Global 3D Printing Market Overview, 2023-28

Additive manufacturing is the term used to describe the use of 3D printing in industrial applications (AM). With the help of software and a 3-dimensional printer, additive manufacturing involves the layer-by-layer addition of material to form an object, referring to a three-dimensional file. To implement the process, a relevant 3D printing technology is chosen from the available set of technologies. The final step entails deploying this process across various industry verticals based on the need. The deployment includes installation services, consultation solutions, and customer support, as well as handling copyright, licencing, and patenting issues. Manufacturers benefit from 3D printing in terms of prototyping, structure and end product design, modelling, and time to market. As a result, manufacturing costs have decreased significantly, allowing manufacturers to offer better products at more competitive prices. As a result of these advantages, demand for 3D printers is expected to increase in the coming years. With rapid advances in material composition, such as the emerging use cases of polymers and metals, additive manufacturing is transitioning from a prototyping tool to a functional component of fabrication. New materials, shorter lead times, and innovative finishes enable the technology to be integrated into manufacturing processes while adhering to standards (FDA, ASTM, and ISO).

According to the research report, “Global 3D Printing Market Overview, 2023-28”, published by Bonafide research the market is anticipated to reach USD 61.33 Billion by 2028 with a robust CAGR of 23.20% from USD 17.80 Billion in 2022. 3D printing or Additive Manufacture is the process of creating a 3D object from a Computer Aided Design (CAD) model or digital 3D model. It can be accomplished through various procedures in which materials are combined, connected, or hardened under computer control, usually layer by layer (such as fusing plastics, liquids, or powder grains). During the 1980s, the term "rapid prototyping" was more appropriate because 3D printing processes were only seen as suitable for producing functional or aesthetically pleasing prototypes. The accuracy, repeatability, and material variety of three-dimensional printing techniques had improved to the point where some of these techniques were envisioned as a practical approach for industrial production in 2019, making the terms additive manufacturing and 3D printing interchangeable. One of the primary benefits and advantages of 3D printing is its ability to produce extremely complex structures or geometrical figures, such as hollow parts or portions with interior truss structures to reduce weight that would otherwise be difficult to construct by hand. FDM (fused deposition modelling), an additive manufacturing technology that creates 3D components by utilising continuous thermoplastic or composite material thread in the form of filament, is expected to be the most popular 3D printing technique by 2020. VAT Photo polymerization is another type of additive manufacturing that produces 3D objects by carefully curing liquid resin using targeted light activated polymerization. The market is expected to grow due to aggressive 3D printing R&D and rising demand for prototype applications from various industrial segments, particularly automotive, healthcare, military, and aerospace.

On the other hand, AM (Additive Manufacturing) implementation is hampered by widespread misunderstandings about prototype procedures among medium and small-sized businesses. Rather than striving to recognise the benefits and advantages of prototyping, enterprises involved in design, particularly medium and small-sized businesses, pause before even considering prototype expenditures as appropriate. Most of the time, these businesses believe that this technology is simply a costly pre-production stage. The market for digital 3D printing for simulation is being driven by rapidly increasing digitization and the increased use of cutting-edge technologies such as smart factories, Industry 4.0, machine learning, robotics, and others. These advancements increase the likelihood that this technology will be adopted and widely used in a variety of industries, including automotive, healthcare, and aerospace, among many others. Companies in the aerospace industry, for example, are considering using 3D printing to manufacture various hardware components for their products. Boeing, for example, uses commercial 3D printing to create aircraft interior components, whereas NASA uses it to create rocket engines and satellite components. This technology is expected to become widely used in the automotive industry. Many automakers are now focusing on rapid tooling using additive manufacturing. Interior customization is another important application of this technique in the vehicle industry.

In 2022, the industrial printer segment led the market, accounting for more than 75% of global revenue. The industry has been further subdivided into industrial and desktop 3D printers based on printer type. The widespread use of industrial printers in heavy industries such as automotive, electronics, aerospace and defence, and healthcare can be attributed to the large share of industrial 3D printers. Some of the most common industrial applications across these industry verticals are prototyping, design, and tooling. The widespread use of 3D printing for prototyping, design, and tooling is contributing to rising industrial demand. As a result, the industrial printers segment is expected to maintain its dominance throughout the forecast period. Desktop 3-dimensional printers were initially limited to hobbyists and small businesses. They are, however, increasingly being used for household and domestic purposes nowadays. Desktop printers are also being used in the education sector, which includes schools, educational institutes, and universities, for technical training and research.

Stereo lithography is one of the oldest and most widely used printing technologies. Although the advantages and ease of operation associated with stereo lithography technology encourage its adoption, advances in technology and aggressive research and development activities undertaken by industry experts and researchers are opening up opportunities for a variety of other efficient and reliable technologies. Because these technologies are applicable in specialised additive manufacturing processes, the DLP, EBM, inkjet printing, and DMLS segments are expected to see increased adoption during the forecast period. The growing demand for these technologies in the aerospace and defence, healthcare, and automotive sectors would provide opportunities for their adoption. The industry is divided into three applications: prototyping, functional component manufacturing, and tooling. In 2022, prototyping dominated the market, accounting for more than half of total revenue. The widespread use of the prototype process in a variety of industry sectors explains this. In the automotive, aerospace, and defence industries, prototyping is widely used to build and design complex systems, components, and parts. Prototyping allows manufacturers to build and manufacture trustworthy final goods while also improving and improving precision. As a result, it is expected that the prototyping category will continue to dominate the industry during the forecast period. Functional pieces include smaller joints and other metal hardware linking elements. The market for manufacturing functional components is expected to grow at a significant Compound Annual Growth Rate of over 20% between 2023 and 2028, as the market for developing and manufacturing functional components grows.



Based on vertical, the market has been divided into distinct sectors for desktop and industrial three-dimensional printing. Dental care, cuisine, fashion and jewellery, and other verticals are among those considered for desktop three-dimensional printing. The healthcare, aerospace, automotive, and defence verticals are expected to significantly contribute to the expansion of industrial three-dimensional printing throughout the projected period due to their active adoption of technology across a variety of production processes. Additive Manufacturing contributes to the creation of synthetic muscles and tissues that resemble real human components and can be used in Arthroplasty in the hospital/healthcare industry. These powerful factors are expected to significantly boost the industrial segment's growth and drive 3DP adoption throughout the hospital/healthcare industry. During the forecasted timeframe, the culinary, fashion & jewellery, and dental verticals are expected to have a significant impact on the growth of the desktop 3D printing market. The use of three-dimensional printing to create dollhouse miniatures, replica jewellery, clothing and fashion, and art & craft projects is a growing trend.

Covid-19 Impact:
The unexpected outbreak of Covid-19 harmed every industry, including the global 3D printer market. The strict lockdown influenced 3D printer manufacturing, resulting in a halt in production and delayed or denied projects/contracts. The trade restrictions impacted the import and export of materials used in the manufacturing process. The supply chain was disrupted by a labour shortage, and logistics had a negative impact on the overall economy of the 3D printers market. During the Covid-19 pandemic, many prominent players in the global 3D printers industry lost business and revenue. Furthermore, due to the pandemic's disruption of the economy, trade fairs, meetings, new business partnerships, strategic collaboration, and company mergers were either delayed or denied. However, the global 3D printer market is anticipated to combat this loss in upcoming years owing to the rapid deployment of 3d printers in retail and healthcare sectors.

Companies Mentioned in this Report:
3D Systems, Inc., Materialise NV, EOS GmbH, General Electric Additive, voxeljet AG , SLM Solutions, Renishaw plc, Proto Labs, Design fusion

Considered in this report
• Geography: Global
• Historic year: 2017
• Base year: 2022
• Estimated year: 2023
• Forecast year: 2028

Aspects covered in this report
• Global 3D Printing market with its value and forecast along with its segments
• Region-wise 3D Printing market analysis
• Various drivers and challenges
• On-going trends and developments
• Top profiled companies
• Strategic recommendation

Regions covered in the report:
• North America
• Europe
• Asia-Pacific
• South America
• Middle East & Africa

By Offerings:
• Printers
• Materials
• Services
• Software

By Printer Type:
• Desktop 3D Printer
• Industrial 3D Printer

By Material Type:
• Plastic (Thermoplastics, ABS, PLA, Nylon, Other Thermoplastics, Photopolymers)
• Metal (Steel, Aluminium, Titanium, Nickel)
• Ceramics
• Other Material Types (Composites, Resin, etc.)

By Software Type:
• Design Software
• Inspection Software
• Printer Software
• Scanning Software

By Application Type:
• Prototyping
• Functional Part Manufacturing
• Tooling

By Process:
• Powder Bed Fusion
• VAT Photo polymerization
• Material Extrusion
• Material Jetting
• Binder Jetting
• Other Processes (Directed energy deposition, Sheet lamination, etc.)

By Technology Type:
• Stereo lithography
• Fuse Deposition Modelling
• Selective Laser Sintering
• Direct Metal Laser Sintering
• Polyjet Printing
• Electron Beam Melting
• Digital Light Processing
• Others (Laser Metal Fusion (LMF), Selective Absorption Fusion (SAF), LCD 3D Printing, Continuous Liquid, Interface Production (CLIP)/ Continuous, Digital Light Projection (CDLP), Selective Deposition Lamination (SDL), Laminated Object Manufacturing (LOM), Etc.)

By Vertical Type:
• Industrial
• Aerospace & Defence
• Automotive
• Healthcare
• Architecture & Construction
• Consumer Products
• Education and Research
• Other Verticals ( Fashion & Jewellery, Food, Energy, Printed Electronics & others)

The approach of the report:
This report consists of a combined approach of primary as well as secondary research. Initially, secondary research was used to get an understanding of the market and listing out the companies that are present in the market. The secondary research consists of third party sources such as press releases, annual report of companies, analysing the government generated reports and databases. After gathering the data from secondary sources primary research was conducted by making telephonic interviews with the leading players about how the market is functioning and then conducted trade calls with dealers and distributors of the market. Post this we have started doing primary calls to consumers by equally segmenting consumers in regional aspects, tier aspects, age group, and gender. Once we have primary data with us we have started verifying the details obtained from secondary sources.

Intended audience
This report can be useful to industry consultants, manufacturers, suppliers, associations & organizations related to 3D Printing industry, government bodies and other stakeholders to align their market-centric strategies. In addition to marketing & presentations, it will also increase competitive knowledge about the industry.