Low cost RP...

From: lblasch@opw-fc.com
Date: Mon Apr 26 1999 - 12:03:49 EEST


     This is an open letter to everyone who is requesting that the RP
     machine manufactures design and build a low cost RP modeler.
     
     List the potential uses for this type of device and you will see that
     the market is extremely fragmented. While there are a myriad of
     applications, the specific machine capabilities needed to produce
     acceptable parts vary greatly from one application to the next.
     
     There is no model size, or material choice that can be defined as the
     optimum for any large market segment. (Tell me that I'm wrong)
     
     If for example, a low cost machine (under $2000) was available to
     create "Jewlry", that market would immediatly become saturated with
     "Instant-custom design jewlers" and the competitive edge gained by
     owning the device would be lost. The market segment for such a device
     would tend to be small in scale when compared to the profit potential
     for the manufacturer so that company would need to adapt it's product
     for other uses, or it would fail.
     
     I know that this is just basic economics, but quite often you don't
     get what you ask for unless you ask for the right thing.
     
     Look at the application you want to model rapidly for... is the return
     greater than the investment required to design an RP machine for it?
     
     There are markets galore for machines that can do anything... try to
     define what anything is, and then start working on your own RP machine
     design.
     
     Design suggestion: I want a machine that is accurate to the
     molecular/atomic level and can create any material.
     
     Good Luck,
     
     Larry Blasch
     Sys-Admin for Engineering Services
     
     OPW Fueling Components
     P.O. Box 405003
     Cincinnati, OH 45240-5003 USA
     
     Voice: (513) 870-3356
     Fax: (513) 870-3338
     **********************************************************************
     Disclaimer...The views expressed are personal opinion and not those of
     OPW Fueling Components.
     **********************************************************************
     

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