Robotics, Biotech, Nanotech, Artificial Intelligence, Wearable Computing and Cyborg technology in the prototype stage and/or nearing deployment.
A wider range of companies are considering adopting a more flexible, premium approach to manufacturing that has previously been limited to a relatively small niche…
“You don’t need to center everything on making millions of the same thing at the absolute cheapest price anymore,” says Kross.
He cites the growing popularity of a model known as ETO (engineer to order), in which businesses buying from manufacturers order by referring to a list of general rules, not a catalogue and price list.
For each order, a manufacturer makes and assembles a product very specific to the customer’s needs. That approach also cuts costs, because raw materials and parts don’t have to be held in stock; rather, they can be purchased to match the latest order. And the customized products can command a higher price than a conventionally made one…
That style of manufacturing makes the design process—and design software—much more central. Kross says that 3-D printing technology will blur the line between design and manufacturing still further.
