To understand 3D printing in India, it’s important first to look at some statistics. A study from Research on India’s 3D printing market showed that in 2022 its revenue surged to $111.0 million in 2022 and was expected to further accelerate until it reached an estimated $705.1 million by 2030, a CAGR of 20.3%. In comparison, the U.S. market was worth $4.46 billion in 2022 but will grow at a rate of 15.7% in the same period according to Spherical Insights.
And this growth has been clear for quite some time. in 2021, an EY study reported the growth of 3D printing in India. Mahesh Makhija from the company explained that “India has seen increasing adoption of 3D printing technologies with growth rates over 30% year-on-year across materials. The industry has evolved from being a prototyping tech to end use production, with metal AM (additive manufacturing) leading the course.”
The experts with whom we spoke also agreed with this, starting with Kuntesh Radadiya, General Manager at STPL3D, one of the major 3D printer manufacturers in the country and the first to create their own “Made-in-India” SLS 3D printer. He notes, “Starting with first tier cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Surat, Hyderabad, Coimbatore, and Pune, the demand for 3D printers in India is beginning to pick up.”
He further mentions three prominent segments that are interested in 3D printers and the types of solutions they prefer. This includes globally renowned 3D printer manufacturers who increasingly have authorized resellers and distributors in the country, locally manufactured printers (notable for their cost advantages due to localized production of components) and printers imported from countries with low manufacturing costs.
He adds, “Each category attracts a distinct set of buyers and sellers. Typically, industries with stringent precision requirements favor printers from the U.S. and Europe, while hobbyists and SMEs gravitate towards affordable alternatives.”
But what about the types of technologies available?
Well, currently there are a number of different 3D printing technologies in India including extrusion, vat photopolymerization, selective laser sintering and selective laser melting (metal). Selective laser melting especially has received significant attention with India’s largest 3D printing service bureau, WordPro, recently investing in the SLM systems. Indeed, it seems all current AM processes can be found in some form in the country, including the recent development of an Indian EBM 3D printer, though certain remain more popular than others. The country has also become a hub for construction 3D printing, as we will cover later on.
Radadiya expands, “Overall, the AM industry in India is witnessing significant growth, with FDM and SLS being the most popular technologies. The increasing demand for rapid prototyping, customized tools, and unique designs in various sectors is creating a positive outlook for the future of AM in India.” He continues “The rising demand for customization, lightweight components, and complex geometries is further propelling the growth of Metal AM in India.”
Investment in 3D printing technologies has also been marked. Most especially from the Government of India who in 2022 unveiled the National Strategy on Additive Manufacturing. In this strategy, the mission is to position India as a global innovation and research hub for AM. To do this, the aim the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) to increase India’s share in global additive manufacturing to 5% by 2025. Furthermore, the country will aim to achieve targets such as the creation of 50 India-specific technologies for materials, machines and software, 100 new AM startups, 500 new products and produce new jobs for skilled workers who have been trained in 3D printing.
The Importance of Service Bureaus
However, 3D printer manufacturers do not make up the majority of the 3D printing business in India. Rather that honor goes to service bureaus. And there are a number of notable players in India including Imaginarium, Rapid 3D, Think3D, Wirpro3D and Vektor3D Systems, among many others.
This of course means that these bureaus are incredibly important in the country and are key to helping drive adoption of AM, shown as well by the Government of India’s support of them. Priyesh Mehta, Director of Imaginarium Rapid, comments, “The relevance and importance of 3D printing service bureaus still remains high in India, a country where people would usually prefer to ‘try first and then buy’. Also, the pace at which new 3D printing technologies are introduced for commercial use also makes a compelling case for OEM’s and part manufacturers to collaborate with service bureaus.
He continues, “Several OEM’s are using the make vs. buy decision making model and are preferring to use in-house machines for qualification of new use cases and external capacity with service bureaus for production.”
Given that it is through service bureaus that some of the most exciting and well-known Indian 3D printing projects came to be, such as the Guiness World Record-holding diamond ring made by Imaginarium back in 2020, this should come as no surprise. Furthermore, it seems likely as well that they will continue to be important in the country. Not the least because as it stands right now, they outnumber solution providers and have been involved with projects from the government including the country’s first metal 3D printer and the development of the National Centre for Additive Manufacturing (NCAM) in Hyderabad.
Notable Applications in the Country
As the use of 3D printing has grown in India, so too have the applications for which it is used. Of course, the most visible has been in construction. Over the past few years, a number of impressive projects have come out of the sector including a 3D printed post office and multi storey buildings.
Manu Santhanam, Professor in the Department of Civil Engineering at IIT Madras, has worked with Indian startup Tvasta and is an expert in 3D printable concrete. Together, he has been involved with both Tvasta and L&T. In terms of current projects in India, he explains, “Currently, L&T is also involved in the construction of a set of buildings in Chandigarh, as well as villas in Bangalore. Tvasta has also been getting several niche projects, some of them in combination with M/s Godrej Construction, Mumbai. Another start-up, called MICOB, based out of Gandhinagar, has been executing 3D printed buildings for the defense sector.”
Why is it so useful? Well, as we see in other countries, the potential for 3D printing is most clearly seen for the creation of buildings with complex geometrical designs as well as its potential to address housing crises. Professor Santhanam expands, “Currently, AM in construction is being looked at for the creation of niche facilities, with geometrical designs that are not easy to do with conventional construction. 3D printing applications will continue for special buildings. But after the guidelines for construction are properly established, it is expected that 3D printing will also work its way into mass housing, provided the scale is large enough to achieve the economy.”
Still, that does not mean that it is already well-established. Though there are a couple of major players, competition is still scarce. Building company L&T is by far the most prominent in this space.
Professor Santhanam notes, “Apart from L&T, no other large building company has entered this domain. On the other hand, after Tvasta and
