The lasers are not really as robust as you imply. The motion system is mostly aluminium extrusion and is among the cheapest method of creating an x/y grantry available. Over time it wears out and gets sloppy, which makes it difficult to keep the optics aligned, etc.
They’re also on wheels and very easy to move.
I’m not opposed to rebuilding them but the longer they stay down, the more the time vs money balance skews towards spending the money to replace them wholesale. The reality is we all just want to use lasers, not build them.
While not new to the 'space in general I am not super familiar with the governing so I have a couple questions. Apologies in advance if this is common knowledge - as stated earlier, I can be a little dense.
Is this (preferably current) financial information visible somewhere to members? My suggestion for increased rates is largely due to the assumption that money is our bottleneck. Even if Laser is cash-positive, as someone else noted, it’s absolutely not in the current state.
What are next-steps that we, as members, can take right now to progress this forward? I’m trying to understand the bottleneck. Is it research? Planning? Board approval on new equipment? Holding for the anticipated relocation?
I don’t want to lead with the assumption that there aren’t plans in place and this is being actioned. Everyone in DMS leadership is awesome, are volunteers, and these things just take time. Trying to understand where we’re at right now and outside of committee meetings (which, as far as I know, was last on August 15th) and Talk I’m not sure what options are available?
