Earlier this yr, Wohlers Associates, powered by ASTM Worldwide, launched the thirtieth version of the Wohlers Report, an annual evaluation and forecast for the 3D printing and additive manufacturing business.
Because the organisation celebrates this milestone, TCT caught up with the Wohlers Associates crew [WA] to discover the important thing findings of this yr’s report, the way it has transitioned into ASTM Worldwide after the 2021 acquisition, and what goes into the event of the report.
We additionally discover the unique motivation behind launching the report within the Nineties and the way it’s set to evolve shifting ahead.
TCT: Not too long ago, Wohlers Associates, powered by ASTM Worldwide, revealed the 30th version of the Wohlers Report. Inform us about the important thing findings of this yr’s report.
WA: The additive manufacturing (AM) business is getting into a extra mature part. Whereas general sentiment throughout the sector was cautious, monetary knowledge from a whole bunch of firms revealed a extra resilient image: the business grew by 9.1% in 2024. Supplies noticed the strongest good points, with a 20% enhance, signalling deeper utilisation of put in machines and increasing manufacturing functions.
Regional efficiency was blended. North America and EMEA held regular with marginal change (±5%), whereas Asia-Pacific—notably China—skilled over 30% development, pushed by sturdy home demand and rising exports of each industrial and desktop steel programs.
Though progress was incremental, 2024 demonstrated continued adoption and operational integration of AM. Importantly, many firms at the moment are shifting their focus from top-line development to sustainable profitability, marking a strategic evolution in how success is measured throughout the business.
TCT: Are you able to inform us concerning the transition after Wohlers Associates was acquired by ASTM Worldwide, in addition to how ASTM feels its contributions have enhanced the contents of the report?
WA: ASTM Worldwide acquired Wohlers Associates three-and-a-half years in the past, however the thirtieth version of the Wohlers Report marks the primary time ASTM absolutely led the event course of. This transition represents a major milestone—not simply in legacy, however in stewardship. With it got here a renewed dedication to rigour, transparency, and alignment with business priorities, guided by 4 core aims:
- High quality: To uphold the report’s credibility, over 40 ASTM specialists in additive manufacturing contributed to its inner evaluate. We additionally expanded our world contributor community to greater than 230 people—2.5 instances bigger than in earlier years—enhancing each regional perspective and peer validation. These included specialists from among the world’s most esteemed organisations and corporations, such because the U.S. Military and NASA.
- Transparency: For the primary time, we launched a devoted methodology part and embedded anonymised survey knowledge into charts. These modifications help our aim of being each informative and accountable in how knowledge is gathered and interpreted.
- Relevance: The 2024 version locations a stronger emphasis on rising priorities—certification, cybersecurity, knowledge infrastructure, AI, and qualification—to make sure the insights are actionable and aligned with real-world wants.
- Accessibility: We’ve launched new pricing choices and improved entry to supporting supplies, together with datasets, photographs, and tables, to higher serve the various wants of business, academia, authorities, and buyers.
The result’s a extra collaborative, clear, and decision-oriented useful resource that we consider strengthens the report’s worth for the worldwide AM neighborhood.
TCT: ASTM’s latest announcement mentions a long-term Wohlers Report 2.0 initiative. Are you able to inform us extra about that?
WA: Because the additive manufacturing business evolves, so too should the instruments and insights that help it. Wohlers Report 2.0 is our response to this shift: an initiative aimed toward increasing the report right into a extra dynamic, data-driven platform that goes past static pages.
To satisfy the business’s demand for extra well timed and actionable steering, we’ve launched a brand new sequence of quarterly updates. Our Q2 2025 report was the primary on this effort—a concise however data-rich briefing that revisited earlier forecasts in opposition to precise market efficiency and recognized rising developments. These updates are designed to supply extra speedy worth to stakeholders all year long, not simply throughout the annual report cycle.
Whereas the Wohlers Report stays our flagship product, many consumers are more and more benefiting from our proprietary database by requesting knowledge tailor-made to their particular enterprise wants. This shift displays our broader dedication to creating Wohlers a year-round intelligence ecosystem, one that mixes authoritative insights with versatile entry to specialty knowledge.
Suggestions from our readers has been clear: firms need deeper knowledge, larger granularity, and extra actionable steering. They’re in search of perception into the place the business is headed, however, furthermore, how they’ll place themselves to develop inside it. To satisfy these wants, we’re constructing a extra interactive intelligence platform powered by AI, sensible visualisations, and digital instruments that assist customers determine particular development alternatives and market dangers.
Wohlers Associates stays dedicated to delivering the business’s most trusted evaluation, however Wohlers Report 2.0 will add a brand new layer of performance: customisable dashboards, embedded use instances, and tighter integration with certification, requirements, and advisory companies by way of ASTM.
The aim is to provide stakeholders each knowledge and perception—in addition to the underlying digital infrastructure for smarter, sooner selections.
TCT: Most individuals should not conscious of how a lot work goes into compiling an business report. Are you able to shed some gentle on the method? How do you collate, dissect and package deal the data in a publication that delivers steering, perspective and a sensible view of the longer term?
WA: Producing the Wohlers Report is a rigorous, months-long course of that mixes world collaboration, deep knowledge assortment, and cautious editorial synthesis. It begins with direct enter from our readers. We routinely ballot them to grasp their most urgent intelligence wants. These insights assist form the scope and focus of every version.
From there, we interact a world community of specialists, numbering within the a whole bunch. These contributors present written evaluation on key areas similar to qualification and certification, healthcare, government-backed consortia, and regional market developments.
We additionally collect arduous knowledge from a broad cross-section of the business: AM service suppliers, machine producers, materials suppliers, software program builders, and finish customers. This contains financials, regional gross sales knowledge, and segment-specific exercise. Our evaluation crew dietary supplements this with info from public sources, together with authorities businesses and firm disclosures, to triangulate and validate developments.
The ultimate result’s a fastidiously constructed, data-informed view of the place the AM business stands and the place it’s heading. By mixing quantitative insights with knowledgeable interpretation, we intention to ship a useful resource that’s sensible, credible, and forward-looking.
TCT: Let’s go proper again to the beginning. What was the motivation behind launching the Wohlers Report again within the mid Nineties?
WA: Within the early days of additive manufacturing, there was a noticeable lack of in-depth, world reporting on the business. Whereas technical magazines often lined AM, the content material was usually restricted, just because there weren’t many bulletins, case research, or knowledge sources accessible on the time. We noticed a transparent want for a complete market examine that might provide each depth and breadth. Nobody was monitoring business development in a structured approach, and that problem intrigued us.
On the time, Wohlers Associates had already been working for a few decade, and launching a high-quality annual report felt like a pure step ahead—one that might elevate the agency’s visibility and impression. We additionally believed that by systematically gathering and analysing world knowledge annually, we’d not solely create one thing precious for the business, but in addition constantly educate ourselves and increase our world community. The method delivered monumental returns in information, perception, and relationships, and that, greater than something, motivated us to maintain going, yr after yr.
TCT: A few of our readers can have been working inside the AM sectors again then, however many weren’t. Are you able to present some perception into the 3D printing market in 1995?
WA: In 1995, the additive manufacturing business was nonetheless in its infancy. In accordance with the Wohlers Report 1996, the whole world market was valued at simply $295.1 million—in comparison with $21.9 billion in 2024. Solely 345 industrial AM programs had been bought that yr, a stark distinction to the tens of hundreds now shipped yearly.
On the time, practically all AM functions had been restricted to idea modelling and prototyping, primarily for evaluating kind and match. A couple of forward-looking firms had been experimenting with primary tooling, however manufacturing use was nonetheless a distant aim and largely unproven.
The dominant gamers in 1995 had been 3D Techniques and Stratasys. 3D Techniques had commercialised vat photopolymerisation (stereolithography), whereas Stratasys led with materials extrusion (fused deposition modelling). DTM, identified for growing polymer powder mattress fusion (PBF), was additionally energetic, as was EOS, which might go on to develop into a pioneer in each polymer and steel PBF applied sciences.
Curiously, service suppliers accounted for 46% of world AM spending that yr, highlighting how few firms had in-house programs. And though the time period “additive manufacturing” existed, it wasn’t broadly used. “Fast prototyping” was the widespread language of the time, precisely reflecting how the know-how was primarily seen.
TCT: How do you assess the change and evolution of the additive manufacturing market over the past 30 years?
WA: In some elementary methods, additive manufacturing (AM) has remained true to its origins. Most programs nonetheless construct elements layer by layer, usually utilizing STL information, a format launched in 1987 by Dave Albert below contract with 3D Techniques. Dave was an early acquaintance of Wohlers Associates, and the format he helped create stays a foundational aspect of AM workflows right this moment.
However in nearly each different respect, the business has reworked dramatically. In 1995, AM was a distinct segment know-how, primarily used for prototyping and idea modelling in R&D environments. In the present day, it’s a essential enabler of business manufacturing. 1000’s of AM elements at the moment are licensed to be used in extremely regulated sectors similar to aerospace, healthcare, and power—one thing that was just about unparalleled three a long time in the past.
What was as soon as theoretical—consolidating assemblies right into a single half, optimising designs for weight and efficiency, or enabling on-demand manufacturing—is now being applied at scale. These advantages had been usually mentioned within the mid-Nineties, however real-world examples had been uncommon. In the present day, they’re routine.
The supporting ecosystem has matured alongside the know-how. AM-specific alloys have been developed to enhance course of reliability and half efficiency. Design for AM (DfAM) instruments have developed to incorporate superior simulation, generative algorithms, and pre-build validation. In the meantime, third-party certifications, such because the ASTM Additive Manufacturing Certification Program, are serving to bridge the hole between what’s technically doable and what’s trusted by business regulators.
One of many extra stunning developments has been the rise of Chinese language machine producers. Pushed by sturdy home demand and growing export exercise, China has quickly develop into one of many dominant gamers in world machine shipments, one thing few would have predicted within the early years of the sector. These developments and the dynamic home provide chain have led to the formation of a number of AM print farms (services with tens of AM machines). Extra importantly, a notable variety of such print farms have gone past easy half manufacturing by vertically integrating a number of facets of the AM worth chain, together with feedstock manufacturing, engineering companies, post-processing, testing, and inspection.
In the end, the core worth proposition of AM has remained constant: larger design freedom, materials effectivity, and provide chain agility. What’s modified is our collective skill to ship on that promise with pace, scale, and confidence.
TCT: The unique Wohlers Associates crew and ASTM Worldwide characterize a wealth of AM experience and information. And over time, the AM sector has skilled many ups and downs. What’s your collective outlook of the trajectory AM is on?
WA: Additive manufacturing has matured right into a professional manufacturing modality, one which more and more enhances conventional strategies like casting, machining, and forming. Its integration into product improvement, design engineering, and manufacturing workflows is steadily increasing, and it is now gaining extra traction inside regulatory, legislative, and coverage circles as nicely.
We anticipate continued development throughout a number of sectors, with aerospace and healthcare main the best way because of AM’s distinctive skill to unlock practical benefits, cut back prices, and allow new product improvements. Primarily based on present trajectories, we mission the worldwide AM market to achieve $115 billion inside the subsequent decade. Supplies are anticipated to drive a major share of that development, reflecting deeper utilisation throughout industries and a shift towards production-scale functions.
That mentioned, the market’s focus is clearly evolving. The emphasis is shifting away from hype and speculative enlargement towards sensible, solution-driven use instances that ship measurable worth. AM is now not only a story of innovation—it’s changing into one in every of execution.
We additionally anticipate continued consolidation, notably by way of acquisitions of firms with sturdy applied sciences or mental property however restricted monetary runway or operational self-discipline. Some finish customers might pursue acquisitions themselves to safe key capabilities or vertical integration at beneficial valuations.
Whereas smaller, regionally centered AM firms should thrive, medium-to-large corporations might want to specialise and differentiate to remain aggressive. Geopolitical dynamics—similar to export controls, tariffs, and diverging sustainability rules—are more likely to additional affect how and the place AM is adopted. In some instances, this may occasionally speed up the regionalisation or localisation of AM provide chains, creating new alternatives for strategic positioning.
Briefly, the outlook is powerful, however success will rely much less on novelty and extra on disciplined execution, strategic alignment, and delivering actual worth at scale.
