Adoption of Additive Manufacturing Approaches: The Case of Manufacturing SMEs

The paper examines the use of case study analysis of additive manufacturing implementation within small and medium enterprises (SME). Many of the manufacturing enterprises are subjected to lot of disruptive and changing landscape over the years. The current expectations of the new changing markets are shorter product cycles and fulfilling better customization within the produce lines. This allows the entry of Additive Manufacturing (AM) application within many of the product based manufacturing enterprises. AM adopts the process of joining materials through layers to produce objects through 3D digital data technology that enables it to innovate the traditional manufacturing processes. The paper aims to present an overview of additive manufacturing technology through small and medium enterprise adoption by conducting three mini case studies within manufacturing businesses. The paper aims to investigate how additive manufacturing drives innovation within these manufacturing SMEs and while understanding the adoption of these technological advances, proposes an appropriate implementation framework. The study also aims to evaluate any tactical patterns of innovation and growth towards the adoption and advantages of additive manufacturing, while recommending solutions to address certain challenges, especially within the supply chain transformation within the environment. Finally, through this paper the authors aim to address that use of additive manufacturing technology may or may not be applicable to all manufacturing SMEs.