3D Systems Unveils Next Generation of Quickparts E-Commerce Experience

3D products and services provider 3D Systems has had a pretty busy year so far, and it’s only April. In January, the company, which has three separate dedicated healthcare facilities, announced that it was expanding its Virtual Surgical Planning Service for use in the operating room, and soon after, took a big step into the dental 3D printing market with its acquisition of NextDent and Vertex Dental and some new dental 3D printing materials. It’s teamed up with K2M Group Holdings for development and supply agreements, announced a partnership with United Therapeutics to develop 3D printing biotechnology for solid-organ scaffolds, and aggressively targeted the competition by slashing the prices for its SLS 3D printers by 30% a few weeks ago.

3D Systems made a new announcement this week: the next generation of its Quickparts e-commerce experience for fast-turn prototyping is now available. The e-commerce site offers both plastic and metal prototypes, and the ability to create complex shapes in more ways; prototypes can then be delivered to customers in just one day. 3D Systems customers just need to upload a CAD file to start on the path directly to high-quality output production, by receiving expert consultations and an immediate price quote.

Phil Schultz, Senior Vice President, On Demand Solutions, 3D Systems, said, “Many of our customers need instantaneous help with design challenges, materials, and processes, while others need a simple way to validate their design. This new customer experience allows our customers to quickly and easily bring their designs to life by creating and building parts from prototyping to production.”

In order to expand its Quickparts service offerings, 3D Systems acquired Robtec, the largest Latin American additive manufacturing service bureau, back in 2014, and Jay Leno used the on-demand parts manufacturing system to get some help with repairing the vents for his EcoJet concept car. Its fast-turn prototyping is part of the company’s comprehensive On Demand Manufacturing services; the one-stop-shop experience offers low-volume production, appearance models, advanced prototyping, and several different 3D printing methods, such as SLS, SLA, and DMP.

Customers who utilize the Quickparts services are looking for a convenient, intuitive, and simple experience, and 3D Systems offers just that with its easy-to-use system: customers can quickly upload a file, get a cost estimate, and buy 3D printed prototypes and small run production parts. The Quickparts services also offers sheet metal parts, investment casting patterns, and cast-urethane parts as well.

“3D Systems new Quickparts e-commerce site provides a quality solution for getting prototypes and small run production parts fast. The user experience is straightforward with clearly defined options that make it easy to upload and price a model in a variety of processes, materials, colors and finishes,” said Eric Tryson, Mechanical Designer at Dorman Products.

The next generation Quickparts e-commerce site will roll out in other countries later in 2017, but is currently available in the US. Discuss in the Quickparts forum at 3DPB.com.