3D Printing Technology and the Market Value of the Firm

3D printing, sometimes known as additive manufacturing or digital direct manufacturing, is an innovative manufacturing technology that has gained notoriety recently. However, despite the promising potential and popularity of the technology, there is not yet evidence of the shareholder value implications of firms' commitments to 3D printing. In this paper, we assess the effects on shareholder wealth of 3D printing-related announcements for publicly traded firms from 2011 to 2017. We find that the stock market places significantly positive value on announcements associated with rapid prototyping or ad hoc customization applications, while the reaction to announcements related to the use of 3D printing technology for mass production was far less enthusiastic. For firms faced with the decision of whether to implement 3D printing in their manufacturing processes, our findings suggest that the market greatly values 3D printing in several important contexts, but the technology is not a universal panacea.