Abstract
It has been speculated that, in the near future, additive manufacturing will begin to have a marked effect on how we order and manufacture products. When one examines some of the implications of AM more closely, it can be concluded that it could, in fact, have a major Impact not just on products, but on our society, and how we live and do business. This paper briefly covers the state of the art in AM with a particular emphasis on where the technologies are heading, and then examines some of the issues that will need to be grappled with as
additive manufacturing comes of age… within the next few decades…
