Tulip gave Formlabs the real-time visibility they needed for their manufacturing processes

The Challenge

Formlabs designs and manufactures powerful and accessible 3D printing systems. Headquartered in Boston, MA, Formlabs is establishing the industry benchmark for professional 3D printing for engineers, designers, and manufacturers around the globe, and accelerating innovation in a variety of industries, including education, dentistry, healthcare, jewelry, and research.

Every month, Formlabs prints about 10K sample parts at their Print Production Center, using about 60 printers. Keeping track of production to identify improvement opportunities was hard to do without the right data.

“It was very difficult for us to track issues throughout time other than in our own heads, which made it hard for us to improve our processes.” –  Joe Sinopoli (Print Production Manager)

The Results

Real-time production visibility

Using Tulip, Formlabs now has real-time data of their printing operations. They know exactly how many parts have been produced at all times and enjoy full part traceability.

Faster improvements

Real-time data has allowed the Formlabs print production team to operate more efficiently, using metrics to identify and solve issues faster and immediately see the results of their initiatives.

Increased operator productivity

Using Tulip to guide the interaction between operators and machines, enabled operators to produce more parts and support a growing operation.