I think many people fail to notice that there can be many motivations behind someone's actions. When the motivation is some kind of business interest, for example, it does not make much sense to reinvent the wheel. On the other hand, when the motivation is to explore concept-space, it does not make much sense to not reinvent the wheel. Motivations determine the proper course to take and no motivation is superior to another. And we should not forget that the reinvention of the wheel is the reason we do not bustle about on wooden rims anymore.