Blog

Metal 3D printing cost broken down: build time, powder, supports, heat treatment, post-machining and inspection, plus the geometry where additive beats CNC.

Electroless nickel plating explained: how the autocatalytic process coats complex shapes evenly, what its real disadvantages are, and how to specify thickness and phosphorus content.

PEEK machining explained: why the material demands sharp tooling and rigid setups, what its disadvantages are, how it compares with aluminium, and how to specify a PEEK part.

Custom plastic extrusion explained: how a profile moves from concept to die, what the enquiry needs to contain, how pricing works and when another process is the better route.

Urethane casting explained: how silicone tooling works, material and hardness options, design limits, tolerances, and the quantity range where casting beats molding.

How vacuum casting works: why vacuum is used, how it compares with pressure casting, what the tooling costs and the design limits that come with a silicone mold.

Urethane casting versus injection molding compared: tooling cost, per-part economics, material behaviour and the quantity range where each process actually wins.

Profile extrusion explained: how a die shapes a continuous profile, which materials extrude well, what drives die cost and how to specify tolerances on a custom section.

How to read and specify extruded plastic profiles: section features, wall thickness choices, tolerance allocation and the details that decide whether a die produces good parts.

Bead blasting stainless steel explained: which media suit stainless, why contamination causes rust, how blasting compares with sandblasting and what to specify.

Powder bed fusion explained for buyers: what the process does well, its real disadvantages, material options, surface finish and when to choose it over resin or machining.

How to brief and compare custom 3D prototyping services: process selection by function, quoting inputs, post-processing and the checks that decide whether a build is usable.