Login
If you have any trouble logging in to your account, contact us.
Sign Up
To start 3D printing or Laser Cutting, you'll need to create an account here. Once done, you'll be able to upload your files and get live quotes of yours parts
Already have an account? Log In
The 3D printing volume of a printer gives the maximum size that one object can have in order to be printed.
The size of the printing volume depends on the chosen material which in turns determinates the type of printer used. The maximum size also depends on the chosen finishing process (e.g. coloring, polishing). There are printers of many different sizes, big and small. For example the Stratasys objet1000 printer has a maximum size of 1000x800x500mm.
The following table summarizes the size limitations for each material onSculpteo :
Plastic
White/unpolished
677 x 368 x 565 mm
Colored
180 x 220 x 220 mm
Polished
300 x 220 x 200 mm X + Y + Z ≤ 540 mm
Silver/Brass
Maximum size
60 x 80 x 100 mm
Minimum size
2.4 x 2.4 x 0.8 mm
Resin
Maximum size
290 x 190 x 147 mm
Alumide
Maximum size
300 x 300 x 500 mm
Ceramic
Maximum size
250 x 350 x 200 mm X + Y + Z ≤ 400 mm
Minimum size
6 x 6 x 6 mm
X + Y + Z ≥ 120 mm and minimum fill volume > 5.0%
Multicolor
Maximum size
254 x 381 x 203 mm
For a complete list of supported materials and their properties and limitations please refer to the main Materials page.
One of the most frequently posed questions is how long the 3D printing lasts. This is mainly determined by the size of the object, and to a smaller extend the fill volume. Another important factor is the positioning of the object in the printing batch. Due to the layered printing process, the time to print 1cm height is much greater than printing the same size in width and depth. Therefore in order to speedup the printing process it is important to position the object optimally in the printer.
However, printing one object at a time is not optimal. One advantage of the layer printing process is that objects can be placed one on top of another, or even interleaved without interfering in their printing. This leads to one of the important jobs done at Sculpteo, optimization of the positioning of the objects. In consequence this allows Sculpteo to provide a fast service while offering the best price.
When printing an object the machine uses material (e.g. plastic) to build the object. Therefore we can imagine that the price of the object depends on the amount of material used. However this is not exactly true. For example, in the case of SLS, the laser that sinters the material is also being used. Furthermore, the work done to optimize the positioning of the objects in the printing process influences the price significantly. For example, there are object that have specific geometric properties that impede this optimization. These object will have their price influenced more by the placing in the batch than the real physical volume.
Having many pricing parameters allows to devise different optimization on the model in order to reduce its price. Some of these optimizations available on Sculpteo are hollowing and batch control.
The Hollowing tool removes the interior of the object and adds holes for powder extraction. This reduces the amount of material used as well as the time the machine spends on that object. The reduction of these two parameters leads to reduction of its price.
You can use these tools for free by uploading your object.