3D Printing Service Bureau

West Edge 3D provides custom 3D printing services to industrial and commercial designers, architects, schools, Universities, TAFE, builders, manufacturers and other customers requiring state-of-the-art 3D colour printing.

Note: West Edge 3D is a 3D printing bureau, not a CAD design service.  We cannot create the file for your desired item. Search the web for 3D designers in your local area.

Printer

Stratasys J55 Prime (colour polyjet)

Materials

Our Stratasys J55 printer uses full-colour photopolymer resins to create up to 500,000 colours, including Pantone-certified colours. Similar to 2D inkjet printing, these colours are mixed from the printing primary colours of cyan, magenta and yellow, plus white, and black or clear in the J55.

West Edge 3D has partners who can arrange printing of items larger than the build tray of our in-house printer. Contact us about your requirements.

3D Scanning Services

West Edge 3D also offers a 3D scanning service specialising in portrait and whole body scanning for bridal couples, company executive testimonials, sporting identities, leading citizens, and families.

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FAQs

Shipping

Shipping is by Australia Post, Regular or Express Post and orders are dispatched within 3 days of receipt of order for in-stock items, and 3 days of print completion for out of stock items, Service Bureau prints or Print on Demand items.  All orders are dispatched in protective packaging.

Cancellation and Returns

Custom-ordered Service Bureau prints and Print on Demand prints cannot be cancelled once they go into production.

Webshop ordered stock items can be returned within 14 days. Please email West Edge 3D before any item is returned to confirm the process. Return postage is only paid by West Edge 3D in the event of a faulty or incorrectly supplied item, and is otherwise the responsibility of the purchaser.  Refunds are given in full for items that are returned intact and not damaged in any way.

Are the prices on your webshop correct?

All prices are current, and are updated as necessary. Prices are subject to change without prior notice, however any changes will not affect any orders in progress during the time of change.

What are your lead times for the supply of items?

All West Edge 3D lead times are estimates and are not in any way a guarantee of order completion. Unpredictable issues such as printer failure, power cuts and acts of God may affect your order completion date.  In such an eventuality customers will be contacted via email and a prominent message displayed on the website homepage.  We are a small business, and planned absences such as staff holidays may affect lead times and these will be communicated via our website and Facebook and Instagram pages.

What does ‘Print on Demand’ in an item’s description mean?

Items listed as ‘Print on Demand’ can be ordered with a 7-10 day lead time.  These items are not held in stock and are printed when an order is received.   Any unforeseen delays (see ‘lead time’ information below) will be communicated to you via email.

What is a ‘Service Bureau’ print?

Service Bureau prints are those where West Edge 3D agrees to print a customer’s own file as it is supplied to us. It is the customer’s responsibility to ensure that the supplied file is printable on our Stratasys J55 Prime Polyjet colour 3D printer. Preferred file types are .STL files for single-colour prints, and .OBJ and .3MF files for colour prints. Service Bureau prints are prepaid orders, and the price will be quoted and agreed after the file is received and checked. Service Bureau prints are non-returnable and non-refundable, unless West Edge 3D has made an error in the printing process.

I have a bricks-and-mortar model shop. Can you supply me with your products on commercial terms?

If you wish to order products from us in commercial quantities for resale, please contact us, including details of your company’s registration in your country.

Do you only serve the Hunter Valley, or NSW?

We can print files for customers from around Australia and the world, and our courier partners can ship around the world. Contact us for details.

Do you have a shopfront where I can see and handle your products?

West Edge 3D does not have a shopfront store. Visits to our premises are by appointment only. Contact us if you desire to visit us.

What 3D file types do you prefer?

– The most common 3D object files are STL (.stl) files, which capture three-dimensional shapes as millions of tiny triangles, arranged in a mesh. These files contain no ‘material’ attributes, so can be printed in any suitable material. A single-colour object is created by using a coloured resin or filament – red, yellow, white, etc. If using resins, most makers prefer the cheaper ‘draft grey’ resin which can be painted after printing.

– VRML files contain colour information, and are preferred it you’ve applied colour to parts in your software. Full-colour prints which make use of the available 500,000 possible colours require special file types which contain not only the 3D mesh information, but also the colours and textures of the object.

– The preferred file type is the relatively new 3MF (.3mf) format, which can be loaded directly into our J55 printer without any modification or translation.

– OBJ (.obj) files are also suitable for full-colour printing. Other suitable files are the native files produced by some of the many 3D design software packages. Check and see what file export options your software has, and contact us about your options.

What is an elastomer?

Elastomers are flexible, rubber-like materials which are used for printed parts that need to be able to be twisted or deformed, and return to shape. Elastomers are especially useful when prototyping parts like flexible couplings, hoses, and seals.

Can you print anything in colour?

West Edge 3D is a printing service bureau, not a content creator. We can print 3D objects in full colour, but only if the file is generated to represent a full-colour object! Note that programs that can produce life-like colour renderings of three-dimensional scenes for architectural representation or gaming, designed to be 2D printed, mostly cannot produce 3D-printable versions of those scenes or objects.