Toys generally refer to items that can be used for play. Toys are often used as a way of entertaining and teaching in human society. According to reports, North America and Europe are the two regions with the largest consumption and import regions in the toy industry in the world. However, 1/3 of the toys imported by the United States and 2/3 of the toys imported by the EU are made in China, and more than 2/3 of the products in the global market (excluding mainland China) come from China. China is an out-and-out toy manufacturing country.
The production method of traditional toys is to pursue large-scale assembly lines to reduce product costs. This kind of economy of scale is also an important way for enterprises to obtain profits, and it is what we called the traditional manufacturing production mode. With the development of society and the upgrade of consumption structure, mass-produced uniform products are no longer able to satisfy people's pursuit of product diversification and individualization in the information age. And new, strange and customized products are becoming more and more popular. On this basis, brand owners and manufacturers must change their direction and adjust their strategies to improve their competitiveness. Everything must be based on "fast" and "new" as the production standard. 3D printing technology can undoubtedly help businesses respond to ever-changing consumer tastes.
The most widely used 3D printing in the toy industry is the technology of SLA 3D printer. This technology uses photosensitive resin as raw material and relies on photopolymerization for curing and molding. This technology does not produce thermal diffusion and thermal deformation, and the chain reaction can be precisely controlled, which can ensure that polymerization reaction does not occur outside the laser point, with high processing accuracy and good surface quality. It is a widely used technology at the industrial end.
Advantage
The advantages of 3D printing technology, first of all, it simplifies the production process, realizes moldless production, accelerates the pace of new product development and launch, and reduces the overall cost of products. Its principle in forming is through the method of addition, layered processing, superposition forming. The required raw materials and energy are only 1/10 of the traditional production method, and the production process is not affected by the product structure. It can print any curved surface and hollow products, increasing the personalization and customization production capacity.
Uniontech's 3D printing technology and EPM cloud platform have truly realized digital manufacturing, covering everything from expensive high-end toys to animation IP, educational, educational and adult leisure toys. There are industrial SLA printer and mid size resin printer in UnionTech, which also play an important role in toy manufacturing.
Industry Coverage
Education
In recent years, the education industry has developed rapidly in China. The future development prospects of educational products are broad and the market demand is large. This will also become a new vane for the Chinese toy market. Educational supplies such as learning machines, preschool education products, and teaching aids for kindergartens are increasing year by year. Science and education products have become popular in the market, and will be one of the important directions for the development of the toy industry in the future.
Puzzle
Intelligent toys have become a new trend in the development of the toy industry. High-tech intelligent toys not only satisfy children's curiosity, strengthen the interaction between children and toys, but also stimulate children's thirst for knowledge. Toy companies "graft" advanced technologies in the fields of computers, electronics, and communications into toy products, breaking through the limitations of traditional toys, endowing toys with "listening" and "speaking" functions to interact with people. Intelligent toys come in a variety of forms, rich in content, and entertaining. They can communicate "emotionally" with children, and then cultivate children's good habits, and learn and experience life in joy, so as to truly achieve the purpose of entertaining and teaching.
Animation IP
Among the many international toy fairs, only the Guangzhou Toys and Educational Products Fair has such a wealth of trendy products and IP-derived toys, and its design, production, and creative gameplay all lead the market trend. Guangdong is also a strong province in China's animation industry. The prosperous animation industry and the toy industry are intertwined and developed, and the industrial model of "anime IP + toys" is flourishing here. According to the public report of the Guangdong Provincial Department of Culture, 80% of the global animation derivatives are "Made in China", and more than half of them are "Made in Guangdong".
R & D and production
The design path of functional toys is too narrow. Before entering the market, it is necessary to solve the links of image building, promotion and publicity, and then develop and push to the market. Such channels have higher and higher requirements for product standards and the pace of research and development. The application of 3D printing in the chain in the toy industry is mostly in the product development stage. The advantage is to reduce the time and cost of mold development and shorten the time for toys to go to market in batches.
Nowadays, toys are no longer exclusive to children. According to statistics from the China Toy Association, about 64% of adult consumers are interested in buying toys that suit them. It is estimated that the adult leisure and educational toy market is worth about 50 billion yuan per year. The market of traditional toys is declining day by day, and the export of educational and adult toys has shown a growing trend. The toy industry is one of the earliest industries to adopt 3D printing technology. In the early days, it was mainly used in the product design links, such as assembly verification, appearance verification, and product display. Its advantage is that it saves time of mold development, reduces the overall cost, and accelerates speed and iteration of new products to market. With the development and deepening of the industry, the integration of the toy industry and the game & animation industry is getting deeper and deeper.
Personalized customization and small batch production will open another door to the application in the toy industry. Facing the niche and diverse needs of the toy market, the demand of the toy market gradually presents the characteristics of diversification. The on-demand 3D printing service can provide personalized and customized services, and accurately meet the needs of consumer groups and individuals. The highly customized and innovative business model for online products integrates the core products and services provided by 3D printing with personalized functions, shaping the important competitive advantage of 3D printing in the toy industry.
