Materials

Acrylic-based Resins

You can choose from a wide range of acrylic-based resins to 3D print. A single object can contain up to 82 regions each with distinct material properties. You can ‘blend’ resins so create regions of ‘digital materials’ with properties between those of the chosen resins.

Rubber Materials

Rubbers are available in black, grey, white and clear. We can produce rubbers that range from 27A to 95A Shore hardness.

Black rubber boot sole footwear prototype

Rigid hairbrush prototype with black rubber bristles

Sport shoe sole prototype with clear and black rubber regions

It is also possible to blend coloured resins with the clear rubbery material to create translucent, coloured rubbers. This is useful for visualisation prototypes or show models. Rubbers can also be used in combination with colours or clear materials to create objects with a mixture of rubbery and rigid regions. This is useful if you wish to make prototypes which include a range of hardnesses, for assessing how hard you would like a rubber section to be, or for making more durable models.

Headphones prototype in black rubber and dark colours

Plug and flexible cable prototype in bright pink orange and yellow

Unusual custom shoe in black, purple and translucent rubber

It is also possible to overmould rubber edging or seals to rigid parts or even clear parts for visualising or validating parts which will be produced by twin shot moulding.

Prototype wheel with over-moulded rubber car tyre

Customised glasses prototypes with yellow green and blue frames and clear lenses

Clear Materials

Clear is a popular choice for prototypes. If you print an object in only one material, we can print in extremely high detail down to 16 micron resolution. You can also blend two colours with a clear rigid material or rubber to give translucent materials. This works well for visualising how an internal mechanism works, for making educational models, and also for simulating glass or PMMA parts in visualisation prototypes.

Two identical consumer product prototypes

Soft, flexible pink shoes with transparent stiletto heels

Transparent foot anatomical model showing white bone structure

It is possible to encapsulate an object in clear material (rigid or rubbery) so you can show finer details without risking breaking your model.

transparent block containing detailed 3D printed white and black patterns

High resolution, detailed black ship model inside solid clear bottle

Engineering Plastics

We can 3D print materials to simulate a range of engineering plastics. This is really useful for testing mechanisms, functional prototypes, and design validation before release to tooling.
Rigur is an advanced simulated polypropylene suitable for snap fit components and living hinges. Rubber-like materials can also be blended with Rigur in varying proportions to create rubbers of up to 95 Shore A hardness and 50% elongation at break.

Working clip in white polypropylene simulant material

White tweezers 3D printed in polypropylene simulant material

‘Digital ABS’ is an ivory material which has similar properties to ABS. It can be blended with rubber for improved durability and thermal resistance. It can also be used in combination with rubber regions for functional prototypes.

Screwdriver handle in digital ABS and rubber materials

High Temperature Materials

High Temperature material combines heat resistance and exceptional dimensional stability. Jigs and fixtures often require this level of heat resistance. It’s good for simulation and thermal functional testing of hot-air or hot-water flow in taps, pipes and household appliances. It may be necessary for functional prototypes because they might get warm during testing. It works well for exhibition or demonstration models because they may be kept under strong lighting.

3D print heat resistant coffee cup prototype

3D printed handheld kitchen food mixer in rigid green plastic material

Composites of the high temperature material with rubber-like materials can have a variety of Shore A values and colours, and all have higher temperature resistance. Mixtures of high-temperature material with rubber regions enable 3D printing of high-temperature parts with over-moulding.

High Resolution

3D printing in single material means that we can print features down to 16 micron resolution. This means we can print incredibly small and detailed models.

Unlimited Colour Choice

Cyan, Magenta and Yellow can be blended to create a wide range of vibrant colours. Any two colours can be blended with white to create pale pastel shades. It’s possible to include a clear material, which makes translucent tints. Including a rubber-like material makes coloured regions in a range of hardnesses for increased durability. Having unlimited colours in your object really helps to bring your design to life during prototyping.

Moving blue caliper micrometer with sliding mechanism

Interlocking toy in vibrant colours pink red orange yellow lime green blue purple violet

Bicycle helmet prototypes in vivid, vibrant colours

These are only some of the most popular options. If you’re looking to do something that doesn’t appear on the list, we’re always keen to try new things so please contact us and we’ll try to help.