英闻天下——289 3D Printer Market in China

 　　With a 3D printer, you can design your own item, either it's a cellphone cover or a 3D model of yourself, even something only exists in your imagination. But a high precision 3D printer has more practical application.

 

　　Yao Junfeng is the general manager of a company which manufactures dental braces².

 

　　"Every patient needs to have 50 to 60 tooth braces and each brace¹ has some tiny changes depending of the therapeutic³ process. 3D printer can develop a customized tooth brace for the patient. Compare to hand made mode which we use in the past, 3D printing is more efficient."

 

　　From car wheel band to shoe, to mask, it looks like the 3D printer can print almost everything. But it's not a solution for all sorts of production in this field.

 

　　Plus, the price of an industrial level 3D printer ranges from tens of thousand yuan to several million yuan, the printing material is also expensive and can not be recycled. These are the barriers which stalls China's developing its self patented 3D printer market.

 

　　Wang Xiangmin is the regional general manager of China of a 3D printer company.

 

　　"It's a very high-end market, either for the printing material, the equipment or the maintenance. Enterprises with limited capability⁴ can't afford to develop such high-tech⁵ printer."

 

　　So far, 3D printing is mostly used to make customized products. High precision and printing speed are its advantages. But the traditional way of using a mould is still more cost effective in mass production.

 

　　Currently, only a few Chinese companies are in the business of developing their own 3D printers but their capability is still very limited.

 

　　Kong Huawei, director of computer technology research institute of the Chinese Academy of Sciences points out that manufacturers engaging in 3D printing business should integrate their resources.

 

　　"The best way is to develop a production circle within the current 3D printing field. For instance, companies engaging in the 3D printing field in China develop their own application market, the manufacturing, research and development team. Thus we can gain some competence⁶ in the international market."

 

　　For CRI, I am Li Dong.

1 brace   

n. 支柱,曲柄,大括号; v. 绷紧,顶住,(为困难或坏事)做准备

参考例句：

• My daughter has to wear a brace on her teeth. 我的女儿得戴牙套以矫正牙齿。
• You had better brace yourself for some bad news. 有些坏消息,你最好做好准备。

2 braces   

n.吊带，背带；托架( brace的名词复数 )；箍子；括弧；（儿童）牙箍v.支住( brace的第三人称单数 )；撑牢；使自己站稳；振作起来

参考例句：

• The table is shaky because the braces are loose. 这张桌子摇摇晃晃，因为支架全松了。
• You don't need braces if you're wearing a belt! 要系腰带，就用不着吊带了。

3 therapeutic   

adj.治疗的，起治疗作用的；对身心健康有益的

参考例句：

• Therapeutic measures were selected to fit the patient.选择治疗措施以适应病人的需要。
• When I was sad,music had a therapeutic effect.我悲伤的时候，音乐有治疗效力。

4 capability   

n.能力；才能；(pl)可发展的能力或特性等

参考例句：

• She has the capability to become a very fine actress.她有潜力成为杰出演员。
• Organizing a whole department is beyond his capability.组织整个部门是他能力以外的事。

5 high-tech   

adj.高科技的

参考例句：

• The economy is in the upswing which makes high-tech services in more demand too.经济在蓬勃发展，这就使对高科技服务的需求量也在加大。
• The quest of a cure for disease with high-tech has never ceased. 人们希望运用高科技治疗疾病的追求从未停止过。

6 competence   

n.能力，胜任，称职

参考例句：

• This mess is a poor reflection on his competence.这种混乱情况说明他难当此任。
• These are matters within the competence of the court.这些是法院权限以内的事。