Thrinno Tells Us About New Fast Quote Design Analysis Software Aimed at Metal Additive Manufacturing Service Providers

In terms of preparing project quotations, current 3D printing and additive manufacturing (AM) practices revolve around either expensive, time-consuming estimates, or quick and dirty ones. But Belgian software startup Thrinno, which opened its doors less than a year ago, is getting ready to launch a totally new project on the market that will help change this. Thrinno Fast Quote is the company’s design analysis software, and is targeted at service providers of metal AM, to help these print shops with price calculations. Using Fast Quote, metal AM service providers can get professional, quick price quotations, along with visual design feedback for clients. It sounds similar to Sculpteo’s Agile Metal Technology Business Case or df3d’s Quote 3D app, but what’s different about Thrinno Fast Quote is that it’s directly aimed at metal AM machine shops. By using Thrinno Fast Quote’s complex 3D algorithms and visual feedback, metal AM print shops can save time, remain profitable, and give designers an easy way to first dip their toe into designing for the competitive metal AM industry.

Thrinno’s software will be introduced next week at the RapidPro trade fair and conference in the Netherlands.

Anthony R. Cloet, Thrinno’s Business Developer, told 3DPrint.com, “The Thrinno Fast Quote is a design analysis software that helps Metal AM machine shops with price calculations. You make a machine profile and upload a model for metal printing. Our 3D algorithms analyse that model, help choose its orientation amongst other parts on the build plate and provides an instant quotation with clear visual feedback for the designer. It saves the metal AM print shop an enormous amount of workload and effectively lowers the barrier for designers to start designing for metal AM.”

There are many steps metal service providers have to take to go from design all the way to 3D printing. Starting with the basic quality check, providers have to keep track of a lot of different factors, like the part’s orientation on the build plate and what other parts are being printed in the same job, to make sure that they come up with the correct pricing, while at the same time ensuring a high level of printability. Metal service AM providers also have to think about thermal stress, a design’s overall powder usage, orientation of multiple parts, and other factors as well.

It can be complicated to calculate the cost of additively manufactured parts, but with the correct algorithms, the process is much quicker and more accurate. Designers don’t always know all of the factors that go into getting a successful print job, and service providers spend a lot of time discussing variations with designers, which adds up to higher internal costs and expensive feedback loop. But Thrinno Fast Quote will help service providers, and designers themselves, reduce these indirect feedback costs, and get a quick, accurate price of their models.

“Service bureaus are still very much at the forefront of innovation,” Cloet told us. “Especially in metal AM, there is a lot of expertise that resides with them. With the Thrinno Fast Quote, we help service bureaus by installing processes that help them to quicken the routine to analyse a model and send a quotation, which also helps with training new people. Especially in a growing industry, it will take a while for new engineers to be up to par with the level of expertise of people that have been working with additive. We want to help our service bureaus to focus on consolidating existing knowledge and building on that, so that they are in an optimal position to grow and improve their business.”

The Thrinno Fast Quote tool is comprised of four steps. First, you’ll need to make a profile that fits your business process and machine specs, and then import an .STL file, where different algorithms are applied, including things like detection of support amounts, thermal stresses, and surfaces that will need to be finished after printing is complete. Based on the algorithms, and a set of quality parameters, while also taking into account the built plate’s occupation rate, both a quality score and a print price will be calculated, for different orientations. Using Thrinno Fast Quote’s provided tool, service providers can choose their optimal print orientation. Once this is complete, the final quotation, along with visual feedback, is automatically generated.

Current beta testers for Thrinno Fast Quote include Esma, Airbus APWorks, MT3D, and AMT-Titastar. If you are interested in trying out the Thrinno Fast Quote software at no cost, just create a personal account and log in, and test out all of the features, with five given models, for an unlimited time, though if you want to import your own, you will have to pay per import. You can also vote for your favorite features, by visiting Thrinno’s feedback page.

To learn more about how to use Thrinno Fast Quote, just visit its Tutorials page, to see videos on everything from creating your profile to generating a quotation. You can take a look at the Thrinno Quickstart video below:

Discuss in the Thrinno forum at 3DPB.com.