ultimaker Research: USA leads as most advanced country in 3D printing; India 12th

“Overall, 67 percent of respondents are currently aware of the terms ‘3D printing’ and ‘additive manufacturing’. However, only 35 percent have adopted the technology. Two thirds – 65 percent – think that 3D printing will revolutionize their industry and nearly 40 percent say that 3D printing will bring significant operational efficiencies and cost savings to their businesses over the coming 12 months, indicating the market’s rapid evolution.

Market awareness of 3D printing or additive manufacturing: The survey shows that the Netherlands (83%), Switzerland (82%), and the USA (77%) have the highest levels of awareness. The Netherlands, home to several 3D printing companies, is often considered a leader in technology. Switzerland has strong growth in both the manufacturing and research field – industries where 3D printing has a high innovation and adoption rate.

Level of adoption of 3D printing technology: By investigating the number of businesses that have adopted 3D printing and used the technology for more than 5 years, the survey determines the current maturity level across various countries. In China, 53 percent of businesses have adopted 3D printing and 11 percent have used it for more than five years, followed by the USA (34 percent adoption and 19 percent have 5+ years of usage) and France (42 percent adoption and 8 percent have 5+ years of usage). This is significantly higher than the global average.

Current 3D printing budget and plan to increase investment in the future: When the 67 percent of respondents who are aware of the technology were asked about their current and future 3D printing budgets, China, India, and the Netherlands came top with the highest current budget and future investment plans over the next 12 months. 

[penci_blockquote style=”style-2″ align=”none” author=”Rohit Jhamb, Director Global Research & Analytics at Ultimaker” uppercase=”false”]“Sentiments are the start of a domino effect. Positive sentiments lead to positive behaviour and investments, resulting in a future of significant and sustainable growth. This research is the widest and most in-depth in terms of coverage that combines end customer voice with macro-economic indicators. It offers a complete view of the current ecosystem and future growth potential for 3D printing and shows that we have moved past the hype often associated with 3D printing.”[/penci_blockquote]

Offering details of what these sentiments mean for the global 3D printing industry Rohit Jhamb, Director Global Research & Analytics at Ultimaker says, “Sentiments are the start of a domino effect. Positive sentiments lead to positive behaviour and investments, resulting in a future of significant and sustainable growth. This research is the widest and most in-depth in terms of coverage that combines end customer voice with macro-economic indicators. It offers a complete view of the current ecosystem and future growth potential for 3D printing and shows that we have moved past the hype often associated with 3D printing”.

“For potential stakeholders who haven’t embraced the additive manufacturing market and are hesitant about entering, this Index shows they should be unafraid to contribute and can expect a healthy return on that contribution, ” adds Jhamb.

“Being close to end-customers is something we always highly value,” says Jos Burger, CEO at Ultimaker. “These findings confirm our current strategy for delivering easy-to-use, reliable solutions that anyone can leverage to gain a fast ROI with 3D printing. In that sense, Ultimaker is uniquely positioned, since we provide the market with an open ecosystem of hardware, software and materials. By delivering a complete solution that seamlessly integrates with existing workflows, we are on track to facilitate this positive future growth potential and continue to be the driving force to achieve true digital distribution and local manufacturing.”