It's all to do with lighter parts, says engine maker CFM, which has been experimenting with 3-D printing and using ceramic matrix composites. The move could save $1 million a year per plane, reducing fuel consumption by 15%.
3-D-printing startup Shapeways might be the only tech startup creating new manufacturing jobs in New York City. That's why five city officials showed up to christen its 25,000-square-foot factory last week.
1 // MakerBot's Thing-O-Matic is
a user-friendly descendant of the rapid-prototyping machines utilized by industrial designers for years. Such machines can produce
three-dimensional "rough drafts"
of products prior to their mass-manufacture. The Thing-O-Matic
is smaller (and cheaper) than
industrial-grade machines. It
stands 16 inches high and has an area of 1 square foot.
