3 Sizes Fit All in the Future of 3D Printing

The future of 3D printing is right around the corner. My last post discussed the rapid adoption rate of technology in today's world. Now, I analyze what how the future of 3D printing will look as these devices become ubiquitous in a relatively short amount of time.

First, the small.

Formlabs 3D Printer

The majority of Americans will have their own 3D printer in their home office. This printer will be on the cheap end to appease consumers who aim to print small tools, jewelry, replacement parts, small toys, and works of imagination. Right now, the consumer can pick up a 3D printer for less than $500. The Formlabs printer above is much more expensive, but the average price of consumer 3D printers will be a few hundred dollars, if that. This will enable the average person to express themselves through works of art and build objects together with their social network. A simple click of the button will allow people to download their friends cool unique object, only so that they can one up their friend with a minor improvement, creating an on-going cycle.

Second, the medium.

Stratasys Mojo 

However, people will want to print larger and more complex objects without having to pay the exponentially larger fees for these printers, as they plan to only use this detailed printer a couple of times per year. Enter, the next generation of 3D print shops. In this world, a user may own a 3D printer, but it may not satisfy the requirements needed to print their next work of genius. So, this person creates the digital file at their home, emails the file to a local 3D print shop, and goes to pick it up in a few hours. The user has that specific object in their hands that same day. This would occur on a mid-grade printer, similar to the Stratasys Mojo, depicted above. In fact, Staples is already beginning to offer this service. Essentially, people who desire a custom object with detailed design requirements will use this service.

Third, the large.

Stratasys Objet1000

Lastly, we look at one more use case. Suppose that a user wants an extremely detailed object or one that is grande in scale in such a way that only a $100,000 commercial printer can build this object. For instance, the Objet1000 above would be an analogous example to the size and power of a commercial printer. However, the user does not necessarily need the object that present day. Introducing, cloud 3D printing as a service. The user designs their object on their computer, as they did in the previous case. Now, they send the design to a cloud printing service, such as Sculpteo. The physical location of this business may be in a nearby large metropolis, or across the country. Regardless, the object comes back to the user after a few days has passed from printing this custom object. The user pays for the service of the printer, along with shipping and handling, and all parties are satisfied. Happily ever after.

The world of 3D printing is fast around the corner. I will be looking forward to seeing what other companies adapt or emerge on each scale. The small consumer printer space is rapidly filling up with one Kickstarter project after another. The medium domain has attracted Staples and other new business sprouting up while the large domain has brought in several business that serve this niche. These three areas be an interesting to see how they fill out in just a few years time.

How Long Until You Buy a 3D Printer?

A few technologies have had monumental impact on society. Recently, my generation has seen the wide adoption of computers, cell phones, and the internet. Right around the corner is 3D printing. Before diving down into the evolution of 3D printing, lets analyze the spread of computer consumption. The chart below depicts the rate of adoption of technologies as a percentage of households. 

We see that computers were at 20% in the early 1990s and reached over 60% in just a few years. This is a huge jump, but particularly, lets look at the year 1977. This was the year in which Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak presented their Apple II to the West Coast Computer Faire in 1977. We note that the initial spike in early adopters for computers took place a fifteen years before even 20% of households had a computer in their home. While this gap may seem rather large, we know with future technologies, this gap will shrink.

Next, lets analyze where the 3D printing industry is at in terms of early adopters. First, we note the surge in interest in the New York Maker Faire, a 3D printing faire and networking event. 

• 2010 - Three business attend
• 2011 - Five business attend
• 2012 - Over twenty companies attend the faire

We note that there is a highly analogous correlation between the state of computers in 1977 and that of 3D printers now in terms of consumer interest. However, 3D printers are light years beyond that of 1977 computers. Therefore, we can conclude that there will be MUCH less time than fifteen years before 20% of households own a 3D printer. I would even speculate this duration to be half that of computers, in the neighborhood of five to eight years, before 20% of U.S. households own a 3D printer.

In conclusion, 3D printers will become much more prominent and well known. There are already large companies with expensive printers that are selling cloud 3D printing services. Read my next blog post to find out my prediction of where the 3D printing industry will be in the next five years.

Sales School Mentality

Through the rigorous training program that IBM graciously invests in the 2013 Summit Architect class, we are fortunate to receive IBM's famous Global Sales School training. Being from a technical background, I recall being fairly nervous before entering this prestigious program. However, I knew that the time that I invested would pay off in the future.

Global Sales School

Unfortunately, my overly analytic brain led me astray in the beginning of practice calls. However, I managed to quickly jump back on track and apply the experience that I gained from consulting interviews to sales calls. This problem solving mindset, combined with a passionate desire to help our clients, even if they are role playing clients, creates value and partnerships. It is the essence of being essential. Now that I can leverage my technical background to improve future sales calls, I can direct attention to some important lessons learned and critical mindsets to put in one's frontal lobe.

First, place yourself in the mind of a CEO of a 15 person company. I am CEO of Erik Inc. This simple thought increases one's personal responsibility and sense of ownership. It can definitely help independent individuals perform better with larger groups of people.

Second, never forget about your competition.

• What is your competition doing? 
• Are you doing anything different? 
• When a client has your proposal on their desk along with a competitors, what will make yours stand out?

While it seems obvious to know the competition's strategies, these questions are imperative to ask. If you do not stand out from the crowd, you will be trampled in a stampede.

Third, place yourself under the skin of a client. Again, this simple mentality can help astronomically. For instance, all I have to envision is sitting at my desk and receiving a request for proposal from a potential seller. The last thing I want is to read a 40 page document straight. Even a short executive summary might be too laborious. I want a document with diagrams, that is easy to read, has bullets, structure, and boldface for important phrases. I do not want my eyes to bleed by reading a proposal. As a technician, I am extremely adept at focusing on the details and making sure every last minute aspect of a product is perfect. However, sometime I lose site of the bigger picture. When working with clients, the bigger picture can never be lost.

While these ideas seem simple and intuitive, it is an entirely different story to live your life, both work and play, by these mantras. These three mentalities, among many others learned, are key to success to sales and life.