Purpose In this era of Fourth Industrial Revolution, also known as Industry 4.0, additive manufacturing (AM) has been recognized as one of the nine technologies of Industry 4.0 that will revolutionize different sectors (such as manufacturing and industrial production). Therefore, this study aims to focus on “Additive Manufacturing Education” and the primary aim of this study is to investigate the impacts of AM technology at selected South African universities and develop a proposed framework for effective AM education using South African universities as the case study. Design/methodology/approach Quantitative research approach was used in this study, that is, a survey (questionnaire) was designed specifically to investigate the impacts of the existing AM technology/education and the facilities at the selected South African universities. The survey was distributed to several students (undergraduate and postgraduate) and the academic staffs within the selected universities. The questionnaire contained structured questions based on five factors/variables and followed by two open-ended questions. The data were collected and analyzed using statistical tools and were interpreted accordingly (i.e. both the closed and open-ended questions). The hypotheses were stated, tested and accepted. In conclusion, the framework for AM education at the universities was developed. Findings Based on different literature reviewed on “framework for AM technology and education”, there is no specific framework that centers on AM education and this makes it difficult to find an existing framework for AM education to serve as a landscape to determine the new framework for AM education at the universities. Therefore, the results from this study made a significant contribution to the body of knowledge in AM, most especially in the area of education. The significant positive responses from the respondents have shown that the existing AM in-house facilities at the selected South African universities is promoting AM education and research activities. This study also shows that a number of students at the South African universities have access to AM/3D printing lab for design and research purposes. Furthermore, the findings show that the inclusion of AM education in the curriculum of both the science and engineering education is South Africa will bring very positive results. The introduction of a postgraduate degree in AM such as MSc or MEng in AM will greatly benefit the South African universities and different industries because it will increase the number of AM experts and professionals. Through literature review, this study was able to identify five factors (which includes sub-factors) that are suitable for the development of a framework for AM education, and this framework is expected to serve as base-line or building block for other universities globally to build/develop their AM journey. Research limitations/implications The survey was distributed to 200 participants and 130 completed questionnaires were returned. The target audience for the survey was mainly university students (both undergraduate and postgraduate) and the academics who have access to AM machines or have used the AM/3D printing lab/facilities on their campuses for both academic and research purposes. Therefore, one of the limitations of the survey is the limited sample size; however, the sample size for this survey is considered suitable for this type of research and would allow generalization of the findings. Nevertheless, future research on this study should use larger sample size for purpose of results generalization. In addition, this study is limited to quantitative research methodology; future study should include qualitative research method. Irrespective of any existing or developed framework, there is always a need to further improve the existing framework, and therefore, the proposed framework for AM education in this study contained only five factors/variables and future should include some other factors (AM commercialization, AM continuous Improvement, etc.) to further enhance the framework. Practical implications This study provides the readers and researchers within the STEM education, industry or engineering education/educators to see the importance of the inclusion of AM in the university curriculum for both undergraduate and postgraduate degrees. More so, this study serves as a roadmap for AM initiative at the universities and provides necessary factors to be considered when the universities are considering or embarking on AM education/research journey at their universities. It also serves as a guideline or platform for various investors or individual organization to see the need to invest in AM education. Originality/value The contribution of this study towards the existing body of knowledge in AM technology, specifically “AM education research” is in the form of proposed framework for AM education at the universities which would allow the government sectors/industry/department/bodies and key players in AM in South Africa and globally to see the need to invest significantly towards the advancement of AM technology, education and research activities at various universities.

Purpose This paper aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the recent applications of additive manufacturing (AM) research and activities within selected universities in the Republic of South Africa (SA). Design/methodology/approach The paper is a general review of AM education, research and development effort within selected South African universities. The paper begins by looking at several support programmes and investments in AM technologies by the South African Department of Science and Technology (DST). The paper presents South Africa’s AM journey to date and recent global development in AM education. Next, the paper reviews the recent research activities on AM at four selected South African universities, South Africa AM roadmap and South African AM strategy. The future prospects of AM education and research are then evaluated through a SWOT analysis. Finally, the paper looks at the sustainability of AM from an education perspective. Findings The main lessons that have been learnt from South African AM research activities within selected universities are as follows: AM research activities at South African universities serve as a platform to promote AM education, and several support programmes and investments from South Africa’s DST have greatly enhanced the growth of AM across different sectors, such as medical, manufacturing, industrial design, tooling, jewellery and education. The government support has also assisted in the actualisation of the “Aeroswift” project, the world’s largest and fastest state-of-the-art AM machine that can 3D print metal parts. The AM research activities within South Africa’s universities have shown that it is not too late for developing countries to start and embrace AM technologies both in academia and industry. Based on a SWOT analysis, the future prospects of AM technology in SA are bright. Practical implications Researchers/readers from different backgrounds such as academic, industrial and governmental will be able to learn important lessons from SA’s AM journey and the success of SA’s AM researchers/practitioners. This paper will allow the major investors in AM technologies and business to see great opportunities to invest in AM education and research at all educational levels (i.e. high schools, colleges and universities) in South Africa. Originality/value The authors believe that the progress of AM education and research activities within SA’s universities show good practice and achievement over the years in both the applications of AM and the South African AM strategy introduced to promote AM research and the educational aspect of the technologies.

Additive Manufacturing (AM) which is also known as 3D printing technology; is recognized as a new paradigm for manufacturing industry. Additive manufacturing is rapidly expanding across different sectors such as healthcare, electronics, automotive, science and engineering, education, dental, etc. Machine Learning and Big Data are both emerging technologies which are becoming popular and gaining more attention from the industries and academic. Machine Learning is a growing field of Artificial Intelligence (AI) that allows systems to learn from data, identify patterns and make decisions with very little human involvement. On the other hand, Big Data is referred to as datasets whose size is more than the capacity of what a conventional database software tools can capture, store, manage and analyze. Lately, Machine Learning techniques and Big Data Analytics are being applied to various applications of additive manufacturing to monitor building process and enhance decisions making using data generated through different sensors or cameras. This paper explores recent applications of Machine Learning with Big Data in the field of additive manufacturing, for instance, application of machine learning in detecting defect or anomaly during build process in additive manufacturing/3D printing machine.

This article describes how 3D printing technology, also referred to as additive manufacturing (AM), is a process of creating a physical object from 3-dimensional digital model layers upon layers. 3D printing technologies have been identified as an emerging technology of the 21st century and are becoming popular around the world with a wide variety of potential application areas such as healthcare, automotive, aerospace, manufacturing, etc. Big Data is a large amount of imprecise data in a variety of formats which is generated from different sources with high-speed. Recently, Big Data and 3D printing technologies is a new research area and have been identified as types of technologies that will launch the fourth industrial revolution (Industry 4.0). As Big Data and 3D printing technology is wide spreading across different sectors in the era of industry 4.0, the healthcare sector is not left out of the vast development in this field; for instance, the Big Data and 3D printing technologies providing needed tools to support healthcare systems to accumulate, manage, analyse large volume of data, early disease detection, 3D printed medical implant, 3D printed customized titanium prosthetic, etc. Therefore, this article presents the recent trends in 3D printing technologies, Big Data and Industry 4.0; including the benefits and the application areas of these technologies. Emerging and near future application areas of 3D printing, and possible future research areas in 3D printing and Big Data technologies as relating to industry 4.0.

This article describes how 3D printing technology, also referred to as additive manufacturing (AM), is a process of creating a physical object from 3-dimensional digital model layers upon layers. 3D printing technologies have been identified as an emerging technology of the 21st century and are becoming popular around the world with a wide variety of potential application areas such as healthcare, automotive, aerospace, manufacturing, etc. Big Data is a large amount of imprecise data in a variety of formats which is generated from different sources with high-speed. Recently, Big Data and 3D printing technologies is a new research area and have been identified as types of technologies that will launch the fourth industrial revolution (Industry 4.0). As Big Data and 3D printing technology is wide spreading across different sectors in the era of industry 4.0, the healthcare sector is not left out of the vast development in this field; for instance, the Big Data and 3D printing technologies providing needed tools to support healthcare systems to accumulate, manage, analyse large volume of data, early disease detection, 3D printed medical implant, 3D printed customized titanium prosthetic, etc. Therefore, this article presents the recent trends in 3D printing technologies, Big Data and Industry 4.0; including the benefits and the application areas of these technologies. Emerging and near future application areas of 3D printing, and possible future research areas in 3D printing and Big Data technologies as relating to industry 4.0.