Would anyone be willing to share how they price a print. For example, if you use a flat rate, what do you base that on? Do you charge by size, time, material?
Any input would be useful.
Thanks in advance,
Mark
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I have a detailed spreadsheet that takes consumables, price of printer and resin costs into acount and then quote per cc of resin. I have a min order.
Its simple and effective but odd prints where the ratio of part vs supports can be out on price. It good upto a certain value over that then i make money. Smallest order around ÂŁ12,largest around ÂŁ200, this is over 130 prints in 4 months
I also take into account print time too, each print part pays for printer, so when on 25u layer i charge more asonger duration
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My simple formula is based on ml used. For example a print that requires 30ml of resin would cost $30 USD. Given the designs are also mine. I am also interested to know how much other people charge.
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This is an interesting topic.
I kind of like the simple approach of $1/ml. However, does that include any post processing or only straight up printing?
Straight printing and support removal is one thing. Finishing the part, especially complicated and detailed parts could be very time consuming. Then there’s the possibility of print failure, pre-processing of the 3D model to make it printable, material waste that comes with each print, etc.
I do lot of Solidworks design at work for my company, but we farm out the prints. I’ve been asked in the past if I wanted to print the prototypes, but refused so far.
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I currently use the simple formula of $1/mL for all standard resins (clear, white, grey, black) at 50micron resolution. From there the Tough and Durable resins are at $1.75/mL Flexible and High Temp resin are at $2.25/mL. For lower resolution prints at 100micron for all resins, I charge $0.50/mL less than 50micron prints. This is loosely based on the relative cost to purchase a new cartridge for each. Aside from shipping, the only additional fee is print startup, currently $5, which I guess also accounts for the cost of print support material.
In the end, this is just for printing itself and not any post processing/cleaning. I have debated whether or not to charge for it, but ended up not doing so for the time being as I still want to kind of be competitive cost-wise. Unless an order has an insane amount of detail then I will charge a small fee.
I have considered the depreciation cost of the printer as an investment in myself. About 3-4 years ago, I fell in love with 3D printing and the potential opportunities it presents. I see the technology as something that I want to further incorporate in my near future so for the time being, it is more of a knowledge investment rather than a profiting tool. I ordered a Form 2 as a birthday present for myself back in 2015 and do not regret it one bit.
However it depends on your situation. Since I do have a regular job which I am living comfortably off of, I utilize 3D printing as an opportunity to network which in turn provides opportunities to bring in more orders. My interests in 3D printing are for long-term so I’m willing to take some early sacrifices in exchange for knowledge. Besides, the more you learn the easier and more efficient you should become, right? Which in turn is correlated to profit amount, if that is what you are ultimately after.
I am not a greedy person, and never have been; within reason of course. I will step down from my podium rant now…
I price my prints at $.75 per ml but you can go higher. Consider the difficulty of the print too. Prints more susceptible to a failure if they are really fragile you may want to go more. Price your cleanup and finishing separately. Some models are almost no work, others can be a pain. Also consider if your using specially resins.
No, this is just for the print. I even ship it with supports and bases still attached, to let my customers remove and finish it the way they want…
It is a challenge to print a different part every time… My parts are standard and I always have a few test prints (and failures) before a model “goes into production”.