[Captain Ahab Jr]

I first saw 3D printed or the more generic term rapid prototype parts 20yrs ago and the stuff you see the press hyping up now with the availability of home machines is low tech.

I think high level motorsport with the low part numbers might be one of the first industries to embrace this manufacturing technology.

It has allowed big F1/LMP 1 teams to make 1000's of wind tunnel test parts a month instead of a few hundred dramatically increasing the speed of areo development.

As for full scale race car parts it's changed the way designers have had to think, with metal parts no longer do you think of subtracting material, tool cutter access or billet size, conventional wall thicknesses etc

Take the titanium roll hoop structure on a single seater, this can now be stressed with shape optimising software to make a structure that has a similar construction to a human bone ie thin skin on the outside and lots of tiny cells/webs on the inside making it very much lighter than a conventional fabricated part.

Or a hydraulic distribution manifold that has multiple curved oil galleries which are intertwined like some organic structure rather than a block of metal with holes drilled in it.

Also when casting titanium you can make a rapid prototype pattern with so much more detail that is then dipped into a ceramic liquid to make the mould. The RP pattern is then burnt away before pouring in the titanium.

Or using a RP mould when making carbon fibre parts, you wrap whatever shape you want in carbon eg engine plenum and the melt out the RP mould and you have a hollow carbon part which is so much more complex than could be achieved before RP was used.

For me it has changed the way I have to think when designing and made so many more things possible that could not be done before.

Outside of my little part of the world of engineering I know titanium RP parts are used for bone and dental implants as the rough surface texture helps bone growth around the hip ball joint or whatever be so it becomes part of the patients body quicker with less chance of rejection or infection. This same rough surface can be added to carbon fibre parts allowing for full bones to be made or even making it possible to have quick fit limbs, you could have a set of swimming legs, running legs all changed and fitted in seconds.

For me it will have a huge positive impact on the world as it will reduce waste, scrap and allow so much more flexibility than has been achieved before. This is no short term fad but real technology pushing new frontiers and here to stay.

Even after being around this technology for so long I still have '$hit this is James Bond stuff' cool moments when I see some of the stuff been done with it.