ProtoCAM, a 3D printing service bureau based in Pennsylvania, has launched a new instant quoting tool for customers.
The quoting tool will allow ProtoCAM customers to gain immediate pricing information prior to placing their order for 3D printed parts. When requesting a quote via the link on ProtoCAM’s website, users will be connected to a central quoting page where they may choose to use either the new instant quoting platform or a traditional quoting form (“engineer-assisted quote”). Customers are able to submit orders at any time, determining the price and beginning the manufacturing process earlier, and therefore receive their parts and prototypes quicker than before.
Due to the ongoing Covid-19 crisis, ProtoCAM brought the launch of the instant quoting platform forward in order to allow customers to have 24/7 access to their services from any location sooner.
“We understand there is a big gap in the additive manufacturing space when it comes to quoting—most companies offer either an online platform with little or no customer support, or they offer full support with no instant option,” comments Ed Graham, Vice President of Additive Manufacturing at ProtoCAM.
Certification for Quality Management Systems
ProtoCAM is a provider of additive manufacturing and rapid prototyping services for customers in a wide variety of industries, including defense, aerospace, automotive, medical, architecture, and consumer goods. The team of engineers and prototyping specialists at ProtoCAM specialize in helping customers bring their products to market, overcoming hurdles along the way. Its services include stereolithography (SLA), Multi Jet Fusion (MJF), PolyJet, fused deposition modeling (FDM), selective laser sintering (SLS), urethane castings, metal prototyping, and advanced finishing.
The company is ISO 9001:2015 certified, meaning that ProtoCAM provides a quality management system that ensures its products and services meet customer and applicable statutory and regulatory requirements. All of the company’s operations are standardized in order to comply with ISO 9001:2015 standards. ProtoCAM received the certification in late 2019, where Bob Holbrook, the Vice President of Sales and Marketing at ProtoCAM, stated, “In achieving our certification, we can now proudly provide our customers the highest standards of quality assurance for all of their prototyping and production requirements.”
Fellow additive manufacturing service providers Xometry, Keselowski Advanced Manufacturing, and Ivaldi Group have also received the internationally renowned ISO 9001:2015 quality certification.
The instant quoting tool for 3D printing projects
ProtoCAM’s new instant quoting system allows users to upload their 3D CAD files and immediately receive real-time cost information in a variety of technologies, materials, and finish options, before finishing their order. The previous engineer-assisted quoting form is addressed by the company’s engineers, which can take a few hours before the quotes are analyzed and given to customers.
The instant quoting system was launched to help streamline the company’s operations, allowing users to order parts more quickly while giving engineers more time to aid other additive manufacturing projects requiring additional assistance, rather than providing quotes. Users can choose between using the instant quoting option when available for a faster turnaround, or the engineer-assisted quoting form for additional customer service.
Additional features of the instant quoting platform include the creation of private profiles for users, reordering of projects while making slight specific changes, and a comparison of how different materials and finishes affect the final quote of the product. Currently, the instant quoting system is limited to ProtoCAM’s services for SLA, FDM, MJF, and PolyJet, whereas other available technologies are still accessible using ProtoCAM’s engineer-assisted quoting form.
