A New Industrial Future? examines whether a further industrial revolution is taking place around the world. In this compelling book, Birtchnell and Urry explore a new possible future involving the mass adoption of 3D printing.

The locating of 3D printers in homes, offices, stores, and workshops would disrupt existing systems and pose novel challenges for incumbents. Drawing upon expert interviews, scenario workshops, and various case studies, the book assesses the potential future of global manufacturing, freight transport, world trade, and land use.

It offers the first book-length social scientific analysis of the character and impacts of a new manufacturing system that is in formation. The book will be of interest to urban planners, policymakers, social scientists, futurologists, and economists, as well as general readers, by offering an inquiry into this future upheaval in the means of production.