I suspect the author's motivation was to just make other scientists aware that this is even possible. By saying that you can make crappy pipettes, it's really s

I suspect the author's motivation was to just make other scientists aware that this is even possible. By saying that you can make crappy pipettes, it's really saying that you can make much less sophisticated stuff really well. My lab's 3D printer is constantly cranking out something to help with experiments. Any single thing seems kinda trivial - a jig that makes it so some tube doesn't have to wrap around another piece of equipment in some awkward way, a holder to keep a heater a few millimeters closer to a reaction, a grip to hold up a piece of cardboard - but in aggregate these things are making our experiments more reliable and easier to perform. We also prototype things that will ultimately be made in the machine shop. It takes about a month to get any feedback due to their backlog, so being able to print the design in plastic and just make sure it fits and is practical to use can save months.