PostProcess Technologies 5th Edition Report Reveals Post-Processing Challenges for 2026

The State of Post-Processing in 2026

PostProcess Technologies has released the fifth edition of its annual Post-Processing Survey: Trends Report for 2026, marking the first update since 2022. The report provides insights from AM professionals across industries, company sizes, and experience levels, revealing both persistent challenges and emerging shifts in how manufacturers approach post-processing.

Key Findings

For the first time, the primary challenge facing post-processing is consistency: 54% of respondents reported difficulty achieving uniform quality from batch to batch. Time requirements follow closely at 53%, indicating these tasks remain too time-consuming.

A defining theme in 2026 is the growing emphasis on safety, sustainability, and regulatory responsibility. As additive manufacturing scales toward production, organizations are reassessing manual and chemically intensive post-processing methods.

Scaling Concerns

The most striking finding is that 70% of respondents expressed doubt about their current post-processing methods' ability to keep pace with future production volumes. This represents a significant bottleneck as AM moves from prototyping to end-use production.

Budget allocation reveals post-processing remains underprioritized: for most companies, it represents less than 25% of total AM expenditure. However, 52% of respondents indicated their priority is reallocating manual labor toward higher-value operations.

Common Operations

Support removal (59%) and surface finishing (48%) remain the two most common post-processing methods, consistent with findings from previous years. Material extrusion leads as the most-used AM process, followed by resin-based methods and powder-based techniques.

Looking Ahead

As production volumes grow, post-processing must evolve to match. The report suggests the industry needs more automated, scalable solutions that can deliver consistent quality while reducing labor intensity and improving safety.