Impact Trailblazer Research
How do Technologies Disrupt?
The Birth and Growth of the 3D Printing Ecosystem

An Impact Trailblazer Research banner with 3D printer creating a product. From the research paper, 'How do technologies disrupt? The birth and growth of the 3D printing ecosystem'.

About the research webinar

Gain an insight into the impact of 3D printing, where Dr Ahmad Beltagui, Lecturer in Project and Operations Management at Aston Business School, will describe his research and approach.  

This webinar will be of interest to academics and practitioners with an interest in understanding how digital technologies, including 3D printing, engage collaborative and competitive ecosystems to create opportunities and threats for disruption.

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About the research

Innovations are increasingly described using terms such as disruptive, digital and ecosystems. This research traces the development of an ecosystem over four decades from the invention of a digital technology, the need for supporting innovations, the competition and disruption within the growing ecosystem and finally the potential for disruption of established technologies. 

The research applies theory from evolutionary biology to explain the development of new technologies from components of existing ones, which creates opportunities for entry into a growing ecosystem. It develops a four stage process model, linking disruptive innovation to the birth and growth of ecosystems.

About the researcher

Ahmad Beltagui

Lecturer in Operations Management
Aston Business School

Dr Ahmad Beltagui, Aston Business School

Ahmad is a member of the Advanced Services Group, and holds degrees in Product Design Engineering (Strathclyde) and Operations Management (Nottingham). His research focuses on the role of design in business innovation; the creation of value through service design and the implications of digital technologies on both innovation and value creation. 

His work has been published in journals including Journal of Product Innovation Management, International Journal of Operations and Production Management, Technovation and Research Policy, where the research on 3D printing can be found.

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