3D printing also known as additive manufacturing, turns digital 3D models into solid objects by building them up in layers. Whilst on work experience Christopher Wilkin (Yr11 student) from The Bishop's Stortford College explored the growing developments of this technology.

One of this decade’s most technologically advanced developments in the modelling industry was the development of the 3D printer. When given the correct instructions, it can recreate what was just a virtual object, designed with mouse and keyboard on a computer, into a real object that you can touch and hold. Previously, prototypes for complex designs were created through long, laborious processes, often done completely by hand due to the unique nature of the designs. Now, with the aid of 3D printers, the same models can be sculpted in front of your very eyes in just a few hours.

Technology in medicine is constantly evolving, and the revolutionary tech of 3D printing has caught Amelie Martin’s interest, a Year 11 student from Comberton Village College, whilst on her virtual work experience placement.

Today, our conventional manufacturing technologies are too expensive, inflexible and slow for medical applications and aren’t compatible with biological materials.

3D printing is set to revolutionise the industry, bringing fast, customisable, and cost-effective manufacturing into medicine, and has already been predicted to be worth £2.5 billion by 2025.