Free DFM Review — Before You Pay for the Part
Send a drawing. Within 16 hours Bill, our engineering manager, sends back a quote and the two or three changes that would make the part cheaper, faster or easier to hold in tolerance. No charge, no obligation, and the files stay in the shop.
An auto-quote prices your drawing. An engineer questions it.
Online platforms price whatever you upload. They will never tell you that a ±0.01 mm on a clearance hole is doubling the cost, or that a 0.5 mm internal corner is forcing a tool change nobody needs. A 36-person shop cannot compete on volume, so we compete on the thing an algorithm cannot do: read the drawing and tell you what it is really asking for.
What is driving the cost
The two or three callouts that account for most of the price, and what each one would save if relaxed. You decide; we do not change your drawing.
What will be hard to hold
Features we expect to struggle with — thin walls that will move, deep pockets, fits that need a gauge — flagged before the order, not on the first article.
A quote that reflects both
Price and lead time for the part as drawn, and, where it makes sense, an alternative price for the part with the suggested changes.
The seven things that decide what a machined part costs
Almost every expensive part is expensive for one of these reasons. The examples are typical of what we see, not promises for your part — your numbers come with your quote.
1. Tolerances
Every extra decimal place costs machine time and inspection time. A ±0.005 mm where ±0.05 mm would work can add 30–50% to a feature. We ask which dimensions are actually functional.
2. Number of setups
Each time the part is re-clamped it costs handling and risks stacking error. Thirteen of our 32 centres are four-axis, and a part designed so we can reach it in one setup is usually the cheapest version of itself.
3. Internal corner radius
An internal corner smaller than the cutter forces a smaller cutter, slower feeds or an EDM operation. Going from R0.5 to R1.0 on a pocket often removes a tool change entirely.
4. Deep pockets and thin walls
Depth over four times cutter diameter means slow cutting and deflection; walls under 1 mm move when clamped. Both are machinable — both cost more than the drawing suggests.
5. Material
6061 cuts three times faster than 316L and holds tolerance more easily. If the drawing says stainless for appearance rather than corrosion, anodised aluminium may do the job at a fraction of the machining time.
6. Surface finish and coating
Ra 0.8 µm costs more than Ra 1.6 µm; hard anodise costs more than clear. A finish specified over the whole part, when only one face matters, is paid for on every face.
7. Quantity and price breaks
The setup is the cost. Between 10 and 100 pieces the price per part often halves. Ask for two or three quantities and we quote them all — sometimes a slightly larger run is cheaper in total.
And the one people forget: inspection
A drawing with fifty toleranced dimensions takes fifty measurements on the CMM. Tell us which are critical and we inspect those to the letter and the rest to ISO 2768-mK.
A DFM note is short, specific and about your part
This is the shape of what comes back. The values are illustrative — a real note refers to your dimensions, your material and your quantity.
Three notes, one alternative price
- Pocket corner radiusR0.5 → R1.0, removes one tool change
- Bore toleranceH7 kept; H6 on the second bore relaxed to H7 — not a bearing seat
- Wall thickness1.0 mm → 1.5 mm on the back wall, avoids deflection and a remake risk
- FinishClear anodise on visible faces only, back face as-machined
- Result, as drawnQuoted at 100%
- Result, with changesQuoted at roughly 70%, one day shorter lead time
You accept some, all or none of the notes. The drawing is yours; we only tell you what we see.
What to include so the review is useful
A 3D file and a 2D drawing
STEP, IGES or X_T for geometry; PDF, DWG or DXF for tolerances, threads, material and finish. Both together is fastest. One is fine to start.
Which dimensions are critical
A sentence is enough: “the two Ø20 bores are bearing seats, everything else is clearance”. It changes the quote more than anything else.
Quantity and when you need it
Now, and roughly per year if it repeats. Two or three quantities get two or three prices.
What the part does
Not the whole project — just enough that we do not suggest a change that breaks the function.
No CAD? Send what you have
A sketch with dimensions, or the worn part itself. We measure, draw and send you the drawing to approve before cutting.
NDA first if you prefer
Send yours or ask for ours. Files are seen by the engineer who quotes them and the programmer who runs them, nobody else.
Before you send it
Is it really free, and what is the catch?
Will you change my design?
What if the part is fine as drawn?
How fast?
Do you keep my files?
Send the drawing. You get a quote and the notes in 16 hours.
STEP, IGES, X_T, DWG, DXF or PDF. Metric or inch. No minimum order, no obligation.
Upload the drawing for review
Attach the 3D file and the 2D drawing together if you can, and tell us which dimensions matter.
Your files are used to quote and make your parts, nothing else.