Digital and Additive Manufacturing in Jewelry Design for Sustainable Fashion: Emerging Technologies, Challenges, and Opportunities

Digital and additive manufacturing technologies are driving productivity and innovation recently in creative industries including the jewelry sector. Historically, jewelry-making is heavily associated with traditional handicraft values such as labor, materials, and complexity, and has lately been challenged by digital technologies. Strategic adoption and implementation of these technologies present diverse opportunities for significant improvement in the fashion industry. Previous studies have explored the areas of digital and additive manufacturing with less emphasis on their role in driving the jewelry industry to meet the demands of consumers in the ever-changing world. This chapter adds to the discourse from the jewelry-making perspective towards sustainable fashion. It explores areas including an overview of digital and additive manufacturing in jewelry-making, emerging technologies, sustainable and ethical considerations, challenges in digital and additive manufacturing technology adoption, and opportunities for fashion market growth. The chapter concludes with concrete suggestions to guide future studies in the area.