Design Tips
Get quick advice on creating plastic, metal, and elastomeric parts for 3D printing, CNC machining, sheet metal fabrication, and injection molding. Designing with manufacturability in mind can accelerate production time and reduce production costs.
Plating and Other Finishing Options for CNC Machining, Sheet Metal
Injection Molding
3D Printing
Post-Processing for Metal 3D Printing
Designing for Jigs and Fixtures
Designing for Nylon 3D Printing
Designing for Direct Metal Laser Sintering
Redefining Design with Metal 3D Printing
Designing for Multi Jet Fusion
Designing for Selective Laser Sintering
Designing for Stereolithography
Mistakes to Avoid When Designing 3D-Printed Parts
3D Printing for Production Parts
How Draft Keeps Your Drink Cold
When developing parts for plastic injection molding, applying draft (or a taper) to the faces of the part is critical to improving the moldability of your part. Without it, parts run the risk of poor cosmetic finishes, and may bend, break or warp due to molding stresses caused by the plastic cooling.
Talking Cosmetic Defect Blues
Identifying potential cosmetic flaws like sink, knit lines, flash, blush and other issues early in the injection molding design process not only improves the appearance of your parts, but their overall moldability too.
Design Essentials
We've compiled our most essential manufacturing tips into three downloadable design guides on 3D printing, machining, and molding. Each looks at improving manufacturability, reducing production costs through design, material selection, and more.
