The rules are changing for manufacturing; instead of a warehouse of components as now, in the future there could be a hard drive of drawings, a virtual warehouse if you like, and a single machine waiting to produce the single component that’s required when it’s needed… and not before!

Often in projects up to 50 percent of the working capital of a business is tied up in stock; capital that isn’t immediately productive.  But, if you’ve spent many years of your career mastering the traditional manufacturing process, and then something like 3D Manufacturing comes along and turns your conventional thinking upside down, you may not necessarily be its biggest supporter.  However, maybe we need to be open minded and take this one on board… because early adopters will make the largest gains.

An uncomfortable thought for some of us maybe, but it’s happening already.  Now is the time to grapple with the new technology and start the process of rethinking our strategy for making things in the future.

During the event Phil Roberts of Laser Line Ltd will be demonstrating Rapid Prototyping and answering your questions… something not to be missed.