The Art of Adaptation: Navigating Challenges in the 3D Printing Arena

It would be a stretch to call it anything more than a blip. But even the leaders in the 3D printing revolution, the companies trying to bring this technology to the mass market, aren’t immune to the inevitable gut checks that come when industries are moving up and down like amusement-park rides. Formlabs, one of the first and most prominent companies in the booming market for desktop 3D printers, reportedly laid off a few dozen employees this week. The Desktop Metal news had a ripple effect on its industry, contributing to the stock decline for 3D Systems and ExOne. The Formlabs move is a prominent example of layoffs among 3D printing companies this year, which appears to be shaping up as a particularly tough year for the industry. Still, this doesn’t mean the technology isn’t growing, but it does mean that the growth is spottier than it was in the early, high-flying days of the industry two or three years ago. Through all the gyrations and ups and downs of the 3D printing revolution, there’s one thing that we do know about the industry: it hasn’t given up.

The Ripple of Reduction: A Strategic Shift

FACING INDUSTRY HEADWINDS

Formlabs’ decision was not an arbitrary one, nor is it just a reaction to the high winds that are buffeting 3D printing. There is a harsh reality that the industry finds itself in now, one that requires careful navigation to simply survive and prosper.

The Essence of Optimization

A Formlabs spokesman said: ‘Sometimes we need to make tough decisions to focus on optimising operations to ensure the long-term success of the company.’ Notice the way the company replaces news of layoffs with an alleged ‘commitment to operational efficiency’ and a ‘long-term vision’. The language is deftly engineered to hide the decision to fire people behind a veil of grand corporate vision and devotion to efficiency.

Championing Innovation Amidst Adversity

PIONEERS OF PROGRESS

Formlabs remains a leader in everything from resin printing to bioprinting, with endless incremental improvements in materials, machines and software. The company’s commitment to excellence, and its determination to make an impact, is a testament not only to itself but its staying power in the market.

The Commitment Continues

What’s more, Formlabs’ mission to ‘enable the future of digital fabrication’ is still unequivocal. The company is directing capital into research and development to make the entire 3D printing industry progress, come hell or high water.

The Industry at a Junction

A COLLECTIVE CHALLENGE

Formlabs is not the only one going through this; the wider market for 3D printing has been sprinkled with similar accounts of adjustment and reinvention, calls for resilience and creativity in the face of economic adversity.

Towards a Resilient Future

Leveraging Lessons Learned

The recent shifts are calling for some learning and evolution. Reflecting on operational efficiencies, technological capabilities and market needs, companies can forge new paths toward more resilient and agile strategies.

The Driving FORCE of Collaboration

Moreover, deeper collaborations between firms in the ecosystem – be it through partnerships, knowledge sharing or joint innovation – could increase the sector’s collective resilience to withstand crises.

The Essence of FORCE in 3D Printing

The story of Formlabs and the larger 3D printing industry is one of forces. Or rather, it’s a story about workforce forces, and also about the forces of innovation, adaptation and collaboration that the industry relies upon. There’s the kind of force that is a buzzword for laying off people to be more efficient but there’s also the kind of force that is technology pushing the industry ahead, with an added kind of force being a large industry uniting to push forward.

Overall, the recent scaling back at Formlabs and other companies might represent a pause for the industry to reflect, but it also signals commitment to adapting and staying focused on the long-term future. Optimising operations, harnessing innovation and relying on each other’s strengths, the 3D printing industry should come out of these rough waters stronger than ever before, creating a future in which digital fabrication becomes more affordable and more widely applicable all the time. Formlabs and their peers are in the business of adapting. It isn’t simply a story of trouble and survival. It is the power of human creativity and technological pursuit, persisting through the arc of time.