The soaring adoption of 3D printing in the manufacturing sector is driving the demand for 3D printing materials across the world. Moreover, in many manufacturing facilities, the additive manufacturing technology is being increasingly deployed for obtaining faster and better results. Traditionally, manufacturing has always been reliant on the subtractive process, which involved the reuse of the wasted raw materials multiple times. For example, in an automotive manufacturing facility, a metal sheet is cut and then shaped into various parts, and the remaining metal is melted again for forming plates, which are also reused.

As it was a long and highly expensive process, it is being rapidly replaced by the additive manufacturing technology. Apart from this, the expansion of the automotive industry, on account of the soaring manufacturing and sales of automobiles, especially in developing countries such as India, China, Indonesia, and Brazil, is also driving the demand for 3D printing materials across the world. For example, India and China became the two largest procurers of automobiles with sales volumes of 4.02 million units and 29.12 million units, respectively, in 2017.

As 3D printing is being increasingly adopted in the automotive industry, particularly for designing parts that are difficult to manufacture via conventional methods and have complex geometries, the boom in the industry is positively impacting the worldwide demand for 3D printing materials. Additionally, 3D printed automotive components consume lesser energy during manufacturing and are lightweight, thereby further boosting the popularity of the 3D printing technology among automakers all over the world.

Because of the aforementioned factors, the value of the global 3D printing materials market is expected to surge from $558.4 million in 2017 to more than $1,365.6 million by 2023, while the market will progress at a CAGR of 16.7% between 2018 and 2023, as per the estimates of the market research company, P&S Intelligence. Metals, ceramics, and plastics are the most widely used 3D printing materials across the world.

This is attributed to the existence of several leading 3D printing material producers and mushrooming utilization of the 3D printing technology in mass customization and product manufacturing. The sales of these materials are also expected to shoot up in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region in the forthcoming years. This will be because of the implementation of favorable government regulations, booming industrial base, and huge investments being made in research and development (R&D) projects in the region.

Hence, the growing adoption of the 3D printing technology in manufacturing operations and the expansion of the automotive industry will fuel the demand for 3D printing materials across the world in the forthcoming years.