Yes, I believe that will happen in my lifetime. It’s called 3D printing and in 10 years, you’ll all be doing it. You’ll print stuff you need at home and, at some point, you’ll just print your own house. Yes, I’m talking about the house you live in. (You'll need a industrial sized printer of course.)
I’ve asked many of my friends if they know that, right now, they can print their own door handles and other items they need from a printer in their own house. I always get the same reaction: “What do you mean by print it?” I mean exactly that. You scan an object into your 3D software on your laptop, then plug in the printer, and print what you need.
Here’s a 3D printer you can buy for $1,299. You can use it to print solid objects in a few hours.
Naturally, you need to buy the material (think of it as a printing cartridge) and, for now, there are limits to what kind of material you can use at home for printing objects. You can print with a vinyl type material, but there is no reason you can't print from different chemical compounds, mixed on the fly, to create different types of material – all in your house. No more factories. No more transportation.
How about printing edible food? Yes, you don't even have to go to the grocery store. Perfect. You can just stay at home and eat your printed food. (Just what we need in America.)
Within ten years, I’m certain you’ll see 3D printing enabling new markets and even whole economies. While it may be a few years before 3D printers really enter the mass market and make their way into every household, think of the opportunities! What if 10,000 Ebay and Etsy sellers owned their own printers? They would create amazing custom made-to-order products for all of us. It’s not far away.
Eventually, hospitals will print blood vessels and other body parts. You say that’s nuts. Possibly, but it’s already happening right now:
What will you print? New parents? Kids?
