Small Lots, High Mix, Short Lead Times

Background & Challenges

• The next-generation clinical diagnostic device required a complex internal structure and miniaturization; conventional metal cutting plus vacuum casting couldn't balance precision and lead time.
• Achieving part precision of ±0.01 mm and surface roughness of Ra 0.4 μm or less was essential.

How Our Prototyping Service Responded

• Ultra-high-speed machining & fine machining
  Simultaneous 5-face machining on a 5-axis machining center processed complex shapes in a single setup.
• Complementing with high-precision stereolithography
  Precision stereolithography reproduced fine details under 1.0 mm wall thickness, with one-stop coverage through assembly validation.
• Quality assurance process
  100% dimensional inspection with a CMM, plus internal cavity checks via CT scan.

Results & Effects

• Prototype completed in 5 days → vs. 8 weeks previously → 40% shorter development period
• 15% lower manufacturing cost for the part set (reduced material loss + fewer setups)
• Stably achieved Ra 0.3 μm surface roughness. Also contributed to lower defect rates after the mass-production transition.

Customer Comment

"We used to spend a lot of time fine-tuning prototype precision, but with your prototyping service we get parts at mass-production quality from the very first run, so the whole team can focus on design validation."

— Head of Medical Device Development Dept.

Background & Challenges

• The housing, with a complex internal network shape, used thin walls and many ribs for weight reduction.
• Repeated design changes occurred frequently, so conventional prototyping stretched lead times and raised costs.

How Our Prototyping Service Responded

• Hybrid machining flow
  Cutting reproduced the outer shape and mounting points, while stereolithography simultaneously output the internal network section.
• Short-lead-time design review
  Proposed the machining sequence within 24 hours of receiving CAD data, with same-day feedback on design changes.
• Functional testing support
  Provided dedicated jigs for seal and thermal-shock tests from the prototyping stage.

Results & Effects

• 7-day prototype lead time → vs. 30 days previously → 70% shorter
• Achieved a 30% reduction in part weight, contributing to vehicle weight savings.
• Passed seal and durability tests on the first try, cutting validation cycles to mass production from two to one.

Customer Comment

"The stress of waiting weeks for each design change is gone, and the time to finalize mass-production specs is dramatically shorter. We also saved more than 50% of our engineers' work hours."

— Engineering Manager, Product Development HQ

Background & Challenges

• Developing a new heat-sink shape to improve heat dissipation efficiency by 15% or more for high-performance processors.
• Required a fine fin structure that's hard to achieve with casting, plus joining of multiple materials.

How Our Prototyping Service Responded

• Micro-milling technology
  Stably reproduced fine machining of 0.3 mm fin width and 10 mm depth.
• Copper + aluminum composite assembly
  Joined an electroformed copper plate with an aluminum base to optimize the heat-dissipation path.
• Pre-validation by thermal-fluid analysis
  Optimized the prototype shape based on CAE results before prototyping.

Results & Effects

• Prototype completed in 4 days (vs. a standard 12 days) → 60% shorter
• Demonstrated a 20% reduction in thermal resistance and a 10% improvement in heat dissipation.
• Shorter machining time in mass production yielded a 12% lower manufacturing cost at the estimation stage.

Customer Comment

"There was almost no gap between CAE results and the actual prototype, and feedback to mass-production design was fast. Trust across the whole engineering team improved."

— Group Lead, Thermal Management Group, R&D Dept.

Background & Challenges

• They wanted to validate multiple gripper shapes in parallel, but conventional prototyping took over 10 days per pattern and costs grew.
• Durability testing of 1 million repeated cycles was also essential.

How Our Prototyping Service Responded

• Simultaneous multi-pattern prototyping
  Output 6 gripper patterns at once with SLA stereolithography.
• Internal mechanism assembly support
  Made fine bearing-holder parts by high-precision cutting and delivered them with preload pre-adjusted.
• Durability test support
  Total support through continuous-operation data acquisition and analysis on the customer's test rig.

Results & Effects

• Completed 6-pattern prototyping simultaneously in 4 days → 60% shorter than before
• In the final spec, achieved a 25% reduction in part weight and cleared 1 million durability cycles.
• Parallel validation cut the design-decision period from two weeks to five days.

Customer Comment

"Being able to validate multiple options simultaneously greatly reduced development risk. Reaching the optimal shape was astonishingly fast."

— Project Leader, Development Dept.