Growing pains
I remember feeling chronic discomfort in my shins as my teenage tibias attempted to get me up to average height. It was a nice try, but five-foot-two was all they could muster. Fortunately, most engineering and writing careers don’t have a minimum height requirement.
Today’s fast-paced world pressures us to grow quickly and strategically or fall behind. But too often, growth goes by doppelganger of “change,” which can paint a very different picture in people’s minds. A common sentiment is that change is scary, but growth is good. And the difference is rooted in a person’s outlook and approach.
At the recent Additive Manufacturing Users Group (AMUG) Conference, Todd Grimm, long-time AMUG committee member, shared insights from sponsors and the board of directors. Aside from common themes around automation, sustainability, materials, and workforce development, one trend from GoEngineer struck me — the 3D printing industry is growing into “adulthood.”
“They have seen that we have transitioned from moody teens who know it all to adulthood. To the contemplative… Not can I do it, but should I do it, and how should I do it,” said Grimm.
However, growth is not without discomfort and challenge, which can inhibit people’s stamina and willingness to try. Tali Rosman, startup advisor and entrepreneur-at-residence at Toronto Metropolitan University, touched on this during a recent Design World interview. Rosman has worked at Stratasys, led Xerox’s former 3D printing subsidiary, Elem Additive, and now serves as a business advisor with expertise in advanced manufacturing. She said resistance to change is common in all industries, but especially in manufacturing, which is characteristically traditional and conservative.
“Resistance to change and the lack of faster adoption are not unfounded. There is a lot of merit to them,” said Rosman. “There might be a lack of awareness of how much progress has been made … The other thing is trusting the technology. We have to provide tools and give them confidence. So, I fully understand where it’s coming from and the barriers we need to address.”
Last year, Rosman participated in an Engineering Research Visioning Alliance (ERVA) event to identify challenges that engineering research can address to move U.S. manufacturing forward. ERVA described three grand challenges — material supply chains, tools and processes, and data and quality assurance — in its report, Engineering the Future of Distributed Manufacturing. During our interview, Rosman explained how 3D printing technology makes distributed manufacturing possible and enables startups to get a piece of the pie.
“If anything, 3D printing is the great balancer for small and medium-sized businesses to compete against larger companies. Maybe not for all the volume, but you can compete for some of the contract,” Rosman said.
For any size manufacturer, perseverance is an elixir. Despite the pangs of disruption, those willing to confront change and leverage it for growth will survive and thrive.
“It’s more of riding the tail of this dog that’s running through an economic downturn,” said Grimm. “We have challenging times, but the takeaway is that there’s an extremely bright future for additive manufacturing. So, if you love this industry, if you want to make it your longterm career, rest assured … this industry is going to continue on and make significant impacts.”
The same can be said for many other future-focused industries, including healthcare, agriculture, and renewable energy. Whether we call it “change” or “adulthood,” we all have to manage our growing pains as we mature.
Rachael Pasini
[email protected]
@WTWH_Rachael
Filed Under: DIGITAL ISSUES • DESIGN WORLD
