Digital Manufacturing Archives Set to Replace Spare Parts Warehouses

3d print

As critical components ranging from NASA rocket engine parts to aircraft components are increasingly produced using 3D printing, Türkiye’s future steps in additive manufacturing are gaining importance. Initially used primarily for prototyping, 3D printing technologies now have applications extending from serial production to maintenance operations.

Yıldırım Ünverdi, Exhibition Coordinator of EXPO3D Istanbul, said additive manufacturing offers Türkiye a significant technological and economic opportunity. He noted that physical spare parts inventories are expected to shrink considerably in the future. Across sectors including automotive, aerospace, defence and railways, components could be stored as secure digital files and manufactured wherever they are needed.

According to Ünverdi, this model will transform not only production methods but also logistics, inventory management, maintenance operations and global supply chains. He emphasised that Türkiye should become a centre that develops its own 3D printers, software and materials and manufactures and exports high-value-added products, rather than remaining merely a market for imported technology.

EXPO3D Istanbul to Showcase the Additive Manufacturing Ecosystem

Additive manufacturing is now used in applications ranging from rocket engines and passenger aircraft to customised medical implants, energy equipment and automotive components. The technology has consequently emerged as one of the key areas of competition in global industry.

This industrial transformation will be explored at EXPO3D Istanbul, Türkiye’s specialised trade fair dedicated to 3D printing technologies and additive manufacturing. Taking place at the Istanbul Expo Center from 17 to 19 September 2026, the event will bring together local and international technology manufacturers, engineers, industrial companies, academics and investors.

The exhibition will showcase the latest technologies, materials, software solutions and industrial applications in additive manufacturing.

Factories of the Future Will Store Files Instead of Parts

Ünverdi said additive manufacturing was no longer simply a vision for the future but had become an integral part of modern production processes, particularly in the aerospace sector.

Fuel nozzles for LEAP aircraft engines developed by GE Aerospace were previously manufactured by assembling numerous individual parts. Metal 3D printing now enables them to be produced as a more integrated component. Used in aircraft including the Airbus A320neo and Boeing 737 MAX, these engines demonstrate the progress additive manufacturing has made in serial production.

NASA also uses 3D printing to develop various rocket engine components, including injectors, combustion chambers, turbopumps and valve systems. Terran 1, a rocket largely manufactured using 3D printing, reached space and demonstrated that the technology had moved beyond the experimental stage into applications requiring high levels of reliability.

In Türkiye, Turkish Aerospace uses additive manufacturing methods during the development of KAAN, the country’s national combat aircraft. Baykar also employs 3D printing in its unmanned aerial vehicle programmes for design validation, rapid prototyping and the production of selected components.

Türkiye Should Become a Technology Producer, Not Merely a Market

Türkiye has a strong manufacturing base in defence, aerospace, automotive, machinery, mould-making and medical technologies. However, Ünverdi stressed that simply operating 3D printers would not be sufficient to achieve a competitive position in the global market.

He said competitive advantage would require the combined development of machinery, metal and polymer materials, production software, design capabilities and engineering expertise.

“The main discussion is no longer whether we should use this technology, but how we can develop it,” Ünverdi said. “Türkiye should become not only a market for additive manufacturing technologies but also a producer and exporter. To secure a larger share of the manufacturing economy of the future, we must invest in high-value-added technologies and strengthen our domestic ecosystem.”

Digital Inventories Will Transform Supply Chains

Additive manufacturing is not limited to aerospace applications. The same technologies can be used to produce customised metal implants, lightweight automotive parts, complex components for the energy sector and critical products for the defence industry.

In the coming years, the transformation is expected to extend beyond factories and reshape supply chains. Instead of keeping large stocks of physical spare parts in warehouses, approved production files could be stored in secure digital archives. Components could then be manufactured at the location and time they are required.

This approach, known as distributed manufacturing, could help reduce transportation costs, inventory requirements and delivery times. At the same time, the security of digital files, intellectual property rights, quality control and production certification will become central issues in the emerging manufacturing model.

Ünverdi concluded that Türkiye’s share of the global additive manufacturing economy would depend not only on how quickly it adopts the technology but also on its ability to develop domestic capabilities in machinery, materials, software and engineering.