Exploring the Nexus of Metal Additive Manufacturing Adoption Readiness, Alternatives, and Strategic Goals

Background: Small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) can benefit from the flexibility of metal additive manufacturing (MAM) for producing a wide variety of products in small quantities. Selecting among MAM technologies requires a holistic evaluation of a company’s readiness and the anticipated adoption benefits. Methods: This study develops a multi-method decision-analysis framework to examine the nexus among MAM adoption readiness, technology alternatives, and strategic goals. The framework combines an interrelationship analysis of readiness factors with an assessment of their relationships with adoption goals. An expert panel was used to develop the general decision model, which was subsequently demonstrated through an illustrative application in one SME. Results: The expert-informed model identified innovative opportunities and lower supply chain costs as highly important strategic objectives for MAM adoption. In the illustrative single-company application, Laser Powder-Bed Fusion and Directed Energy Deposition using an electric arc were preferred to Metal Extrusion when the company’s readiness conditions and expected strategic outcomes were jointly considered. Conclusions: The findings demonstrate that MAM adoption decisions should account for the company’s existing manufacturing capabilities, readiness conditions, and expected supply chain improvements. The illustrative application demonstrates the practical use of the proposed framework. The framework may be applied in other technology-adoption contexts.