UAE to lead the way with 3D printing
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE, has announced a goal that 25 percent of construction in the UAE will be 3D printed by 2030. The plans are part of the Dubai Future Agenda.
He said: “The UAE is presenting to the world today the first integrated and comprehensive strategy to exploit the 3D technology to serve humanity. We have also framed practical plans and precise goals to turn the strategy into reality – the reality that will contribute to the progress and prosperity of the world and help preserve our human heritage. The future will depend on 3D printing technologies in all aspects of our life, starting from houses we live in, the streets we use, the cars we drive, the clothes we wear and the food we eat. This technology will create added economic value and benefits worth billions of dollars during the coming period.”
The launch of the strategy was attended by Mohammad bin Abdullah Al Gergawi, Minister of Cabinet Affairs and The Future, Hamid Mohamed Al Qatami, Chairman and Director General of the Dubai Health Authority (DHA), Hussein Nasser Lootah, Director-General of Dubai Municipality, and Ahmad Bin Byat, Vice Chairman and Managing Director, Dubai Holding.
Sheikh Mohammed added: “Our key goal is to ensure that 25% of buildings in Dubai are based on 3D printing technology by 2030, and we will raise this percentage with the development of global technology as well as growth of market demand. We believe that this technology is capable of transforming the construction sector by lowering costs and reducing the time it takes to implement projects. It will also help reduce manpower requirements as well as waste generated from construction which can be harmful to the environment. We will also focus on utilizing this technology in other vital sectors such as medicine and consumer products to offer goods and services at competitive prices.”
The Dubai 3D Printing Strategy aims to make Dubai a global capital for the technology, and will focus on three major sectors: construction, medical products and consumer products.
The construction and building sector will focus on lighting products, bases and foundations, construction joints, facilities and parks, buildings for humanitarian causes and mobile homes in addition to galleries, stores and residential villas. The value of 3D printing technology based construction sector in Dubai is expected to be about AED 3 billion by 2025. The use of 3D printing in Dubai’s construction sector will increase by 2% starting 2019 and further in the coming years depending on the development of this technology and its future reliability.
Within the medical products sector, the focus will be on developing 3D printed teeth, bones, artificial organs and medical and surgical devices and hearing aids. The value of 3D printed medical products in Dubai is expected to be reach AED 1.7 billion by 2025.
The consumer products sector will focus on household items, optics, fashion jewellery, children's games and fast food. The volume of consumer products printed by 3D technology in Dubai is expected to be about AED 2.8 billion by 2025.
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