Guosheng Securities: The boom in the 3D printing industry continues to accelerate the expansion of applications in high-end manufacturing

The Zhitong Finance App learned that Guosheng Securities released a research report saying that consumer-grade printers are in an accelerated phase and are dominated by Chinese players; industrial-grade printers are mainly monopolized by traditional industrial powerhouses Germany and the US, and are expected to usher in a new round of strong growth along with the boom in commercial space. In 2024, the global consumer 3D printer shipment volume is about 4.1 million units. Chinese manufacturers occupy 94% of the global market, and the industry boom continues to accelerate. 3D printing is gradually replacing traditional CNC machining models, with higher accuracy, lower material waste, and enabling component weight reduction and cost reduction.

Guosheng Securities's main views are as follows:

3D printing is leading the high-end manufacturing revolution, and the global market is US$21.9 billion

3D printing, or additive manufacturing (AM), is known as the core technology leading the third industrial revolution. Unlike traditional manufacturing, which “cuts” raw materials into the required shape, 3D printing can be integrated into complex structural products, and has the advantages of speed, low cost, and high accuracy. In 2024, the global 3D printing market reached US$21.9 billion, with printers and services accounting for 74% and materials for 20%. In terms of printers, EntryLevel consumer-grade printers account for 50% and are in the accelerated release stage, dominated by Chinese players; industrial-grade printers are mainly monopolized by traditional industrial powerhouses Germany and the US, and are expected to usher in a new round of strong growth along with the high commercial aerospace boom. In terms of materials, metal materials account for 22%, of which iron-based materials are the most mainstream due to their low cost; in the field of polymer materials, PLA wire is the most widely used material for deep binding FDM due to its excellent printing performance and low price; SLA light curing mainly uses photosensitive resin; SLS mainly uses polymer powder, and PA12 is the mainstream variety.

Consumer-grade 3D printers: China's “Four Little Dragons” take off, and the industry is rising at an accelerated pace

Compared to industrial-grade 3D printing, consumer-grade 3D printing emphasizes ease of use, low cost, and personalization, and is designed for individual consumers and maker communities. In the past, consumer printers generally had the problem of being “slow, easy to break, and difficult to use”. Currently, technology upgrades have brought improvements in printing efficiency and accuracy; at the same time, entry-level models from mainstream brands have reduced the price to less than 1,000 yuan, greatly reducing the purchase threshold, while the advent of multi-modal AI models such as Gemini Nano Banana can generate 3D models from 2D images, thereby lowering the consumer usage threshold. The global consumer 3D printer market was US$4.1 billion in 2024 and is expected to rise to US$16.9 billion in 2029. In 2024, global consumer 3D printers were shipped about 4.1 million units, and Chinese manufacturers accounted for 94% of the global market. “Four Little Dragons” China Pioneering Bamboo Technology, Creative 3D, Vertical and Dimensional Cube, and Intelligent Power shipped 120, 72, 55, and 550,000 units respectively, and the industry boom continued to accelerate.

Commercial aerospace: the main line beta for industrial grade 3D printing

Aerospace is the core downstream of industrial 3D printers. Aerospace will account for 61% and 50% of the revenue of Platinum and Huashu Hi-Tech in 2024, respectively. Currently, global commercial space has entered a singular moment. SpaceX will launch 138 rockets in 2024, ushering in exponential growth. Domestically, rocket launches continued to usher in breakthroughs in 2025. The successful first flight of the Suzake-3 carrier rocket marks a brand-new stage in China's recyclable commercial space.

China's commercial space market will reach 2.3 trillion yuan in 2024, and is expected to increase to 2.8 trillion yuan in 2025

From the satellite side, competition for low orbit is becoming increasingly intense. China has launched several large-scale constellation projects such as Qianfan, State Grid, and Honghu, as well as large-scale “space computing power” plans. Future space launches are expected to accelerate over a long period of time. 3D printing is mainly aimed at the manufacture of rocket engines (engine costs account for 50%), and can achieve significant cost reduction. Musk pioneered the layout and has now been applied throughout the industry. Take Galaxy Dynamics as an example. The 3D printing process engine production cycle is 1/6 of the traditional model. The manufacturing cost is reduced to 10%, and the engine weight is reduced by 50%. According to the planned volume of large-scale domestic constellation projects, it is estimated that China's commercial aerospace 3D printing market is expected to accumulate to 47.5 billion yuan.

Technology & New Consumption: 3D Printing Technology Has Great Potential

3C field: 3D printing is gradually replacing traditional CNC processing models, enabling component weight reduction and cost reduction with higher accuracy and lower material waste. Currently, it is widely used in folding screen hinges, middle frames, USB interfaces, watch cases, etc.; in the field of liquid cooling plates: 3D printing can achieve micron-level microchannel manufacturing, thereby greatly improving the cooling performance of cold plates. Currently, copper 3D printing cold plates from manufacturers such as CoolestDC, Wiwynn (Wiwynn), and Qiyang (AEWIN) have been installed in batches in CPU, GPU, AI servers, and two-phase immersion systems.

Related targets

Consumer-grade 3D printers: Tuozhu Technology [unlisted], Creative 3D [Hong Kong stock IPO process], Huina Technology [Jinshi 3D shares], Anke Innovation; industrial-grade 3D printers: Platinum, Huashu Hi-Tech; overseas VELO, SSYS, DDD; 3D printing services: Platinum, Yinbang shares [shares in Flycon]; 3D printing materials: Jialian Technology, Haizheng raw materials, polished powder; 3D printer equipment: Golden Orange, JP, Ascq, and SkyView.

Risk warning: downstream demand falls short of expectations, process route competition exceeds expectations, and international political risks increase.