suds32 - Suitable design created for 3d printing. Print size, required quality , filament and time

julialongtin - availability of cheap parts for more printers.

jadcld7603 - kerr325, As a supplier I can say the hardest challenge in this industry is to find the customers. Many people I have talked to do not even know this technology exists. I have had to use every method in the book to find the proper audience from Google advertising to posting flyers, thankfully there are good site like makexyz. I have had most of my work come through them. As a consumer in this industry I think I can rattle off a few challenges, one being knowing what you need. There are so many options out there, from what supplier you choose, what material is used, what type of 3d printing process is better for your part, the size you need, etc. A lot comes into play when prototyping, whether RP, laser, CNC, and so on. Glad to contribute to the conversation here!

jms3dprinting - My challenges have been "it's the model, stupid". Almost always my prints have failed because of the model error, not the printer. Or getting the model for a complicated part can be a challenge. Scanning only works if you already have a part but won't give you the detail for a part that needs a specific dimension or tolerance to work properly. I have had filament jams due to spool coming unraveled and crossed when rewound but otherwise the filament is not something I can say I would blame a bad print on. I use an Afinia machine which worked out of the box and does not need much care, so maybe I am spoiled.