Chrome plated plastic parts attract the consumers eye, but as we can see in this example do not age well. On the left is the Group Cowling of my espresso machine Rancilio Silvia. Not exactly a sustainable element of the machine, I decided to reverse engineer and 3D print the replacement part (on the right).
So far, the part has lasted almost three years. This experiment leads me to the following hypothesis: Someday, many people will be able to make their own replacement parts at home and in addition customize the result. (TBC…)