Rapid Prototyping for Agile Product Development
3D Printing for Engineers & Product Designers
- Truly rapid iterations with most parts in <24 hours
- Cut costs by up to 90% compared to outsourcing
- Versatile tools for every stage of the product development
Concept Exploration
Elevate initial ideas with low-risk concept models, proof-of-concept (POC) prototypes, and looks-like prototypes. 3D printing empowers you to go from CAD to physical object in no time, and rapidly develop, evaluate, and iterate a range of designs in-house.
Watch the video: How Ford Developed the New Explorer Using Formlabs SLA and SLS 3D Printers
Rapid Prototyping
Looks-Like: Test design iterations and communicate ideas to stakeholders affordably and quickly.
Works-Like: Reliably develop proofs of concept and test functional prototypes with materials closely matching common injection-molded plastics.
Feels-Like: Simulate a range of materials from rubber to rigid, and create prototypes with the smooth finish and feel of end products.
Watch the video: How a 3D Printing Station Supports Hundreds of Engineers at the AMRC
Pre-Production
Use advanced materials to design for manufacturability. Create small-batch runs or one-off custom solutions for comprehensive field and in-house testing before investing in expensive tooling for production.
Watch the video: Inside Google ATAP: Bridging Pre-Production Challenges With 3D Printing
See Also
See all
Printing Presses, Empowered by 3D Printing: Robotics Applications and Replacement Parts at HEIDELBERG
How Unilever and Serioplast Develop New Bottle Designs With 3D Printed Molds
Guide to 3D Printing Tolerances, Accuracy, and Precision
Saving Charlotte: How 3D Printing Helps Sea Turtles with Bubble Butt Syndrome
Making the Zerømouse Blade “Indestructible” With Tough 2000 Resin and Form 4L
One-Man Plastics Factory: Getting New Products to Market With the Fuse 1+ 30W
How Deutsche Bahn Uses 3D Printed Manufacturing Aids to Streamline Vehicle Maintenance
How Form 4L and the Fuse Series Support Innovation at Radio Flyer
How PSYONIC Uses Agile Manufacturing to Build the World’s Most Accessible Bionic Hands
How Brose Leverages SLA and SLS Technology to Bolster Automotive Production
Cut Your Prototyping Cycle to 24 hours
Never again wait weeks for prototypes to arrive from a service provider. With in-house 3D printing, you can create rapid prototypes within a day, run tests, tweak your design, and print again.
Step 1
Design
Design your object in CAD during work hours.
Step 2
3D Print
3D print the prototype parts overnight.
Step 3
Test
Clean, measure, test, create assemblies, and collect feedback on your design in the morning.
Step 4
Iterate
Tweak your design and repeat the process.
Save Money and Time
A 3D printer setup can pay for itself in just a couple of weeks or months when you compare it with how much you’d spend on outsourcing or an alternative production method.
| In-House 3D Printing | Outsourcing | |
| Time | 9 hours | 7 days |
| Cost | $80 | $450 |
Curious to see how much you can save? Try our interactive ROI tool to calculate cost per part and lead time when 3D printing on Formlabs 3D printers.
Speaker Housing Prototype, 16.5 x 13.5 x 13.5 cm, 6.5 x 5.3 x 5.3 in
A Full Suite of 3D Printing Solutions
MAXIMUM VERSATILITY
Form 4
Produce functional, high-quality prototypes and end-use parts in record time.
THINK BIG
Form 4L
Take control of large-scale part production, increase your throughput, and bring your biggest ideas to life.
HIGHEST PERFORMANCE
Fuse 1+ 30W
Bring production-ready nylon 3D printing onto your benchtop with an affordable, compact selective laser sintering (SLS) platform.
High-Performance Engineering Materials
Simulate a range of common injection-molded plastics with materials designed for the most demanding applications and produce durable end-use parts and complex assemblies with high environmental stability.
Snowboard Binding Prototype
Nylon 12 Powder
Nylon 12 Powder is a general purpose, versatile, and biocompatible material with high detail and great dimensional accuracy. As the go-to material for SLS 3D printing, it is ideal for both functional prototyping and end-use production of complex assemblies and durable parts with high environmental stability.
- High performance prototyping
- Permanent jigs, fixtures, and tooling
- Biocompatible, sterilizable parts
Formlabs is Open
Maximize your 3D printer’s potential with Formlabs Developer Platform. Unlock the possibility of printing with any 405 nm photopolymer resin or 1064 nm powder on Formlabs 3D printers, customize your print settings, or build software integrations.
FAQ
With in-house 3D printing, you can go from a CAD design to a physical prototype in under 24 hours. This lets you design during the day, print overnight, and test your parts the next morning.
In-house 3D printing can cut prototyping costs by up to 90% compared to outsourcing and reduce lead times from 1-2 weeks to less than 24 hours.
Formlabs printers support looks-like prototypes for communicating design ideas, works-like prototypes for functional testing, and feels-like prototypes that simulate the surface finish and material properties of end products.
Yes, Formlabs offers engineering resins and powders designed to closely match the properties of common injection-molded plastics. Materials like Tough 1500 Resin mimic the strength and flexibility of polypropylene, while Rigid 10K Resin matches the stiffness of glass and fiber-filled thermoplastics.
Yes, Formlabs printers support pre-production workflows including small-batch runs, custom one-off solutions, and field testing before committing to expensive production tooling.
Formlabs offers SLA printers like the Form 4 and Form 4L for high-quality resin parts, as well as the Fuse 1+ 30W, a compact SLS printer for production-ready nylon parts.
Yes, through the Formlabs Developer Platform, you can print with any compatible 405 nm photopolymer resin or 1064 nm powder, and customize print settings or build software integrations.
A Formlabs printer setup can pay for itself within a few weeks or months when compared to the ongoing costs of outsourcing prototypes to a service provider.
Upgrade Your Prototyping and Production with Additive Manufacturing Today
Explore our 3D printers to find the right solution for your business or contact a Formlabs Solution Specialist for a 1-1 consultation.
