The new tools of desktop manufacturing are set to unlock the door to completely new application areas, especially in medicine. Three-dimensional dispensing in a liquid medium ("3D plotting"') allows to fabricate complex objects, pipes and non-wovens according to CAD specifications. Many different kinds of material may be used: from polymer melts and polymer solutions right through to pastes, reactive resins and cements. Even proteins and living cells can thus be integrated into the moulding process.