How Startups Can Succeed Leveraging Additive Manufacturing and Phillips Education

Startups are disrupting multinationals and publicly listed companies unabated for the last two decades. While some startups get massive funding from Venture Capitalists, more than 80 per cent of all startups world over are completely bootstrapped, which means, they don’t depend upon external equity or debt to finance their business. This becomes a suicide mission for them, where these teams of 2-4 co-founders are expected to innovate, differentiate, offer their product at an extremely competitive price, and build a loyal customer base, without hefty R&D, Marketing, and Branding budgets, as enjoyed by their more established competition. To save David from Goliath, additive manufacturing (“AM” or “3D printing”) is arming startups with the technology they need to experiment, prove concepts, iterate, and eventually scale without large production facilities.

The bane of AM is that it is perceived as an emerging technology for the past 40 years, due to its unaffordability and inaccessibility to most. It was only in the past 10 years that the cost of AM equipment began consistently falling, as innovations in the technology began overcoming previous barriers to adoption. Today, most industrial-grade printers are inexpensive to most, along with standard materials, making it a much more viable technology. Phillips Education has made a conscious commitment to additive technology by partnering with technologies such as Markforged, EOS, and Meltio, realising that these technologies have begun to play a transformative role in the global startup landscape. This groundbreaking technology, which creates physical objects from digital models by successively adding material layer by layer, is not only democratising the process of production but also significantly propelling the success of startups across the globe. 

Market Growth and Adoption 
According to a study by Wohlers Associates, the 3D printing industry has witnessed robust growth in recent years. The report estimated that the industry’s market value, which stood at $16 billion in 2020, is expected to cross $40 billion by 2024, marking a remarkable compound annual growth rate of 26.4 per cent.

These figures underline the increasing adoption of 3D printing technology across various sectors, with startups at the vanguard of this movement. Today, 3D printing technology is proving to be beneficial to startups in innumerable ways. It offers a rapid, costeffective solution to prototype development and reduces initial overhead costs, contributing to a leaner, more efficient production process. Also, 3D printing provides unparalleled customisation capabilities. “As consumer demand increasingly shifts towards personalised products, 3D printing technology offers startups a unique opportunity to distinguish themselves from competitors,” explains Anuj Budhiraja, Vice President of Additive at Phillips Machine Tools. 3D printing can contribute to sustainability in several ways. It minimises waste by precisely using the amount of material needed for each product. It also reduces the carbon footprint associated with long-distance transportation by enabling local production. AM can even be used with eco-friendly materials, including recycled or sustainable biomaterials. Moreover, additive technology enables unparalleled design freedom, as well as the ability to create complex shapes and geometries. 

Closing the Knowledge Gap  
One of the primary barriers to the adoption of additive manufacturing is the lack of available, comprehensive training and education. While AM holds immense potential for revolutionising a multitude of industries, processes, and functions, the complexities involved in implementing and optimising AM can be daunting without proper guidance and expertise. The limited availability of specialised training programmes leads to a shortage of professionals with the right skills to effectively leverage AM technologies. This is where Phillips Education comes in. An initiative of Phillips Corporation, Phillips Education was established to enable innovators to have access to the resources they need to unlock the full potential of advanced manufacturing. Founded in 1961, Phillips Corporation is a USA-based company with a legacy of over six decades in advanced manufacturing technology solutions. The Phillips group has numerous strategic partnerships with pioneering international manufacturers, including leaders in additive manufacturing, such as EOS, Markforged, Meltio, and more. The many benefits of additive manufacturing make it one of he key technologies propagated by Phillips. With a focus on practical training, industry insights, and hands-on experience, Phillips Education equips individuals and businesses large and small to navigate the complexities of AM adoption through multiple offerings.

The Road Ahead 
Undoubtedly, additive manufacturing has the potential to reshape industries, drive innovation, and achieve ambitious sustainability goals. Startups, in particular, stand to benefit greatly from incorporating AM into their operations as it enables them to rapidly iterate on product designs, optimise supply chains, and bring their ideas to market faster than ever before. “The successful adoption of AM requires more than mere access to the technology – it requires a deep understanding of the process, materials, and design consideration, as well as the ability to address knowledge gaps that may hinder implementation,” according to Rakshiit Kejriwal, President of Phillips Education. “This is where Phillips Education plays a crucial role. We have a dream that startups should be able to print their ideas into parts or products in a matter of few days and their demo days to investors should be done not on PowerPoint slides but with actual physical products in hands,” says Kejriwal. Phillips Education is aggressively looking to partner with such incubators and tech parks across the world to make this dream a reality. Through Phillips’ partnership with industry leaders, collaboration with government and private organisations, and diverse set of offerings, startups can gain technical expertise, practical insights, and a solid foundation in additive manufacturing. 

Rakshiit Kejriwal, President of Phillips Education says, “The successful adoption of AM requires a deep understanding of the process, materials, and design consideration, as well as the ability to address knowledge gaps that may hinder implementation”