Why 3D Printing Is Going to Need Blockchain
Blockchain has the potential to solve 3D printing’s inherent security risks before they become a major issue.
If 3D printing technology wants to get ahead of its inherent security issues, the best way would be to adopt blockchain.
Speaking at the 2019 Pacific Design & Manufacturing Show, Jack Heslin, President of 3D Tech Talks, a 3D printing consultancy, said as 3D printing becomes cheaper, easier, faster, and more ubiquitous, the very nature of the technology is going to demand the security afforded by blockchain…
Does Blockchain for 3D Printing Offer Opportunities for Business Model Innovation?
Researchers and experts praise 3D printing as a technology that drives business model innovation, but most firms that have adopted 3D printing have not yet altered the way they create, deliver, or capture value. Businesses have not leveraged interorganizational business models due to inherent threats within distributed 3D printing that pertain to IP management and data security.
Blockchain technology seems to be a promising solution. Specifically, the immutable blockchain ledger can safeguard various types of part-related historic records, making key printing parameters, material specifications, or certifications non-repudiable. Smart contracts help to transfer sensitive data, such as printing licenses for sensitive design files, and to execute payments among numerous 3D printing stakeholders.
Based on these features, blockchain could be the appropriate infrastructure for interorganizational 3D printing networks. As such, blockchain could facilitate the emergence of three business models: local 3D printing, shared factories, and secure design marketplaces…
Blockchain — Implications and Use Cases for Additive Manufacturing
Blockchain, the core technology behind crypto currencies such as ‘Bitcoin’, has been identified as a game-changing technology for almost every business function and virtually every industry (Brill et al., 2016; World Economic Forum, 2016). Properties such as immutability of data, distributed integrity, and the efficiencyenhancing potential, have put this technology on top of the agenda of management executives and researchers alike (Blechschmidt, Stöcker, 2016; Satyavolu, Sangamnerkar, 2016). Among the industries affected, additive manufacturing seems to be especially primed to profit from this technology…
Additive manufacturing (AM) technologies, more commonly known as industrial 3D printing, have been identified to be the next level concerning the industrial production of goods (Deutscher et al., 2013; Jiang et al., 2017). Efficiency-increasing potentials such as shorter time-to-market, improved designs, and the digital nature of the printing process hold significant potentials for industrial applications in aerospace, medical and dental, as well as general industrial products (Royal Academy of Engineering, 2013; Küpper et al., 2017; Cotteleer et al., 2016). However, the lack of secure data protection throughout the production process, especially when third parties are involved, is a well-acknowledged challenge that has yet to be overcome and for which so far, no efficient technological solution exists (Wee et al., 2016; Cotteleer et al., 2016; Royal Academy of Engineering, 2013)…
Blockchain and 3D Printing
Traditional manufacturing is ripe for a complete digital transformation. In this segment of #whatandwhyfirst I explain how 3D printing in manufacturing, also known as additive manufacturing, and blockchain both are heading for a friendly convergence that I like to call distributed additive manufacturing (DAM).
Five unique characteristics of blockchain will accelerate the “digital thread” additive manufacturing must have to gain global mass adoption.
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