Additive manufacturing in international business: Bridging academic and practitioners' perspectives

Abstract

Additive manufacturing has recently gained prominence in the international business literature due to its disruptive potential. The paper aims to investigate the intersection between additive manufacturing and international business to identify and highlight challenges and opportunities tied to its adoption. Additionally, the study proposes a broader perspective on internalization and global value chain theory to understand the implications of additive manufacturing for the global strategy of international business ventures. This study employs both thematic and content analysis using academic sources and professional documents such as business cases, newspaper articles, and specialized blogs. The goal is to bridge the gap between industry and academia on additive manufacturing in international business. Our integrated view from both academia and industry reveals how the adoption of additive manufacturing has several potential benefits, ranging from the shortening of the value chain, enhanced customer relationships through higher levels of customization, and a more sustainable production pattern with reduced environmental impact compared to traditional manufacturing. Along with the benefits, this study illustrates a few challenges that might hinder the adoption of additive manufacturing in international business, with theoretical and practical implications.