In today’s technologically-advanced world, there’s a tremendous opportunity for medical device innovators to translate their concepts into prototypes capable of having a profound impact on the future of healthcare.
RapidMade Brings Goodnuss to Founder and Other Entrepreneurs
One of the most enjoyable aspects of working with entrepreneurs is seeing them – and their projects – come to fruition, orin Lizz Hampton’s case – to nutrition! Lizz is one of our favorite success stories, especially given that she is among RapidMade’s first customers, dating back to its first year in business.
Lizz came to us with a product idea that would make it easier for people to make fresh nut milk at home. The product concept itself was very simple, however the design requirements were very complex.
Over the course of the past 4 years, we have worked with Lizz to simplify this revolutionary product through hundreds of prototype iterations, helping her streamline from more than 15 complex parts down to 4 simple parts and then supporting her pivot away from a device into a reusable, mess-free nut milk bag.
“I wouldn’t have been able to get this far without Micah and his team at RapidMade. Not only did they help me develop a better product, they provided essential insight into how it would need to be manufactured, important engineering considerations and top quality parts for my prototypes. Above all else, they have been there to support me on my journey and believe in the product I am creating, which is invaluable to me as a young maker/designer. ”
As of October 17th, Lizz’s reusable, mess-free nut milk bag is available for pre-order on Indiegogo. We are helping her spread the word about her launch because we believe in supporting our customers and doing our part to help them succeed. If you are interested in supporting Lizz and helping her get her product manufactured, please click this link
You can also check out her website, which is full of funny videos.
If you are not a nut milk drinker, we’re sure you know someone who is and would love this product! If you are not able to support her campaign financially, please share with your network so she can build her dream company.
At RapidMade, we believe in helping our customers achieve their goals, whether it’s developing or producing a product for commercial use, creating a prototype for an entrepreneurial project or making displays for retail spaces, we are dedicated to helping our customers succeed with superior products.
Industrial Design Debuts at RapidMade
Stag Concept Sketch
The popularity of Industrial Design, also known as Product Design, has accelerated due, in part, to a new wave of designers and advances in technology, materials, processes, and capabilities which has dramatically improved the design options available to clients. Working closely with Engineers, Industrial Designers are trained on function, aesthetics, ergonomics, anthropometrics, and manufacturing processes to provide you with the best “working” concepts from sketches, to renderings, to CAD models that create your final product.
RapidMade recently expanded its capabilities by including Industrial Design into our Product Design Process. In doing so, this lets us help our clients move from product conceptualization to launch much faster and more efficiently with better end results.
3D CAD Model of Stag
When clients first come to RapidMade, sometimes they have a complete design ready to be made, but often they only have an idea of what they want. Introducing our new Industrial Design capabilities is a critical step toward helping the customers make their vision a reality.
Once a client completes a Quick Quote, we will arrange a meeting with our team of engineers and designers to discuss your concept. Our Industrial Designer then works with you to create multiple rough 2D sketches for the conceptual form that evolves into a final realistic 2D rendering (that you may keep). When you choose a final form, we add additional aesthetics. These can be anything from color, to contour lines, or personal brands and logos to get your finalized look. Our engineers then take this design you and our Industrial Designer created and make a CAD model with your specific dimensions, which is used to 3D print a prototype. We work with you on any additional iterations and source the final manufacturing for you.
Final Stag 3D Print
RapidMade Expands Services Offered
3D Printing, Manufacturing and Engineering
RapidMade's services now include:
Product Design and Engineering
- Simple static part design to fully automated mechanical and electrical equipment
- Design for prototyping and manufacture
- In-house prototyping capabilities for faster iterations and overnight customer feedback
- 2D and 3D drawings, tolerance and other manufacturing specifications, technology transfer and patent application documentation, equipment manuals, FDA and other compliance as well as other specialized engineering work
Rapid Prototyping
- 3D printing, quick-turn machining, traditional metal and plastic forming, short-run castings
- Thermoset and thermoplastic manufacturing, hard and soft metals, composites available
- Full-color concept models, functional prototypes, assembly and embedded electronics
- Quotes generally in under 24 hours, parts in days
Contract Manufacturing
- Production quantities ranging from one to tens of thousands
- A multitude of available manufacturing processes
- Expertise in selecting the right manufacturing process for you
- Personalized attention to detail and top quality customer service
- Tooling and part library for easy re-orders
3D Scanning and Reverse Engineering
- Extremely high accuracy 3D digitization of parts as a reproducible STL file
- Available reverse engineering to create fully defined parametric files and 2D dimensioned drawings
- Inspection of manufactured goods to identify deviation from the original design
- Full-color scans also available
Industrial Pattern and Toolmaking
- Highly accurate tools in days, not months - at a lower cost
- Patterns and tools available for all standard manufacturing processes: Injection molding, urethane casting, sand and investment casting, sheet metal stamping, plastic forming and much more
- Additional finishing capabilities available
Displays, Exhibits and Promotions
- Full color 3D printing can be done as quickly as under 24 hours
- Print directly from renderings in CAD or BIM modeling software
- Great for architecture, store display and marketing customers
- Very fine feature detail and beautiful aesthetic quality
Finishing and Coating
- A wide range of finish options including paint, powder coat, plating, media blast, tumbling and much more
- Clear coat and dyed plastic available for cost effective finishing of prototypes and manufactured goods
RapidMade Helps CreatID Produce Bud Light Living Line Now Featured in Ads
Bud Light Living Line in Action (Image Credit Dennis Veatch)
Some of our favorite projects involve printing models or prototypes for advertising campaigns. Recently, we worked with Dennis Veatch, principal industrial designer at CreatID, who approached RapidMade about a unique – and challenging – assignment. He had been commissioned to design and manufacture an exotic and complex phone system, the Bud Light Living Line, which needed to be fully functional – when the phone rings, its enclosure lights up and buzzes as a platform raises the phone so it can be answered. Words cannot adequately describe it; you have to watch the videos to appreciate it.
Like many products we make, the BLLL (as we fondly call it) was produced using rapid prototyping and a hybrid approach of traditional and additive manufacturing. One weekend, we printed a full-color model using CAD files and Solidworks, so Dennis could get Proof of Concept approval from his client. Once the design was finalized, the prototype components were printed or machined and finished in just ten days. Afterward, tooling for and production of parts for 22 units was completed less than three weeks later, allowing CreatID sufficient time to do wiring and assembly.
David Shapiro, Engineering Manager, played a key role in the project and observed, "This really showcased our ability to move smoothly from concept development to manufacturing. We were able to combine the strengths of additive manufacturing with those of traditional manufacturing to great effect. The grueling schedule originally worried us, but we actually delivered significant portions of the project early, much to the delight of everyone involved."
Bud Light Canada’s campaign began airing this month. In the YouTube videos, some lucky individuals literally get the call – and then the fun begins. In one, Steve Aoki hosts a house party for the winner; in others, groups are whisked off to NYC, Las Vegas or Whistler – where an all-expense paid vacation awaits. The buzz the videos generate has online viewers speculating where the Bud Light Living Line will show up next and how one can get the BLLL call.
Back here in Portland, we’re just stoked we got a call that allowed us to play a part in this cool ad campaign.
Hemmerling and Ulrich's 3D Printed Chair Debuts in Milan
Design Boom recently featured the work of German Designers Marco Hemmerling and Ulrich Nether. The pair used 3D printing to create their Generico Chair which is currently on display in Milan. Instead of simply designing an elegant piece of furniture, additive manufacturing techniques allowed them to optimize both product function and production efficiency by evaluating structural, ergonomic and manufacturing requirements:
"following an iterative design strategy, a material layout calculation resulted in reducing parts of the volume, while still enabling the necessary stiffness, comfort and functional requirements to be met. a 3D computer model was reviewed using FEM-software, to measure deformation and stresses before all the findings were integrated into a final 3D model."
Normally, projects require one to compromise on scope, time or cost yet using additive manufacturing for product development and low-volume production approach allows designers to accelerate development, improve quality, and decrease costs.
Bentley Uses 3D Printing to Design Vehicles
Bentley makes to scale models in hours instead of weeks to validate designs and increase time to market.
“We can simulate what a car is actually going to look like and show our bosses absolute reality.”
– Kevin Baker, Design Model Manager.
This helps speed up the approval process and make sure the concept of the design is perfect before investing too much time and money in working on flawed individual components.
Check out the video below and remember that you don't have to invest hundreds of thousands of dollars in equipment to get the same models and prototypes that Bentley makes in house if you contact RapidMade!
