Can You Rent Out 3d Printer For Services

3D Printers are arguably the touted future of all manufacturing. The prices have never been lower. The software pipeline never more streamlined. The guides, tutorials and how-tos take never been and so beginner friendly.

That is all very exciting and wonderful for hobbyists looking to spend coin on crafting and so 3D printing their own venerated models in the condolement of their homes. But what about turning the costs of buying, using and maintaining a 3D printer into an investment that one could make a monetary return on? Is information technology possible and feasible to make a sustainable business from 3D Printing?

In this commodity, we shall have a expect at some of the possible ways in which 3D printers tin be used to make money, too as how to deal with the near common challenges that each such possibility entails in the year 2022.

Permit the coin clasp out

3D Printers are technically known as condiment manufacturing systems. By virtue of this identity, 3D printers are enabling tools, and potent ones at that. Many professionals depend on 3D printers for their professional person workflows.

It would be unlawful, irresponsible and non to mention ridiculous to launch a workshop for the purpose of printing stack after stack of crisp new 100-dollar bills. 3D printers cannot be used to print money, paper or otherwise. Apologies for tearing down anyone'southward dreams of striking it big that way.

Similarly, when it comes to turning 3D printing into a business, one cannot merely wait to download a 3D model online, print it in quantities, and sell it for a sustainable period of time.

Yet, there are means which you will soon learn that a person can make an extra $1,000 or $5,000+ with 3D printing depending on the amount fourth dimension and endeavour they are willing put it in.

Any person with minimal knowledge of textile physics or crafting becomes able to take an idea and print it out with astounding detail. Only it needs to be stressed, that it is the idea that is capable of achieving something. And not the tool.

Anyone can make money with 3D printers and do and so with much greater ease than ever possible before. All the same, how to make it is completely dependent upon what you want to achieve, and your delivery in doing everything else that needs to be done before and after pressing "print".

Making money with a 3D printer without starting a business

Making a few dollars here and in that location can be much easier than doing so consistently in the course of a business. Starting a business requires more upfront cost, underlying requirements and formalities and about of all, time delivery.

It is often easier to start off by selling different designs or items while testing the waters to encounter what sells. It is best to complete in-depth enquiry to see what items have sold well in the past earlier designing, printing or listing the first item up for sell.

One way to do this, every bit shown in more details below in the Selling 3D Printed Items section, is to search for instance, Etsy for the term "3D printed" items. Later finding an in-need item, and so it's off to the races. The post-obit is a simplified succession for the process which happens next:

Create your pattern, see how to get custom 3D printing done for cheap
Print just a few prints for market place testing
Take some nice photos of the new item
List the new items for sell in various marketplace. See below for places to post items for sell.

3D printers – the business organization opportunities

It is important to understand that, if yous have a working idea of what y'all want to offer or sell, and you lot have done the market research and are prepare to commit yourself to the fulfillment of your vision, then 3D printers will no dubiousness enable y'all, with all their potential, in achieving just that.

3D printed paw bag. Photograph credit: NORA DENES

Exist it a startup manufacturing businesses, prototyping, designing services, or niche uses such every bit mode, food, construction or even medicine and bio-printing. 3D Printers have merely served as tools to fulfill the design wishes of their users. Detailed beneath are the ways 1 may turn a profit from 3D printers.

1. PRINT ON-Need

Can yous make money from it?

When we think of the possibility of making money with 3D printers. The first thought that nearly all of us have is to constitute a print on-demand service. This is one of the classic ways that any new hobbyist engineering is turned into a potential business.

The logic is quite direct-forward:

ane) 3D Printers are at present cheaper than ever.

ii) So why not simply buy the cheapest model and offer 3D Printing services to anyone who wants it.

While the logic is sound plenty at get-go glance. And it is most certainly possible to brand coin this manner, the falling prices of 3D printers has fabricated this particular business one of the virtually competitive within the still budding 3D press industry.

How to make money from information technology?

Challenges

To make money from impress on-demand services in 2021, some fundamental things need to be fabricated clear:

1) While the cheapest 3D printers can exist bought at present for as petty as $200 (material cost excluded), this depression-cost bulwark ways that more than and more people will opt for buying a 3D printer outright instead of paying for On-Demand services that are not the highest in terms of quality and reliability.

2) Due to the loftier competition, competing on cost with the established large-scale service providers volition be next to impossible.

Solutions

Any person considering this "easy mode" of making money from 3D Printers should calculate his/her investment wisely and pay up for a more expensive, only consistently reliable make of 3D printer. It is important to do the research before ownership your first machine.

Secondly, do NOT compete on toll. Instead focus on providing quality and reliability, coupled with 3D model design services such as file fixing, or pattern on-need services to provide an end-to-end service for your clients.

Marketplaces to offer your printing service

The hardest function about starting one of those services or whatsoever business is acquiring the start customer and making the first sale. Thankfully, there are a number of marketplaces where people are actively searching for the services y'all provide. All you must practise is create an account, annals as a printing service and y'all are open for business.

Many of these platforms are free to utilise. They provide the framework for pricing and fulfillment if this is something yous are notwithstanding working out. The tradeoff is that you lot pay small percentage of the profits as a commission of sorts for allowing theses services to supply the customers and for using their platform.

The following is a list of places where yous can register and employ your 3D printer equally print on demand service:

Shapeways

Shapeways is a platform where printing service providers tin can register, provide their services to potential customers and go paid. Designers are as well available to create custom models by asking. Information technology is an all in ane service where one may starting time with nothing and cease upwardly with fully printed product. Memberships are costless.

Fiver

Fiver is a freelancing platform allowing freelancers to provide a massive category of services. 3D printing service providers can sign upwards for a gratuitous account. This is possibly the easiest way to acquiring new customers and start making money. Equally you acquire new customers and gain positive reviews things can began to steam roll.

3DHubs

3DHubs is a professional person full-service manufacturing platform. For those who run a press service and wish to discover potential clients, they may register with 3Dhubs, enlist their printer as bachelor for completing diverse jobs and kickoff receiving and fulfilling impress orders using this platform. 3Dhubs uses a local service provider matching system to connect people in neighboring areas.

Treatstock

Treatstock is some other manufacturing platform connecting shops and people looking for 3D printing services with service providers. To outset offering services on Treatstock, you lot showtime have to register as manufacturer. In one case the sign-up process is consummate, you can start fulfilling orders, building upwardly a reputation for your brand.

MakeXYZ

MakeXYZ is a platform where one may register their printer as available to do printing jobs and commencement providing printing services. MakeXYZ really facilitate the process by making it piece of cake for both service providers and other finish-users.

Some other popular platforms providing online printing services include:

Sculpteo
i.Materialise
imakr
Ponoko

2. SELLING 3D PRINTED ITEMS

Can you make money from it?

Some other popular technique for monetizing 3D printer use is to sell 3D printed items. Unlike print on-need services, selling 3D printed objects is a much more controllable venture.

Example of a 3D printed product. Franco 3D Model by Aaron Harper Lee. Photo credit: Nutty Critter

At the aforementioned time, nevertheless, it too is more complicated to become started and requires much greater initial input than providing 3D printing services.

How to make money from it?

Challenges

1) Considering of the simplicity of this idea, the primary challenge comes not from 3D Printer apply, but before that: you demand to design items that consumers will want to purchase.

ii) This means that the detail needs to provide value to potential customers. As a matter of market reality, usable items – even if superficially so – are considered to be of college value than ornamental items.

3) At the same time, it needs to be economically designed and easy enough to print so that yous can reliably print with consistency, in quantity if needed and with minimal irregularities between reprints.

Solutions

1) There is no shortcut to this: yous will have to either larn how to design 3D models with skill or pay/interact with someone who does. Secondly, you will need to find a niche that your idea tin can fill.

two) The value proposition can be existent or apparent, simply information technology needs to be there. According to the Golden Circle concept, you need to answer 3 questions: why create the product (across profits)? How does the product fulfill its intention (the why)? What does the product actually practice in its entirety?

3) The terminal i is probably the simplest to solve once the outset 2 challenges have been dealt with. But it requires one to exist aware of the strengths and weaknesses of the item 3D printer existence used to create the item. All 3D printers have certain unique design characteristics that make them more suited for sure tasks and shapes than others. It is important to gain a working awareness of these characteristics.

An easy way to go a head commencement on the niche and production selection is to search the marketplaces, which yous will find beneath, for already profitably selling 3D printed items and hire a freelancer on a platform like Fiver to create your own spin on that item. Hiring someone on fiver is an economical way to practise this. The rates are oftentimes quite depression for quality work. Plus, satisfaction is guaranteed, or you tin get your money back. See our post on, how to get custom 3D press done for cheap

It must be noted however that a level of care must be exercised in guild to avert whatsoever copyright or patented items. Creating your own version of a successful product idea while providing additional value is perfectly fine and is a quiet common competitive approach. But blatantly ripping off someone else'south success is often a bad idea.

Ideas for things to print and sale

3D portraits
Glow in night house decals
Custom parts for different equipment
Backyard ornaments
Loftier style jewelry
Board games
Personalized items like primal chains and phone cases
Baby nursery wall decor
Door decor
Bird and true cat houses
3D model of human facial skeleton
3D model of the brain

Where to sell your 3D printed items online

Having a viable production that sells is i thing, but where do you lot actually sell your items online and how practise you find those people who are actually looking to purchase your product. Ane option is open a store forepart on one of the pop online marketplaces.

These platforms permit vendors to sell items on their platform for a modest cutting of the revenue. The expert thing almost using such services is that one can passively generate sales without doing any marketing any.

The all-time online marketplaces for 3D printed items are detailed below:

Etsy
Ebay
Bonanza
Storenvy
i.materialise
Facebook marketplace

The other way to sell your items online is to open your own online shop. There are many software packages making information technology easy to launch your ain online ecommerce store forepart with an ecommerce website builder.

These are possibly not the all-time methods for starting out, as they require upfront expenses and you lot are responsible for promotions and marketing. Withal, if you already accept products that sells or a store and are looking to scale up, then these platforms volition be the manner to become.

The all-time ecommerce website builders are:

Shopify
Wix
Squarespace
Weebly
BigCommerce

While starting with a 3D printed item is a good thought, scaling the sales of a 3D printed product presents many challenges. Ultimately, the goal should be to source the production from a professional manufacturer. China is undoubtedly the go-to source for inexpensive and reliable manufacturing in such cases.

How to make money with 3D printed items offline

The are many nifty means to sell your 3D printed items offline. Which 1 you lot use volition depend on your level of commitment, starting budget, time constraints and some other factors.

Garage sales

Perhaps the easiest, almost convenient and toll-effective manner to make money with a 3D printer is launching a weekly garage sale of items you've 3D printed. Post signs throughout the neighborhood alerting member of the community of the garage sale. After edifice a customer base, you lot can start taking custom orders and growing equally you see fit.

Fairs and craft bear witness

Fairs and craft shows are a not bad opportunity to get your proper noun out there and start selling 3D printed items and services. These events oftentimes require some upfront investment in the grade of a registration fee. There is often a huge turnout and the potential to sell out with big outcome.

Making money with print fix 3D models

One does not need to sell physical 3D prints in club to outset profiting from 3D press. All one needs is a handy 3D model to start generating income. If yous are a skilled designer, this can be a promising opportunity.

Even if you are not a designer, you can accept your models designed for you at a very affordable price using a platform like fiver. In one case the 3D model has been designed and gear up for printing, you can list it on one the marketplaces listed below, and people can download and impress the object as they please.

Of class, to justify spending coin to have the models designed, the potential for good returns on the initial investment, plus long-term profits must be present.

The all-time places to sell paid 3D models are:

Cults3D
CGtrader
Pinshape
MyMiniFactory
Turbosquid
Skrimarket

3. 3D Food PRINTERS

3D Food Printers are a growing niche that allow the manufacturing of complexly designed paste-based (potato mash, sauces, creams, candies etc.). Owing to the speed and accuracy of 3D printing, anyone with the noesis and skill of making 3D models can create breathtaking looking dishes.

Delicious bootleg 3D printed sugar free chocolates shaped every bit honeycomb

Further, 3D printed food acts as a peachy marketing buzzword to attract crowds looking for something new and fresh.

3D Food Printers start from $300 (for uncomplicated pancake mode printers) to thousands of dollars for professional kitchen grade printers capable of working with chocolate and other hard-to-work ingredients.

Tin you lot make coin from information technology?

All you need to offset earning from 3D Nutrient Printers is a food thought and so the 3D printer will help along with the residuum.

How to make money from it?

Potential business opportunities include selling complex frozen food or making a delivery only business with made-to-social club dishes. Alternatively, a 3D nutrient printer can profoundly enhance the marketability of whatsoever existing food eating house and as well provide it with an easy upgrade method to more aesthetically pleasing specialty dishes.

3D PRINTERS – COSTS AND SUITABILITY FOR BUSINESSES

1. Consumer class 3D printers

The cheapest consumer 3D printers – both FDM too as resin-based SLA – now kickoff at around $200. However, for the purpose of business as discussed before, it is better to purchase a model known for better reliability. The average cost for such printer hovers around the $700-900 marker.

FDM Extrusion type printers have a lower running cost and easier maintenance in the long run. Filament costs vary past material, and more expensive models can even use metal-plastic and other composites. On the whole, however, filaments tend to cost less than liquid resins.

I strong marker confronting FDM printers, however, is that for the aforementioned price, resin-based printers tend to be faster and give much improve 3D print quality. Though, resin-based 3D prints require farther procedures to ensure quality such as additional curing under UV lamps, washing the 3D prints in alcohols to clear off uncured resin. Liquid resins as well need to be handled with gloves due to their toxicity.

Unless very detailed quality is required, FDM printers tin be used exclusively for press and selling 3D items since they are both cheaper for printing as well as more reliable.

However, for print on-demand services, it would exist ideal to accept as varied a gear up of 3D printers and materials to cull from as possible.

2. Metallic and multi-fabric 3D printers

Metal 3D Printers are, unfortunately, still quite a ways off from becoming affordable for startups. Bated from certain extrusion blazon metal printers that do not produce as high-quality prints, the starting toll of metal-based 3D Printers easily eclipses the $fifty,000 mark.

This makes investing in metal 3D printers and similarly expensive multi-textile 3D printers merely appropriate if there is a set business suggestion in identify that would justify (and require) such an investment.

Jetting Printers are much more than suited for mass production considering they are capable of press multiple units simultaneously.

While SLM/EBM type printers continue to be able to be reliant for uniquely crafted custom, circuitous parts.