A New Technique for Producing Diamonds
A new company called Diamond Foundry has recently made a breakthrough in discovering a way to manufacture high quality diamonds more quickly and cost effectively with existing technology. They have created a sustainable alternative in which they will buy solar power credits in order to reduce carbon footprints to zero. The technique of choice is "chemical vapor deposition", in which they grow diamonds by depositing layers of carbon atoms in a high energy plasma field. They alter the shape of the plasma field in order to create the diamonds more rapidly and efficiently in larger quantities. The plasma is so intense that they are able to create Type IIa diamonds at about 150 times the usual pace. The rate at which these diamonds are produced can be compared to the rate at which natural diamonds are mined.
Diamond Foundry has been able to brand themselves off being ethically and environmentally concerned and has received solid financial backing due to this (including being endorsed by Leonardo DiCaprio). The company's plan is to launch an online website in which they can sell their diamonds, featuring well known jewelry designers. They will compete with competing jewelry stores by providing more affordable prices and marketing an environmentally friendly approach. The article confirms that the average consumer won't be able to tell the difference between a natural diamond and a manufactured diamond, as the distinction requires equipment and expertise. Furthermore, the new tactic of production will not negatively affect consumers' demand for the diamonds.
Although the new technique of production sounds ideal for both a consumer's wallet and for the environment, it seems almost too good to be true. Do you think the fact that the diamonds aren't natural will ultimately affect consumer demand for the product?
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/12/science/borrowing-from-solar-and-chip-tech-to-make-diamonds-faster-and-cheaper.html?ref=business
7 comments:
My guess is that these new diamonds will compete more directly with cubic zirconia, and eventually become the diamond alternative of choice. Mined diamonds will probably remain in a category of their own because of the history and idea behind getting a precious stone out of the ground
If it is true that consumers will be unable to tell the difference between a natural diamond and a manufactured diamond, then unless stores post signs saying which is which, I think that would absolutely affect consumer demand. If this technique is going to cause the price of diamonds to drop, and more will be available than normally would be, demand could greatly increase, but this would also cause the product to lose it's elite quality, and therefore remove the diamonds premier standing among precious gem stones. I do agree with Tyler that this product would be mainly competing with cubic zirconia if jewelers do label which are man made and which are natural.
I think for a period of time this company will be able to capitalize on the "dumb consumer notion" that marketing teams and companies profit by all the time. However, I do not think in the long run that they will be able to sustain the idea that these are real diamonds. Once more and more people buy this product it will only be a matter of time before word starts to leak out that these are not real diamonds. I think they are a good alternative for those who do not have the money to buy real diamond jewelry and as Rachael and Tyler said will ultimately compete with cubic zirconia. It will be interesting to see this competition unfold as cubic zirconia does not really have a strong competitor in the market currently. This could help to force prices down even further which would favor this new company with their more efficient process and the decrease in time it takes to make these manufactured diamonds.
I know lab diamonds are quite popular, as well. A lot of people are realizing the horrors that the diamond trade bring, and are becoming more conscious about what they buy. However, there will always be a select population who won't consider these to be "real" diamonds.
I disagree with Ashley. I think this will appeal to a lot of people. And these are real diamonds, not cubic zirconia. Yes, they are cheaper than mined diamonds, but that's because they don't have the human cost associate with it. And besides, to the naked eye, they will not look any different than any "real" diamonds. I think this is a really good idea to make this industry more ethical and to hopefully change the industry as a whole.
I agree with Emily's points that people are becoming more conscious of the products they buy. This new way of manufacturing diamonds, I think, will be very popular with the conscious buy as well as people who spend their money carefully and are on a budget. For people who don't care where their diamonds come from, this still can be a popular choice just because it is a cheaper alternative. I also agree with Rachael's point that this new manufacturing innovation could remove diamonds primer standing among other gems now that diamonds can be more affordable and available to everyone; not just the rich who could afford them. Maybe there will be a shift in the wealthy consumers to buy more rare and expensive gems.
I think most people won't have an aversion to these diamonds because it just makes them more affordable. "Diamonds are a girl's best friend" and if she can have more of them, she will get more, whether they are made in a lab or not. Being environmentally friendly will also make the more attractive to a lot of people.
It depends on what kind of diamonds you are talking about that will be affected. I think that the consumer demand for natural diamonds will remain the constant because it is a luxury good. Consumers who make natural diamond purchases are mainly wealthy and have a higher living standard. However, the demand for natural diamonds will increase greatly if the consumer price for the product is lower than the natural diamond. It becomes more affordable for different target markets. This will greatly increase Diamond Foundry's marginal revenue since cost of production is lower, manufacturing time is shorter, and increase in consumer demand for their diamond product.
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