The use of 3D printing-digitally controlled additive manufacturing-is growing rapidly. Customer models of 3D printers allow people to fabricate small plastic items, from cabinet knobs to wedding ceremony wedding cake toppers. Industrial uses are becoming widespread, as businesses use the technology to fabricate prototypes, spare parts, custom-fitted prosthetics, and other plastic or metal items, often at lower cost and with greater efficiency than regular manufacturing. Within this quantity in the MIT Press about 3D Printing Necessary Understanding series, John Jordan offers an accessible introduction to 3D printing.

Jordan outlines the levels of 3D printing, from idea to software model to a printable document that slices the planned object into printable layers to the finished object itself. He represents additive technologies, customer 3D printing in homes and academic institutions, mass customization, and commercial uses. He considers the feasible unintended consequences of 3D printing on careers, as businesses scramble to discover employees with an uncommon expertise; on business versions and supply stores, as manufacturing can be decentralized; and on patent laws, as machines can be designed to copy covered real estate. Finally, Jordan looks at new and emerging uses, including bioprinting, building construction, and micromachines.