An Entire Business Built on 3D Printing

While some businesses are beginning to use 3D printers to customize and diversify their services, the technology is still a novelty. Think: the iPad or iPhone before (seemingly) everyone had one. But Makelab founder Jonathan Moneta is pinning his venture's success on the technology's potential. Makelab is a 3D printing events company, which means Moneta brings his fleet of printers to events and lets attendees design their own gizmos, then watch as their designs take on three dimensions.

People are fascinated by the process, says Moneta, and love watching the printers in action.

While 3D printing is by no means a new technology, it only recently became an affordable tool for the individual or small business. Since Makebot started manufacturing 3D printers a few years ago, this technology has become available to anyone for around $2,000 (even less if you opt to build your own from a kit).

And why would anyone want a $2,000 printer? "It's been used in commercial applications for decades for one reason: it makes it very cheap to produce one of anything," explains Moneta. That makes it a very appealing option for entrepreneurs and innovators looking to print prototypes of their latest product. "It's expensive to produce anything, especially out of plastic," says Moneta. "You have to invest in special moulds, set up the machinery." Building a prototype can run an entrepreneur from $10,000 to $20,000 using traditional means. So, you can see why access to a 3D printer is an appealing proposition for an invention-minded entrepreneur.

That's why Moneta is considering setting up in a permanent makerspace.

Read: Makerspaces: The Future of Innovation

In a makerspace, Moneta would cater more to entrepreneurs and innovators than to everyday people looking to bring their designs to life for kicks. While the average consumer may soon come to dismiss 3D printing as a novelty, Moneta believes this technology will play an increasingly important role in how businesses develop and bring a product to bring to market.