3D Printers are all the rage in America, particularly on the stock market. The shares of one company alone, namely 3D Systems Corporation, were up 400% in 2012. Most people, when they hear of 3D printing are going to believe it is a three-dimensional image of something and not understand that in fact 3D printing is a process whereby a computer scans an object and actually prints out and designs a fully functional copy of that object.

In the YouTube video alongside, you can see how for example a spanner is copied and recreated, so when they talk about 3D printing, they are actually talking about making a fully functional object either from a design that you have made or by copying something else and it is an amazing piece of technology which in its infancy now, is no doubt going to lead to far more interesting developments in time to come, and the video alongside this article is simply a must see if you are not aware of the powers of this technology. Once you have watched it, let your imagination roam!