The World of 3D Printing

3D Printing

The word “3D printing” is typically associated with the fundamental movement skills, fans and aficionados, transportable equipment, accessible printing processes such as FDM, and restricted materials such as ABS and PLA. This is partly due to the RepRap group’s democratisation of 3D printers through low-cost PCs and laptops, like the initial Shapeways and Ultimaker, that also led to the 2009 3D printing craze. Quick prototyping is another term that is sometimes used to refer to 3D printers. This has been around since the days of 3D printing, whenever the technology was in its initial stages.