Globalization and the Future of Supply Chains
Our globally connected system provides for efficiency and scale but also adds risk and fragility. These risks have largely been hidden, but cracks in the system are beginning to emerge, and supply chain resilience has become an issue of intense focus across industrial sectors.
Customization at Scale
3D printing allows custom items to be manufactured at price points similar to traditional manufacturing, which will significantly impact the consumer products and inventory management industries.
Visualizing Globalization
Global trade is the backbone of globalization, as visualized in this amazing interactive map that depicts a year of merchant fleet movement data.
3D Printing and Global Security Dynamics
There will be security and humanitarian effects if the additive manufacturing industry matures to the point where low-end goods are no longer built in developing countries, removing the traditional path for countries to develop.
3D Printing and the Regionalization of Economic Activity
The continued development and eventual widespread adoption of 3D printing will change the shape of global trade.
Logistics: Dependencies and Complexity
The logistics industry is directly affected by any shift that impacts the volume of goods moved around the world, requiring companies in this sector to be forward-looking, agile, and proactive.