desmoda’s posterous

When the raw cost of rapid prototyping plastic is $0.50 cubic cm or about $10 a cubic inch, a common question lately is why must a model be so expensive. A typical model is about 10 cubic inches, so why do people need to pay more than $100.

The answer I like to give is this. If you went out a bought a ferrari (typically the same cost of a mid-range 3d printer), and started a business renting it out, would it make sense for people to use it and only pay for gas?

Here's an example

ZCorp 350 Printer $50,000 + $10,000 (for tax and 1 year maintenance package). Material cost = $3 a cubic inch (also accounts for glue used in post-processing). If you charged $10 a cubic inch to print, it would take you 60,000/($10-$3) = 8571 cubic inches to make back the cost. Or if using the 10 cubic inch per model reference, you'd have to print 850 models, or about 2 a day. Two orders a day is a lot! And if you wanted to pay rent, electricity, time and labor for fixing files for printing. Let's say that comes out to about $2500 a month for salary (ur making $30,000 salary a year, minimum wage!). If you're doing 2 models a day or 60 models a month, that means each model would need to add $2500/60 = $42 flat fee on top of the base $10 a cubic inch.  A model that's 10 cubic inches would now cost a user $142 base price.  Assuming you run your printer out of an office that doesn't charge you rent.

Objet Eden 350 Printer $150,000 (after tax and maintenance). Material cost is 50 cents a cubic cm or $10 a cubic inch. If you charge $40 a cubic inch that Shapeways.com does. You make $30 a cubic inch per model. On the 10 cubic inch model you make $300 on the total model cost of $400. To make back the cost of the machine (not including salaries, rent, etc), it would take Shapeways 500 figure type models. Or roughly 1.5 models a day. I'm not aware of anyone that does 1.5 figure type models a day. Maybe little jewelry and rings. But not character prints.  Add in your salary and rent and you're looking at minimum $500 for a character print just to cover costs.  (Now imagine you need to paint it)

I know of some companies that charge $100 a cubic inch for Rapid Prototyping work. Your model that you would pay $200 on Ownage might cost you $1000-2000. ouch!

So if you want to get into the Rapid Prototyping business, start saving those pennies! =D

Update: Ownage is charging users about $200 for a 10 cubic inch print in plastic and painted.  So we're doing real $400-1000 production models for ZCorp price.

Figureprints.com stays in business because their ZCorp figures are 4 inches tall (about 3-5 cubic inches including base).  And they charge $139.99 for it.  It works out about right.