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Global supply chains are being re-written. After decades of globalisation driven primarily by cost efficiency, geopolitical tensions, trade disputes and pandemic-era disruptions have exposed the risks of concentrating manufacturing and critical materials in a small number of regions. In response, governments and industries are turning to a new strategy: friendshoring. The term gained prominence in 2022 when then US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen described friendshoring as wo

The local head of Prague-headquartered Prusa Research describes the company as “one of the last standing Western desktop FDM manufacturers” . For Kalani Ripley, that status is both a challenge and an opportunity. Here he shares his observations on the local market and Prusa’s plans here. The Original Prusa MK4 printing a component. Still only in his twenties, Gold Coast-based Kalani Ripley has already spent more than a decade immersed in manufacturing. He built his first 3D p

An Australian-led additive manufacturing research project is set to transform how long-duration space and defence missions are powered, overcoming one of the most persistent barriers facing operations in space, subsea and extreme environments: reliable, maintenance-free energy. Through its first funded research project, the Additive Manufacturing Cooperative Research Centre (AMCRC) is helping South Australian nuclear engineering and technology company entX transition its Gen

Professor Tim Eden, Head of the Material Science Division at The Applied Research Laboratory at Penn State Cold spray is emerging as a powerful repair technology, helping industries extend the life of ageing assets while reshaping supply chains. In December, Professor Tim Eden from Pennsylvania State University visited Australia to deliver a two-day course in Melbourne on the unique challenges of performing cold spray repairs outside a traditional laboratory environment. In

Artificial intelligence is reshaping every sector it touches, and additive manufacturing (AM) is no exception. A recent expert panel explored how AI is accelerating innovation across the AM value chain, from design and optimisation to production and workforce readiness. As with many industries, the AM community is attempting to make sense of a future where artificial intelligence-driven change seems a given.   The impact of the current set of generative AI tools is still bein