As many studies can demonstrate, nowadays 3D Printing is becoming a more and more relevant production technology. Even if, until the beginning of the 21st century, it was not well known and diffused, in the last years this innovative process is gaining an important position in the business scenario. In this thesis, our aim is to study and present 3D Printing and its characteristics, and to try to assess the impact that it may have on firms and business environment, since this new innovation, as well as Industry 4.0 as a whole, is expected to significantly reshape the context. First of all, 3D Printing is defined and the specific production technology is explained, scanning all the eight main productive methods. Then, in order to underline the versatility and the practicality of AM, possible applications in different industries are mentioned, with also a description of the advantages and the improvements that this technology brought to manufacturing industry. After the topic has been introduced and explained, the analysis takes into consideration the impact of this new technology: at the beginning the focus is on the single firm, considering how supply chains and business strategies may be affected; subsequently it is presented how 3D Printing could transform the general business context and the whole scenario, exploring the expected impact on global value chains, mentioning also some relevant and actual cases, and scanning how workforce and employment are supposed to be influenced. Finally, the effects of 3D Printing on the traditional manufacturing processes are taken into account, followed by the possible future directions that may lead to an integration of AM with today’s growing innovative technologies (such as Artificial Intelligence, Cloud Computing, Cybersecurity, Internet of Things and Big Data), explaining and analyzing also the concept of Smart Manufacturing, and supporting the description with some real cases.
La stampa 3D sta diventando una sempre più importante tecnologia di produzione. Pur non essendo molto conosciuta e diffusa fino all’inizio del 21° secolo, negli ultimi anni sta assumendo una posizione rilevante nel mondo del business. In questa tesi, il nostro scopo è di presentare la stampa 3D e le sue caratteristiche, provando anche ad osservare l’impatto che potrebbe avere sulle aziende e sul mondo degli affari in generale, dato che ci si aspetta che questa innovazione, così come l’Industria 4.0 nella sua totalità, possa modificare il contesto in modo significativo. Prima di tutto, abbiamo definito la stampa 3D e spiegato la specifica tecnologia di produzione, analizzando tutti gli otto principali metodi di produzione. Quindi, per sottolineare la versatilità dell’AM, abbiamo raccolto possibili applicazioni in diverse industrie, con anche una descrizione dei vantaggi e dei miglioramenti che questa tecnologia comporta. Dopo aver così introdotto e spiegato l’argomento, la nostra analisi prende in considerazione l’impatto di questa nuova tecnologia: all’inizio il focus è sulla singola azienda, considerando come possono venire influenzate le supply chain e le strategie di business; successivamente abbiamo trattato l’impatto che la stampa 3D può avere sul contesto generale e sull’intero scenario, esplorando le implicazioni riguardanti le global value chain, menzionando anche alcuni casi rilevanti, e analizzando come ci si aspetta possa essere influenzato il mondo del lavoro e l’occupazione. Infine, abbiamo preso in considerazione gli effetti della stampa 3D sui processi manifatturieri tradizionali, e in seguito le possibili future direzioni che potrebbero portare a un’integrazione dell’AM con le attuali crescenti tecnologie innovative (come intelligenza artificiale, cloud computing, cybersecurity, internet of things e big data), spiegando e analizzando anche il concetto di Smart Manufacturing e supportando la descrizione con alcuni casi reali.
3D printing : characteristics, business impact and future directions
ROTTIGNI, LORENZO;TABARELLI, GIULIA
2019/2020
Abstract
As many studies can demonstrate, nowadays 3D Printing is becoming a more and more relevant production technology. Even if, until the beginning of the 21st century, it was not well known and diffused, in the last years this innovative process is gaining an important position in the business scenario. In this thesis, our aim is to study and present 3D Printing and its characteristics, and to try to assess the impact that it may have on firms and business environment, since this new innovation, as well as Industry 4.0 as a whole, is expected to significantly reshape the context. First of all, 3D Printing is defined and the specific production technology is explained, scanning all the eight main productive methods. Then, in order to underline the versatility and the practicality of AM, possible applications in different industries are mentioned, with also a description of the advantages and the improvements that this technology brought to manufacturing industry. After the topic has been introduced and explained, the analysis takes into consideration the impact of this new technology: at the beginning the focus is on the single firm, considering how supply chains and business strategies may be affected; subsequently it is presented how 3D Printing could transform the general business context and the whole scenario, exploring the expected impact on global value chains, mentioning also some relevant and actual cases, and scanning how workforce and employment are supposed to be influenced. Finally, the effects of 3D Printing on the traditional manufacturing processes are taken into account, followed by the possible future directions that may lead to an integration of AM with today’s growing innovative technologies (such as Artificial Intelligence, Cloud Computing, Cybersecurity, Internet of Things and Big Data), explaining and analyzing also the concept of Smart Manufacturing, and supporting the description with some real cases.File | Dimensione | Formato | |
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Descrizione: Master thesis Rottigni Tabarelli
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https://hdl.handle.net/10589/167058