Accelerating Product Development Through Rapid Prototyping and 3D Printing
The Challenge
A customer approached Engineered Profiles with a request for a custom plastic extrusion profile that didn’t exist within their current product portfolio. The part had never been designed, produced, or tested before—creating a unique challenge for both teams.
The timeline added complexity: the customer needed a fully functional prototype and production-ready design in time for an upcoming industry trade show. To meet these tight deadlines while maintaining cost efficiency, the only viable solution was to leverage rapid prototyping and 3D printing technology to validate the design before committing to tooling.
The Solution
The Engineered Profiles design team collaborated closely with the customer’s engineers to conceptualize and model the new extrusion profile. The part needed to function seamlessly with existing components while maintaining a polished, customer-facing appearance—making precision and aesthetic quality equally important.
Test it Before You Tool it.
Rapid prototyping turns ideas into proof fast—helping you validate designs, reduce risk, and speed your path to market.
Once the digital model was complete, the design was quickly produced using in-house 3D printing. This approach allowed both teams to physically test the part’s fit, form, and function within real-world applications—confirming performance before any tooling investment was made.
As a result, Engineered Profiles delivered a proof of concept overnight, enabling the customer to validate the part’s design and performance early in the process. The phrase “Test it Before You Tool it” perfectly summarizes the value of this approach—reducing risk, shortening development time, and ensuring a successful launch.
The Result
By integrating 3D printing and rapid prototyping into the design workflow, Engineered Profiles reduced the traditional product development timeline dramatically. Nearly 90% of the design and approval process was completed before tool building began, resulting in fewer revisions, faster validation, and a seamless transition to production.
This accelerated process enabled the customer to meet their trade show deadline, showcase a fully functional product, and move forward with a proven, production-ready extrusion design. The success of this project demonstrates Engineered Profiles’ commitment to innovation, precision, and customer-focused engineering solutions.
