ZVerse creates, markets, and sells 3D-printed licensed products for some 20 colleges and universities. At right is a replica of the University of South Carolina stadium. this first hand. Braintree was the earliest printing operations to adopt 3D technology, installing a Stratysys Dimension 1200es in mid-2012. To promote the service, Corliss used a list of several thousand businesses in his area and whittled it down to 100 targets. “Many had their own equipment,” recalled Corliss. “But the real issue is that to be a job shop, you really need 10 to 15 pieces of equipment. A lot of these devices only extrude one type of plastic. If you only have one machine and a customer who needs a different type, you can’t do it.” Substrates ended up being a deal breaker for a number of potential clients. “One guy asked what kind do you use, and I said ABS plastic; and his end products are flexible and he needs the prototype to be flexible,” Corliss explained. “I talked to someone else who was in the aviation industry. He needed his parts to be a certain type of plastic with fireproof capability. Another guy wanted clear plastic, none of which I did. It was like trying to get into the printing business with a single-color copier and nothing else.” While Braintree continues to produce 3D printing jobs, Corliss no longer proactively sells the technology. Instead, he focuses on the company’s existing base of customers using the shop for overflow work. These companies have 3D designers, and many have the same equipment as Braintree. They are submitting print-ready STL files for those projects they don’t have the capacity to print themselves. “Typically a manufacturing operation that is designing some component has a busy period when they are doing design,” Corliss noted. “Then there are ebbs and flows, and they might need two prototypes per week for six weeks which is when Braintree’s Stratysys gets busy, but once it’s designed, they go into production mode and stop having design needs.” The possibilites are endless when it comes to 3D printing. ZVerse offers 3D-printed objects from awards to specialty replicas for the collegiate market. Although we read case study after case study on unique projects being produced by shops with 3D printers (Brandywine Printing in Cummings, GA, for example, has tapped a market for 3D hazard maps of volcanic areas using Mcor’s full-color 3D printers), printers are indicating that this is not a sustainable business model. There is not a high volume of these projects; they take more time and energy to sell than they generate in revenue. Especially if long-term, higher-volume customers are likely to bring 3D printing in-house. This is why we are seeing more and more high-profile users, like Brandywine and Digicopy, become authorized resellers. Using 3D output services to draw customers in and ultimately sell them their own 3D printer just makes sense. Digicopy may be printing one thousand 3D models per month, but at some point, that volume will likely drive the university to bring 3D printing in-house. When it does, purchasing an Mcor 3D printer from Digicopy is a natural fit. Substrate Stickiness Another sticky issue with being output only shops, printers find, is that verticals using 3D printers have wide ranging substrate needs. Most 3D print machines handle one or a very limited number of substrates. What happens if the customer needs a substrate not offered by your 3D machine or needs different substrates at different times? Jim Corliss, co-owner of Braintree Printing, Braintree, MA, discovered While it’s not a big money-maker, Corliss keeps the Stratysys as long as he has enough work to pay for the lease. Braintree Printing is not alone. You won’t see most printers, including the giant retailers, actively promoting 3D printing as a service either. Unless they want to invest in being a maker space with multiple machines of varying resolutions, substrates, and speeds, finding the right fit between customers and technological capabilities is a bit like finding a need in the proverbial haystack. Shops may have in-store signage and it may have a place on their websites (The UPS Store and Staples both have “store locator” links), but few companies are spending manpower or capital to actively market it. How about hobbyists? Aren’t they a huge market? Printers report that hobbyists drain a lot of the CSR’s time, generally need design services, and are too price-sensitive. “We had a lot of calls from hobbyists, but design is expensive,” said Corliss of Braintree Printing. “Depending on how complicated and big the project is, it could be $500 or $1,000. They want to spend $10. They didn’t realize the cost of the stuff.” Made in Space If printers have an interest in pursuing 3D printing and the traditional avenues of exploration aren’t yielding obvious business models, where can they look? Jason Dunn, CTO, co-founder of Made in Space, suggests disrupting the supply chain. Made in Space manufactures “zero gravity” 3D printers for use in space and is known for its 3D printer on the space station. Users range from NASA and other government space agencies to individual and private 12 Printing News | October 2015 PrintingNews.com
Printing News October 2015
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