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Feinberg: One of the things that we’re trying to get through to our readers is that not only is Nano Dimension seeming to be leading the parade toward 3D printing for a significant or a reasonable segment of the circuit board fabrication industry, but it’s going to change a lot of things. There are many things that 3D printing does that people don’t realize. It’s not a way to make a quick circuit board. The circuit board becomes part of the structure of the device when you can do it this way. And when we’re talking now about 5G-enabled devices, they’re going to be able to do so much more and are going to be part of the IoT and are going to be part of wearables. Having circuitry as part of the structure of the device allows it to do more things. It allows more components and more capability to be installed in the design of the device.
Dror: It’s even a part of a greater ecosystem. You touched a few applications that can be achieved, whether it’s the actual sensors, the antennas, and of course, the multilayer PCB. But it’s also about the transformers that you can achieve and the ability to take the manufacturing method—which is 3D printing—and embed that as part of the Industry 4.0 approach that comes to support distributed manufacturing and customization of products for consumers. All of these things are happening. There are different elements and technologies, and I’m also talking about the bigger picture of artificial intelligence, Industry 4.0, and smart, agile manufacturing facilities. All of them have a lot to do with advanced electronics as part of the product being manufactured, and the need for additive manufacturing is obvious.
I agree with everything that you said and that it’s not about these specific institutes that we see right now, but about the greater ecosystem that is growing. And we’ll see more and more of it. We already see it in different consumer products. And like you said, most people don’t fully understand yet the 5G era that is coming, that everything is going to be connected and customizable. It’s going to be difficult to achieve all of those innovative changes without using additive manufacturing as a part of this transformation.
Feinberg: With 5G, we’re looking at much higher frequencies, and we may need some additional transmission power to increase penetration. And 5G is coming quickly, especially the various applications of 5G, which is so much more than voice communication. As you see 5G coming, how do you see it affecting the advance of 3D fabrication for circuits? What do you think the effect of 5G is going to be regarding the need for, or the advantages of, 3D printing?
Dror: The impact is going to be huge, and the reason is the numbers. Looking at what happened over the last five years and the expectation for the coming five years regarding the number of new connected devices, we’re talking about more and more billions every year of connected devices. Combine that trend, which is already here, with the fact that devices would need to be more customized because of the consumer trends. People want things to be more customized, and they want to get them faster.
There are going to be so many new products that and many of them customized that would not go to mass production, but to low-volume manufacturing. If you have billions of new products, not all of them end up becoming the next iPhone where you need millions of them every year. Many customers need to have products manufactured at quantities of a few thousand, and they still have to be manufactured fast. I believe that the need for agile local manufacturing of connected devices is going to significantly increase, and the numbers support it. Our timing with this solution of additive manufacturing of electronics is great. And as we continue to come up with new applications as well as improve and mature the product, I trust that we’d be able to maintain our position as leaders in this field of 3D-printed electronics.
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