The new 3D print lab

About 6 weeks ago we launched the first version of our new site. Since then we have been working very hard on our new and improved 3D print lab. We’ve been listening closely to your suggestions and we’re glad to say our website is still the easiest and fastest (no login required) way to check a price for your 3D models. While working on the new 3D print lab, we always had the idea in mind that uploading and ordering a 3D model should be as easy as customizing and buying a t-shirt online. I believe we’ve succeeded.

The 3D model workspace is where you can upload your 3D model. Unlike the former 3D print lab, we now ask you if you created your model in mm or inches. This enables us to process your model in the correct dimensional units and prevents potential mix-ups.

Instead of providing you with a dropdown list full of material names, we made a visual overview of the available materials. By doing so, you get an instant impression of how a material looks and what its properties are. Use the arrows to access more materials. If you click on the more info button, a detailed material page opens where you can learn all about that specific material. Clicking on compare materials brings you to the material comparison page. By default, the selected material from the 3D print lab is displayed and from there you can add more materials to the overview for comparison.

We have simplified the color selection processs by removing the surface option. Now, you just need to decide which color you’d like your model to be and click. For those who want more, a wide variety of different finishes are still possible, like painting your model with soft touch or high gloss paint. All of that and much more is available upon request. You can do this by requesting an offline price or by contacting our Customer Service team via contact @ i.materialise.com.

Scaling your model has really been improved. You can still use the slider to set the scaling percentage or enter your preferred number in the input field. But, a lot of you just wanted to be able to define the width, height or depth of a model. That is now possible: change one value and the others change accordingly. How nice is that?

You can increase the quantity of models by pressing the plus (+) sign or decrease it by pressing the minus (-) sign. However, some of you like ordering large quantities so we’ll update this soon so you can just enter your preferred quantity.

That was your brief introduction to the new 3D print lab. We hope you like it and we’d love to hear what you think. You can always use the Feedback widget on the left or leave a message on Facebook or Twitter.