[hackerspaces] Cost sharing for lasers and 3D printers?

[Adam Mayer]

A few more notes on the NYCR laser:

It was funded by a subset of the membership who bought "shares" of the
laser. The idea was to pay back these funds if we ever managed to make back
the cost of the machine. (Amazingly, we did; it took almost four years.
Once the laser was paid off, we bought down the prices significantly.)

Prices are posted around the laser. We charge by the minute for folks who
have taken the laser training class. We have a web app for tracking laser
time, and users paying cash leave it in a box next to the laser. There are
additional operator fees if you haven't taken the class and need someone to
run the job for you. We don't generally let people who haven't taken the
class run the laser, even if they've "used one just like it"; a laser fire
will set you back a few hundred bucks and a week or two of downtime.

We have a Replicator, but we just let folks use that for free, since it's
far less likely to self-destruct if misused and is a far cheaper machine
(and we can disassemble/reassemble it blindfolded if anything breaks).

Based on our experiences, here's a few patterns for buying and funding
expensive equipment in the space:
- instead of trying to get the entire space to hit consensus, have one
person lead the buying process and try to find a subset of members who are
willing to fund the machine. This is also how we got our sherline mill,
roller press, etc.
- if it's a pay-to-use machine, make sure the funders don't necessarily
have an expectation of making their money back. It was almost a fluke that
we got anything back on the laser, and even if it had never returned a dime
it would still have been the best investment I ever made.
- if it's a delicate machine that can be damaged by misuse, make sure there
is a training procedure/class required before a user can run the machine.
- put aside some continuing source of funds for maintenance. Everything is
a consumable on a long enough timescale.
- if you plan to let trained operators run the machine for others, make
sure there's some reasonable pricing scheme to compensate the operator for
their time. Being an unpaid machine operator gets old quick.

-a


On Fri, Jan 18, 2013 at 10:01 PM, Matt Joyce <matt at nycresistor.com> wrote:

> Below is a list of wiki articles from NYCR on laser purchasing.  Not
> 3d but CAD... and an expensive piece of gear.
>
> Some of this may be relevant.
>
>
> -Matt
>
> http://wiki.nycresistor.com/wiki/Purchasing_A_Laser
>
> http://wiki.nycresistor.com/wiki/Laser_Pricing
>
> http://wiki.nycresistor.com/wiki/Replacement_parts,_filters,_etc.
>
> http://wiki.nycresistor.com/wiki/Laser_Power
>
> http://wiki.nycresistor.com/wiki/Cleaning
>
> http://wiki.nycresistor.com/wiki/Laser_Etching_Service_FAQ
>
> On Fri, Jan 18, 2013 at 5:58 PM, charlie wallace
> <charlie at finitemonkeys.com> wrote:
> > yeah exactly if we got it we'll share, if we haven't we will figure it
> out.
> >
> > Share and Enjoy even if its not an amiga.
> >
> >
> > On Fri, Jan 18, 2013 at 5:45 PM, Al Billings <albill at openbuddha.com>
> wrote:
> >>
> >> Oh, so like most hackerspace tools!
> >>
> >> --
> >> Al Billings
> >> http://openbuddha.com
> >>
> >> On Friday, January 18, 2013 at 5:20 PM, charlie wallace wrote:
> >>
> >> Whip round and some guilt laced emails, then a few key members will kick
> >> in whats left.
> >>
> >>
> >> On Fri, Jan 18, 2013 at 5:16 PM, Al Billings <albill at openbuddha.com>
> >> wrote:
> >>
> >> I figured that.  :-)
> >>
> >> How is it paid for though?
> >>
> >> --
> >> Al Billings
> >> http://www.openbuddha.com
> >> http://makehacklearn.org
> >>
> >> On Friday, January 18, 2013 at 5:15 PM, charlie wallace wrote:
> >>
> >> buy another one.
> >>
> >>
> >> On Fri, Jan 18, 2013 at 5:12 PM, Al Billings <albill at openbuddha.com>
> >> wrote:
> >>
> >> What do you do when a laser tube fries itself?
> >>
> >> --
> >> Al Billings
> >> http://www.openbuddha.com
> >> http://makehacklearn.org
> >>
> >> On Friday, January 18, 2013 at 5:04 PM, charlie wallace wrote:
> >>
> >> we just supply the machine, space and electricity and knowledge for
> free,
> >> you supply the materials, unless we have the materials on hand and no
> ones
> >> care if they're used up but it'd be nice if they were replaced, or added
> >> too.
> >>
> >>
> >>
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> >>
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