CHROMOS 3D printing service

There are very informative pages on the Internet with basic information on 3D printing. For example, take a look at the following website and browse through the technologies. An overview of the most important 3D printing processes(industry-of-things.de). You are welcome to contact us afterwards for projects or have your print files printed yourself via our platform.

There are various databases online where you can find printable 3D data for free or for a fee. An example of a free database would be www.thingiverse.com. Then upload the .stl file or another suitable format and select the technology and material.

Alternatively, we can create print data for you. Contact us and describe your project. We will then provide you with a cost estimate. We charge 200 per hour for 3D model creation.

The price for printing depends on the process, material, size and quantity. The price for the required process and material is displayed directly in the online calculator. . The highest costs are incurred for setting up the print. This is why the unit price drops sharply if you have several parts printed. Generally speaking, 3D printing starts at around CHF 30. For higher quantities, the unit price can fall to less than CHF 1.

The delivery time for printing in your quantity and material is displayed directly in the online calculator as soon as you have uploaded your file and selected the technology and material.

You are welcome to bring us parts that you would like us to scan for you. We will then model the scanned data according to your wishes and have the option of printing the scanned object using any process. We charge 200 per hour for scanning and modeling, the printing price varies depending on the process. You can find more information on our 3D scanning service page.

No. 2D data is fundamentally different from 3D data. 3D data must either be provided by you or we create/search for you.

This depends entirely on the application and your expectations of the end result. There are inexpensive processes if you are only looking for an illustrative model. But there are also processes for complex applications with heavy-duty materials. Below you will find a brief description of the technologies. If you are unsure, please feel free to contact us.

FDM: Printed with filament. Fast and inexpensive. Individual print layers are visible. PLA is a good choice for the simplest applications and the lowest price. There are also flexible materials that have high strength. For heavily overhanging areas, support structures are required, which we remove.

SLS: Is printed with powder. Enables the printing of complex parts. Parts have a rough surface. No support structures are required. Can be easily painted or varnished. Suitable for large series.

MJF: Is printed with powder and enables complex shapes without support structures. Inexpensive. More attractive surface than SLS but lower strength than SLS.

SLA: Is printed with a liquid (resin) which is hardened by a laser. Results in very beautiful surfaces. Support structures are required for overhanging areas, which are removed by us.

DLP: Similar to SLA, but it is cured with an LED projector. Very large components are possible.

BJ: It is printed with ceramic or sand. Enables very large components. Components are heavier than plastic parts due to the density of sand and ceramic.

Investment casting: Enables a very attractive surface of metallic components.

MJM: Liquid plastics are cured by UV light. High accuracy and resolution. Very smooth surfaces. More expensive than FDM and SLS.

SLM: Metal powder is melted by a laser and then hardens. Support structures are required for overhanging areas, which are removed by us.

SAF: Plastic powder is melted and printed.

Vacuum casting: Production of a master model and subsequent vacuum casting in the negative mold. Enables low prices with high quantities.

A detailed description of the processes can be found here: Our materials and technologies

Would you like to create a 3D model yourself? Then you need 3D modeling software. Some of this software is even available free of charge.
Different programs are suitable depending on your previous knowledge.

For beginners: Google SketchUp and Smoothie 3D software
For advanced users: OpenSCad and Blender
Traditional drawing: Sculptris

CAD programs for a fee: Auto CAD and Simplify 3D

Sure, you can do this directly via our 3D printing service platform. You can register, upload the model and find out straight away whether the model is compatible with the selected printing process.

At the top of the page you will find an informative tutorial video. It explains step by step how to proceed.

The most common format is .stl, but practically all common 3D formats can be read. If necessary, we can also convert your files into readable formats. These file formats can be processed without additional effort:

.stl, .stp, .step, .obj, .igs, .iges, .sldprt, .3mf, .catpart, .x_t, .x_b

You can select the possible colors in the configurator. If you would like to print in full color, please contact us. For a full-color print with up to 10 million colors, you need an .obj file for the object, an .mtl file for the material and color assignment and a .jpg file for the texture.

The price of a 3D model is determined by various factors:

• How much material is needed for the printout?
• How long are our employees working on the order?
• How long does the printing process take on the machine
• Which printing material is used?
• What priority should be given to the order?

We guarantee that all your digital data will be treated confidentially. In certain cases, our customers also want the printed objects to be protected from prying eyes. This is of course possible with us and can also be contractually guaranteed.