There are many opportunities to leverage additive manufacturing (AM), whether it is localizing manufacturing, improving supply chains, or developing innovative parts by leveraging the design benefits of the technology. In this special live interview from the International Manufacturing Technology Show, Additive Snack host Fabian Alefeld interviews John Wilczynski, Executive Director of America Makes. America Makes is the research-centric national institute charged with driving the adoption of the additive manufacturing industry.

Comments about the show or wish to share your AM journey? Contact us at [email protected]. The Additive Snack Podcast is brought to you by EOS.

Key Takeaways:

[3:06] America Makes is a membership-driven organization with strategic initiatives to broadly increase the adoption of additive manufacturing.

[6:54] What approaches can those in additive manufacturing take to further the initiative within the traditional manufacturing industry?

[12:49] As AM tech matures, John points out that the challenge is distributing the benefits and opportunities to traditional manufacturers.

[16:42] Even though additive manufacturing is a proven solution for localized manufacturing, calculating the demand signal continues to be challenging.  

[20:27] John describes the final hurdles AM will face before becoming an integral part of the supply chain and how business owners can justify the initial investment.

Shareables:

“Very few manufacturing processes are stand-alone.”— John Wilczynski, Executive Director, America Makes

“There is just not a supply chain that exists in an ecosystem we are able to take advantage of.”— John Wilczynski, Executive Director, America Makes

“Additive is proven to be a solution that works.”— John Wilczynski, Executive Director, America Makes