You're probably familiar with the notion of 3D printing. After all, it has taken a few steps quite deep into many different industries. As you could have guessed it touched upon sports too. One sport where thanks to advancement of technology called additive manufacturing improvements were almost immediate is tennis. Today, you have access to 3D printed tennis rackets, dampeners, and many other pieces of equipment. Let's take a look together how this technology aids in innovating the sport of tennis. Let's first start with what is 3d printing, or the so-called additive manufacturing.
3D printing is a process that creates three-dimensional objects by layering levels of material. It is also called additive manufacturing. It is quite different from traditional manufacturing. 3D printing often requires no drilling or cutting of bigger pieces of material. Because of this it has many benefits that have aided it to enter the spheres of many global industries. The biggest ones include less material waste, more flexibility in of design, customization, personalization, delocalized manufacturing processes, and lesser cost of manufacturing. It also gave birth to new forms of materials such as Metamaterials or Architected Materials.
While the notion of 3D printing might appear as a novelty to many people, its idea has quite deep roots. The first talk about this way of creating items appeared way back in the 1980s. It has gone a long way since its early days, and nowadays additive manufacturing is present in different industries including sports. One of the sports where it has made the biggest strides so far is tennis. Tennis Equipment and 3D Printing
Before we start we need to say that while present, the entry of 3D printing in the sport of tennis is at an early stage. Yet, if you're a betting man, you can take a look at tennis odds, and make a bet that in the not so distant future 3D printing and tennis will be fully coned. What makes tennis so appealing to additive manufacturing is the fact that tennis equipment has a complex structure which might be easier to make than with traditional manufacturing methods. Because of this it is slowly emerging as a viable option for manufacturing items such as rackets. They can be personalized, customized, and altered in more ways than imaginable through 3D printing. The potential in taking the equipment manufacturing in tennis in this direction are vast.
The fact that is often overlooked when it comes to 3D printing is also its effect on environmental sustainability where it easily tops many of the traditional ways of manufacturing goods. When you pair that with the possible ability to create custom made racquets for players to tailor to their playing style and court preferences, 3D printing will be the king of tennis instead of Novak Djokovic. Add to the mix other pieces of tennis equipment and various accessories players might need and you'll get the idea that there's plenty of space additive manufacturing can take when it comes to creating tennis equipment.
As we already said, additive manufacturing is present in tennis and other sports. It is making waves but nothing too major as of now. Yet, that doesn't mean that they're not entering the domain of the sports industry aggressively. If you didn't know, there are already pieces of equipment created through 3D printing across sports. Adidas is already working on a set of running shoes, while you can find a piece on Decathlon already. In addition to shoes the 3D reunited sports equipment that it most sought after are bike helmets and golf clubs. You can head straight to Sportsbet.io and bet that we're not too far removed from having sports equipment manufacturers equipping entire rosters of teams with 3D printed equipment. With the level of customization and personalization that 3D printing enables it is easy to imagine it conquering sports such as American football and cricket.
In addition to everything we said above, the list of benefits of 3D printing is much longer. Not only is the production process more environment friendly compared to traditional methods, it is also more efficient and cost effective. The best part is that it enables more planning when it comes to design and a possibility of smaller and bigger tweaks to the product even in the final stages of design. This way work on new products is made easier, and the process of innovation is more streamlined.
We believe that they have a long way ahead of them. The collaboration between 3D printing and tennis is possible solely on the basis of available customization and personalization of the equipment. These things matter because above all else tennis is an individual sport. As you probably know, modern tennis equipment is mass produced. Tennis rackets come with limited sizes, weight, and most importantly balance. When you add additive manufacturing to the mix all of this can change regardless if you're a professional tennis player or an amateur. Having a racket frame designed uniquely for yourself, with preferred weight, length, that fits your playing style and court preferences is going to be a game changer.
Imagine being a tennis player. With age you will develop a unique style of play, grow in strength, and the way you hit the ball will be altered at the start of your career. Tennis requires constant personalization. Customized tennis rackets could come with unique balance, customized handle, hardened frame, or anything you like. This is the area of tennis equipment manufacturing where 3D printing just waits to fully enter and dominate. When a player has pieces of equipment so carefully personalized and customized to its needs, it will reflect on the on court performances and lead to better results. When you add all other accessories tennis players might need in addition to rackets, such as dampeners, you get the idea why this sport is a fertile soil for the further development of additive manufacturing.
3D printing is not a novelty on the manufacturing market. In fact, it is slowly but safely gaining traction across many different industries. We're witnessing broader and broader application of additive manufacturing across the manufacturing spectrum, and it is only a matter of time until it will fully take control over the manufacturing process in most industries. The one that will fall first, in our opinion, is the sports industry led by tennis.
As you've seen from a few examples we've provided above, sports such as tennis have plenty of open space where 3d Printing can enter and make an immediate impact. It is not an easy task to overthrow the traditional means of manufacturing sports equipment and it is a hard task in such a tradition-oriented sport such as tennis. But, as you've seen from the example we've given, it is only a matter of time before tennis will be dominated by 3D printed equipment. At the end of the day, sustainably, cost-effectiveness, and quality always take the win. It will be the same this time around too.
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Having a healthy variety of digital hobbies may be great… but sometimes you may just want to actually be able to have a more tangible connection to them. This is where 3D printing can come in to bridge the gap and allow you to have a more tactile experience. So, if you’ve been chiefly relying on your screens to enjoy your hobbies, we’ve got a few ideas for you on how to change this.
