I do not know why 3D Hubs implemented this change.
Perhaps the real reason is that they are afraid that if a customer can find a Hub without uploading a part first, they might want to contact that Hub directly and place a direct order without going through 3D Hubs.
However, it also means that a potential customer looking for a Hub to do some design work for them had no place to go.
So, listing your Hub as being able to do 3D modelling or even being able to do 3D scanning has basically lost its value.
I agree that there could be more direct ways to contact and consult with hubs on projects that would need modeling work. However, there is a bit of a roundabout way to contact hubs without submitting an order.
You can upload any random STL file, though preferably similar in size and requirement to what you think you might want to do, to get access to a list of hubs. Once you have a list of hubs, you can click on any one and hit “view hub”. From the hub page you can click “contact this hub”. That will allow you to send an enquiry to the hub without actually submitting an STL file.
I have attached a simple example of this process for contacting hubs. contacting_hubs.pdf (751 KB)
Though it seems that 3DHubs has deprioritized location proximity, it still gives the buyer the ability to filter based on proximity if that metric is important to them. I think that this is actually a good change since proximity may have vastly different importance to different buyers.
Maybe they see an increase of orders to the more expensive and professional hubs and not to us so now they make more money…They are acting as the employer and not as how they used to…
Yes, I know this is a way to find a Hub that can do work for you without actually placing an order.
However, this work-around is not so easy to find. I think it is rather unlikely that a new, potential customer would find this out himself if they would visit 3D Hubs for the first time.
More likely they would stop at the moment they are required to upload a STL-file (assuming that they know what it is in the first place, many of my first-time customers have no idea what is needed for a 3D print). Then they would click around a bit and then, most likely, just leave 3D Hubs and start searching for another 3D Print server.
Nowadays, in most areas, 3D Hubs is not the only 3D Print provider.
If you need something printed fast and don’t want to pay for shipping the local pickup is a nice option…I don’t see a point for paying for FDM services far away from you and having to pay for shipping, all the smaller hubs that aren’t professional print basically the same quality.
I agree that proximity might not always be important.
That said, however, take a look at the Home page of 3D Hubs: It literally says (in capitals, no less): Local 3D printing
I agree that having the option to check for localised Hubs is a good one.
But then, I might add, I would also like being able to sort for Hubs with highest rating, fastest estimated delivery, lowest price, most reviews, possibility for invoicing, 3D modelling/designing, 3D Scanning etc.
Especially now that the list with ‘recommended Hubs’ is not a list of proven and best performing Hubs.
There is this proud statistics line that’s mentioned there: Number of parts printed, avg. turnaround time, services online etc.
My quess is, no one ever really looks at those numbers.
The average increase in the number of parts printed is about 1800-1900 per day.
Now, it is not clear if this is ORDER printed or just, literally, PARTS printed.
But if I assume that it is orders and that each order averages out at around 40 Euros, it would mean that 3D Hubs has a revenue of about 3.4 million a year.
That is not that much considering the network they have to keep running.
So, steering customer more and more to more expensive and professional Hubs is, business wise speaking, a smart move.
If the average price per order goes up, so do the 3D Hubs revenues.
during the first half of the year i was getting 1-2 orders per week. since june until now I have received 1 order. i have been wondering why orders simply stopped coming in.
Hey all, I just posted a similar topic. I haven’t had any orders the entire month of July, this is after averaging between 2 and 6 a week pretty steadily. This trend is definitely concerning to me. Hopefully orders pick up soon!
About a week and a half ago orders stopped. I’ve also received reports that I cannot always be located on when the users select SLA. Another local hub has the same issue where some users can only locate them if FDM is selected (unfortunately, I only print in SLA on 3D Hubs). Fortunately, this is saving me from having to remove support materials and sand the prints. <- Last part is sarcasm related to another Talk thread.
Seven mil. is indeed higer, but still not that much. It means the average order amount is a bit higher than I expected.
Nevertheless, I am not sure that, unless they manage to significantly increase either the number of orders placed and/or the average order amount, there is not that much room for revenue growth.
If I look at the Hubs saying that their orders have decreased, I am not sure that is what’s happening right now.
<- Last part is sarcasm related to another Talk thread.