Interesting. I work in manufacturing (I'm a mechanical design engineer). I design injection molded parts, injection molds (the mold set itself that is used to make injection molded parts), and I do machine design. I've designed firearms, car parts, airplane parts, industrial machine parts, etc.
I know that PCBA (printed circuit board assembly) manufacturing equipment takes up very little space, in the typical operation - the pick and place robot, solder wave oven, etc. I could see the potential for offering CM (contract manufacturing) as a business in this area.
As for 3D printing, I will echo what others have said in prior posts - its good for prototyping and in some instances, small production runs. The more pro level equipment gives better finishes on parts, while cheap, hobby grade equipment gives poor finishes. I have 3 of my own 3D printers.
You could run a CNC in your garage, but it will be a small mill and/or lathe, aka hobby level. We only have 220v single phase in residential homes, (pro machines are often 3 phase) and the concrete slabs are not rated for the weight of a pro-level CNC, not to mention the required room for those. I work with CNC machinists daily so I have some experience in the matter.
THe flat pack subwoofer kits is an interesting idea for a home based CNC business - using CNC routers, which are a lot cheaper than metal cutting CNC, due to the reduced need for accuracy & precision. The wood cutting CNC machines are a lot lighter duty than metal cutting machines.
I know that PCBA (printed circuit board assembly) manufacturing equipment takes up very little space, in the typical operation - the pick and place robot, solder wave oven, etc. I could see the potential for offering CM (contract manufacturing) as a business in this area.
As for 3D printing, I will echo what others have said in prior posts - its good for prototyping and in some instances, small production runs. The more pro level equipment gives better finishes on parts, while cheap, hobby grade equipment gives poor finishes. I have 3 of my own 3D printers.
You could run a CNC in your garage, but it will be a small mill and/or lathe, aka hobby level. We only have 220v single phase in residential homes, (pro machines are often 3 phase) and the concrete slabs are not rated for the weight of a pro-level CNC, not to mention the required room for those. I work with CNC machinists daily so I have some experience in the matter.
THe flat pack subwoofer kits is an interesting idea for a home based CNC business - using CNC routers, which are a lot cheaper than metal cutting CNC, due to the reduced need for accuracy & precision. The wood cutting CNC machines are a lot lighter duty than metal cutting machines.
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