At the close of 2025, Apple announced that 3D additive printing for its Apple watch cases, using 100% recycled aerospace‑grade titanium powder, had reduced raw titanium consumption by 50%. 400 metric tons were saved, in a significant step towards its 2030 decarbonization goals.¹

At 35,000 feet, you need serious engineering muscle. In 2014, an Airbus cabin bracket quietly evolved. Printed from titanium powder, the pioneering A350 component was bionic and topology-optimised. It proved that additive manufacturing could deliver a flight-ready part that was not only structurally functional, but roughly 30% lighter than its traditionally milled predecessor.²

Amongst other innovations, Stratasys prints patient-specific models for surgical preparation and training. Blended photopolymers generate precise mechanical, visual, and tactile properties - from soft tissue to bone-like structures - a finger that bleeds, an intricate lumbar vertebra, and in partnership with Fraunhofer IGD, a prosthetic eye.³

Power cuts: leaders are questioning AM’s scale and economics

Let’s be clear. Additive manufacturing best suits niche applications. It involves more substantial production times and costs than high-speed-cutting technologies. It quickly hits a ceiling in terms of unit volumes and dimensions. Regulation and standardization are also problematic: certification frameworks for additive parts - especially in safety-critical industries - are still undercooked. So too are IP, digital security, and traceability.

Many C-suite leaders lack insights into how AM fits their supply and value chains, fumbling for use cases and cost-benefit ratios. Other blockages are architectural: cumbersome decision cycles, fragmented legacy systems, and pressure on ROI. Risk aversion and complacency linger – especially given the economic turbulence. How can manufacturers break out of the rut?

Treated as a strategic industrial capability, AM boosts competitiveness

The answers lie in the sectors who are successfully adopting this astounding technology. Aerospace, thanks to lightweighting, low-volume production, and certified high-value parts. Medical devices and healthcare, because of customization, patient-specific solutions, and relatively high margins. Specialized tooling, spare parts, and niche serial manufacturing, due to the agility and localization of production units. The AM ecosystem is growing.

The leading machine tooling company DMG Mori, a Japanese German fusion, extended into digital manufacturing in 2016, systematically expanding its digital manufacturing and software business around ‘CELOS’ and related solutions. While not publicly reported as a separate percentage, these offerings are seen as major growth drivers behind the company’s strong order and revenue performance in recent years.

Moreover, as Apple illustrates, when ‘closed loop material systems’ join the mix, AM can contribute to sustainability. They “improve feedstock availability, reduce exposure to supply disruptions, and enable greater reuse of valuable metals,” a recent White Paper signaled.⁴

In a nutshell, AM accelerates product development, localizes supply chains, reduces weight and material waste, and enables on-demand production. The winners integrate it into digital workflows, building organizational capabilities around it.