RE: [rp-ml] Zcorp!?

Well said

-----Original Message-----
From: owner-rp-ml@rapid.lpt.fi [mailto:owner-rp-ml@rapid.lpt.fi] On Behalf
Of Bathsheba
Sent: Monday, November 21, 2011 2:30 PM
To: rp-ml@rapid.lpt.fi
Subject: Re: [rp-ml] Zcorp!?

On 11/21/2011 10:49 AM, G. Sachs wrote:
> Looks like it (and Vidar digitizers). Boy, that's really consolidating
> the market into 2-3 players. Not really good, is it?

I can see why they wanted to do it, but I agree: this can't be good for the
market.

Stop me if I'm wrong, but what I observe in this field is that technical
innovation takes place when companies are founded or enter the field, and
only then. Since I started doing this in the mid-90's, I can think of no
game-changing innovation that took place in an established 3DP company. I
don't mean incremental improvements, but when a whole new process is
invented, bringing with it new applications, changing the cost structure,
novel material category...something that brings in a whole horde of brand
new uncaptured customers.

Within existing companies the layers get a bit thinner, the support
structure algorithms get a bit better, on a big day a new material is added.
The most exciting thing I remember from an established company was when
ZCorp got color. Stereolithography doesn't seem too different to me from
what it was when I first heard of it 20 years ago. Yes it's incrementally
better, but the fundamentals -- layers, supports, type of material -- don't
get fixed. People who are invested in SLA don't see these things as
problems. Better parts, different parts, must come from somewhere else.

On the one hand, it's better for the industry if there are small companies
springing up. On the other hand, nobody's going to start a small company if
it doesn't have an exit path, and it's traditional in this era for that exit
path to be "selling out to the 800-lb gorilla".

Gripping hand, RIP ZCorp. I'll miss you guys. I believe there would be no
consumer market today without what ZCorp did: they invented the cheaptastic
concept model.

Personally, ZCorp was the company that looked at my very first CAD model
-- and it was total crap -- and say hey, we're new here too, nothing to
lose, let's act like this is a customer and see what happens.

It's a while since we've done business, but those were great days.

Well, here's to the next big thing. I will bet you a dollar it comes from a
company that, right now, no one reading this knows the name of.

-Bathsheba

-- 
Bathsheba Grossman                            Bathsheba Sculpture LLC
Sculpting Geometry                               http://bathsheba.com
Crystal Proteins                            http://crystalprotein.com