The Short History of the Future of Manufacturing

Advances in 3D printing, new human-robot interactions, extreme customization and shale energy are just some of the elements that will shape the future of manufacturing. As Yogi Berra said, “the future is no longer what it used to be”. But he also said that sometimes it is just “deja vu all over again”. The future of manufacturing, like its past, involves astonishing changes. After all, etymologically, the term literally means handmade or handicraft. The word stuck, even though production processes changed to mean almost its opposite. These changes, while unpredictable in their detail, seem to follow certain broad directions.