Like other tech companies and startups, additive manufacturing – aka 3D printing – benefited greatly from an influx of capital in 2020-2021. Over the past two years, several 3D printing companies have gone public, raised large funding rounds, been acquired, or merged with other companies in an effort to further scale their businesses. However, the recent decline in valuations of public 3D printing companies is raising some questions about the market potential of the technology.

Before you can “press print” on a 3D printer, you must first have a digital 3D model of your part(s). 3D models can come in a variety of CAD file types that can be opened and edited in 3D modeling software. One of the most common discussions we have with clients is what types of 3D model files we need for quoting and 3D printing parts.

Choosing the right 3D printing material can be a conundrum, but the choice can be made easier by asking yourself a couple simple questions. Once you know exactly what you want your part to do and withstand, you’ll be able to choose the perfect 3D printing material for your project.

So you finished 3D modeling your project on your preferred CAD (Computer Aided Design) software and now you want to 3D print it. Before you can begin 3D printing, it is important to optimize your files and run through a few additional steps to avoid any problems during the printing process. This print guide will help you properly optimize and prepare your digital files prior to starting your prints.