© Ernst & Young

... 44% of respondents with 3D printing experience see the main benefit in being able to improve the quality of their products, 41% in being able to customize products and 35% in being able to manufacture more complex products. "Companies see 3D printing as a technology that can be used to meet the increased demand for personalized products at low cost. It also makes it possible to offer customers completely new products that could not be manufactured using conventional technologies," says Müller. The pioneers are likely to be the plastics, aerospace, automotive and medical technology industries. Almost a third of all companies in these sectors that use 3D printing already use it to manufacture end products or their parts.