News — 3D printing

Additive manufacturing technologies such as 3D printing are having a big impact in many areas as they are incredibly useful. An analogy is building a house, you could carve one from a solid lump of rock, or you could make one from bricks stuck together with mortar. 3D printing is built up in layers, much like courses of brick, allowing flexible design with minimal use of material. Plastic is the most common material used in 3D printing. Small plastic 3D printers are available from a few hundred pounds. Other materials such as metal, composites and even concrete can also be...