Hi all,
Allow me to check-in on this thread as well with an attempt to summarize and hopefully shed some light on the most asked questions (forgive me if it’s a bit lengthy).
Why these guidelines?
As mentioned in the original thread, the goal of the FDM quality guidelines is to improve FDM printing standards globally.
One of the top customer complaints is about print quality being below expectations. Phrased differently, there’s a huge opportunity for both Hubs and 3D Hubs to grow their business if a cross platform standard is set. This can be used to set the right expectations up front, as well as setting a minimum requirement for FDM printing, which enables us to cater to more professional audiences.
To be clear, the main message is to manage the customer’s expectation. These guidelines serve as a standard reference (e.g. backup) whenever there’s a dispute between customer and Hub. If a Hub and customer agree to deviate from the guidelines, that’s completely fine.
I hope this also explains that this is not about “policing” Hubs, but rather a tool to help set clear expectations.
Implementation of Guidelines
As many of you highlighted, after we’ve asked for feedback over the holidays (and you delivered) we failed to respond. This was a mistake on our side and I understand the negative impression it has left. I do want to stress that we’ve discussed all feedback elaborately and made changes accordingly. Below, more information on the main topics.
On dimensional accuracy
After checking with a significant sample of top Hubs as well as 3D printing experts from the industry, the current suggestion is considered to be reasonable.
To illustrate the variety of opinions, while the feedback here has been that the requirement might be too harsh, the opinion on Reddit has been that the requirements are too loose. My personal opinion is that with a well calibrated printer these requirements should be met without difficulty in most cases.
Clearly, there are scenarios in which an accuracy of 1mm might be tough to achieve - say, a FDM printed sphere. In those cases, be sure to set expectations with your customer before accepting the order. Again, the guidelines will be the point of reference whenever there’s a dispute between customer and Hub. If you both agree, then all is good.
On support removal
The majority of the customers expect to receive a finished product when ordering a print and we think that’s reasonable. Delivering a print with the support still on is considered below the minimum required level of service. Another indicator is that a large part of Hubs already delivers support removal in their service.
That being said, if a Hub and customer both agree that support can stay on the part - for faster delivery for example - then that’s their decision and 3D Hubs will not get involved.
We are aware that at this point there’s no automated system in place for calculating (and thus pricing) support. These tools are planned for Q2 / Q3 2017. Currently, we communicate to customers that possibly cost will be added for models that need a lot of support. For example, in the checkout; “Models with overhangs steeper than 45 degrees, needs support material possibly resulting in additional costs”.
Ok, hope that explains a bit. Please let me know if any questions remain.
Best,
Filemon
