Prototyping

Manufacturing is a big business opportunity for 3-D printing vendors, especially when it comes to prototyping. Companies small and large that have new products or ideas headed for mass production benefit immensely from 3-D printing for a few different reasons.
3-D printing is a fast, inexpensive way to build prototypes. It is also easy to make changes to a prototype in 3-D modeling software. If there is a small or large custom change that needs to be made in a prototype, it can be fixed quicker, cheaper and easier with a 3-D printer.
Many major companies, including Nike, already use 3-D printers for prototypes, so the market already exists and is only going to grow.