A case study on 3D printing applications in the confectionery industry

Abstract

In recent years, 3D printing technology has fostered exciting innovations in manufacturing and product development in various industries. Some claim it will disrupt the traditional economies of scale paradigm, shifting the focus towards customizability and responsiveness. In contrast, the food industry has struggled to innovate for the last decades. Consequently, there are few successful applications of 3D printing in the food industry documented, even less so in the confectionery industry, despite promising use cases in other industries.

The purpose of this study was to explore how 3D printing could be used in the confectionery industry, on the basis of an extensive process and problem description of a leading confectionery producers’ product development and manufacturing processes. The research was practical, geared towards finding use cases in a case company. The study was motivated by the general lack of business studies in food and confectionery 3D printing.

The method of this research was a positivist case study approach. An innovative research framework was developed that addresses academia and practitioners by spitting the research problem into a descriptive and a prescriptive part. In this thesis, I argue that 3D printing is a viable manufacturing technology to improve the Product Development and Manufacturing processes in the confectionery industry. The main findings of this study are that the Product Development at the case company could be improved by using 3D printing, as there are structural problems in their current processes. Secondly, the Manufacturing processes are bogged down by the use of old equipment, and 3D printing could alleviate this issue. Finally, this study finds that there are numerous use cases of 3D printing unique to the confectionery industry, and potentially, even more, to be found, as the ones introduced in this thesis focus solely on Product Development and Manufacturing.

Briefly summarizing the results, the food industry should focus on innovating more radically and more rapidly. 3D printing is a vital manufacturing technology to consider for achieving this goal, as it was developed as a prototyping tool. As there has been little technological innovation in the food industry for several decades, confectionery producers should consider 3D printing as it offers new processes and opportunities. Third, mass customization of confectionery is possible with the help of 3D printing. There are premiums to be made through customization, and the next step should be the development of a business model that leverages on the potential of 3D printing. Direct 3D food printing should not be the focus of practitioners until significant technological advances have been made.