At the end of each year, the 3D ADEPT Media editorial team revisits the technologies and applications that shaped its additive manufacturing coverage. These ten choices offer our perspective on 2024; they are neither an exhaustive market ranking nor an independent performance comparison.
This dossier was prepared for the November/December 2024 edition and published online in January 2025. Its outlook refers to that period.
1. Fifty shades of large format Additive Manufacturing
Making larger parts brings new post-processing requirements, as illustrated by AMCM’s Formnext 2024 display. In its October 2024 announcement, Solukon specifies SFM-AT1500-S capacity for parts measuring 600 × 600 × 1,500 mm or 820 × 820 × 1,300 mm, weighing up to 2,100 kg including the plate. These stated limits must be checked against each part-and-plate assembly; they do not guarantee compatibility with every large-format build.
Several launches in our 2024 coverage focused on producing larger parts in a single build. We observed this direction across composites, laser powder bed fusion (LPBF), wire arc additive manufacturing (WAAM), polymer extrusion and vat photopolymerisation.
2. Customization continues to be the manufacturers’ priority
We featured striking applications in 2024. Beyond their appearance, their business case deserves scrutiny: is customisation enough to make AM profitable, and how does it fit with series production? Our observations highlight the importance of repeatability and the business model. They do not establish that only companies offering series manufacturing can be profitable.
3. Semiconductors and defence: two sectors followed in 2024
Semiconductors and defence became increasingly visible in the subjects we followed in 2024, making them sectors to watch for 2025. The charts below describe our editorial coverage; they do not measure market shares or total industrial output.
AM can help produce particular components and tooling used in the semiconductor industry. It does not by itself resolve worldwide capacity and supply problems. Vat photopolymerisation and laser powder bed fusion featured in our coverage, with the choice of process depending on material, function and qualification requirements.
Our 2024 coverage also reflected interest in AM among defence organisations. The first part of this retrospective examines that context. Investment announcements and specialist events suggested opportunities for 2025, rather than guaranteeing future expenditure or applications.
4. Material extrusion, the segment where we saw the most 3D printer launches
Among the printer launches covered by our editorial team in 2024, material extrusion was the most represented category, followed by powder bed fusion and vat photopolymerisation. This describes our selection of stories, not a census of worldwide launches.
Commercial product names do not always make the underlying process clear. A shared vocabulary can help users and suppliers compare solutions and communicate more effectively.
Notable 2024 announcements included Rosotics’ large-format metal system Halo, Fugo Precision 3D’s centrifugal solution and ADDiTEC’s hybrid machine combining liquid metal jetting, laser directed energy deposition and CNC machining. These descriptions come from the manufacturers and are not a performance comparison.
5. The rise of the entry-level 3D printer
Desktop and entry-level printer manufacturers also seek to address professional requirements. I found the Formnext 2024 demonstrations promising for certain uses, although suitability for industrial production still needs to be assessed application by application.
According to CONTEXT’s Q2 2024 report, shipments below $2,500 rose 34% quarter-on-quarter, 65% year-on-year and 41% on a trailing-twelve-month basis. Within this category, Creality accounted for 47% of units and Bambu Lab 26%; their annual shipment growth was 64% and 336% respectively. Creality also grew 45% over the first half-year. Together with Anycubic and Elegoo, these manufacturers supplied 94% of the category’s shipments.
6. The AM software landscape continues to be fragmented
The variety of AM software can make integration complex. Our 2024 review highlights the value of interoperability and a common vocabulary across design, preparation, simulation and manufacturing monitoring.
It’s a landscape that is increasingly shaped by a growing number of AI-powered solutions. Although I recognize the potential of AI-powered solutions, I can’t help but remind product designers to remain cautious. Indeed, the more boundaries are pushed for AI-powered technologies, the more product designers should pay attention and do their best not to set aside their own creative judgement.
Software presented in 2024 aimed, among other things, to optimise production and reduce failed builds. Those objectives need application-specific evaluation; they do not guarantee equal benefits for every user.
7. Process monitoring: Defect identification tools
In my view, progress in in-process monitoring is particularly valuable. Detecting an anomaly earlier can help limit scrap and improve process understanding. It does not replace the inspection and qualification required for the finished part.
In May 2024, the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory presented optical sensing and laser control aimed at keyhole defects. The team reported a system response of 952 nanoseconds. This is a research step towards defect prevention, not a universal guarantee of defect-free parts. Other approaches, including acoustic monitoring and Phase3D’s tools, also warranted further attention.
8. The combination of several manufacturing processes
Combining additive and conventional processes is common in manufacturing chains. At Formnext 2024, another approach caught our attention: using two additive processes within one part. The displayed demonstrator combined directed energy deposition (DED) with copper elements produced by powder bed fusion, aiming to tailor material properties in different regions.
One key advantage of such techniques remains the possibility to deliver locally optimized material properties that can fulfill specific functions and that’s something that could be beneficial for a lot of applications if well pursued.
9. Tungsten 3D printed parts
There is something fascinating about tungsten and the way manufacturers and researchers are trying to “crack the code” of its manufacturing. As a reminder, tungsten’s hardness and extremely high melting point have always made it difficult to process via AM technologies. While LPBF is often mentioned as one of the AM processes that could process it, I want to shed light on part manufacturers who were willing to explore other techniques this year among which Electron-beam additive manufacturing as well as laser powder-blown directed-energy deposition.
10. SpaceX Raptor 3 sparks discussion about design
SpaceX’s Raptor 3 was among the space developments that caught our attention in 2024. The visual comparison with earlier versions shows a simpler external architecture. It invites discussion of how integrated functions and manufacturing processes contribute to engine design.
The image alone, however, does not establish how much of the engine was 3D printed or demonstrate savings in cost or workforce, or improvements in safety. Such benefits should not automatically be attributed to additive manufacturing alone.
This dossier first appeared in the November/December 2024 edition of 3D ADEPT Mag. Featured image: Mesago / Mathias Kutt.
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