Production Manufacturing

We are your manufacturing partner to scale projects to production. Get complete program management with a team who can tailor our capabilities to optimize cost, quantity, and quality control of your production order.

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Certifications

ISO 9001:2015  |  AS9100D |  ITAR Registered


Your Global Production Supplier with Domestic Supply Chain Management in the United States and Europe



Protolabs is a full-service global manufacturing service that can help you onshore your supply chain no matter where you are in the world. Our in-house manufacturing factories in the United States and Europe paired with our manufacturing network of more than 250 suppliers around the world helps remove production barriers in logistics, shipping, geo-political issues, and other unforeseen hurdles that can cause delays.

  • Volume pricing built to fit your budget
  • Large orders up to 1 million+ parts are possible
  • No minimum order quantity and flexible warehousing options
  • Rigid quality control and documentation at every stage
  • Advanced capabilities that open design opportunities
  • End-of-product-life manufacturing and MRO resourcing


Full Production Support Team

We have a team of manufacturing experts working behind the scenes to fulfill your production order—we manage the entire process and keep you updated along the way. We support you with: 

  • A dedicated account manager with production expertise
  • CAD and cost-reduction advice from in-house applications engineers
  • Logistics fulfillment from operations specialists
  • On-site quality control
  • Assistance with platform and file uploads to help navigate orders with complex bills of material (BoMs) and sourcing from both Protolabs and its network partners

Quality Control & Certification for Production

Our industry-standard procedures and certifications guarantee quality and regulatory compliance.

  • CMM inspection report
  • Full dimensional inspections
  • Material test reports and certificates
  • REACH and RoHS Certificates of Conformance (CoC)
  • First article inspection (FAI)
  • Industry certifications: ISO 9001, AS 9100, ISO 13485, ISO 14001, and ISO TS16949
  • PPAP quality management system

 

ITAR-Compliant Manufacturing

We are an ITAR-registered manufacturer meaning any product intended for the U.S. military or defense-related purposes must adhere with ITAR requirements. Because we have global facilities in the U.S. and around the world, we keep separate databases for different countries with procedures in place to ensure any parts or information we share publicly or between locations are not ITAR controlled. We also prevent employees from other locations access to manufacturing floors or other secured areas as well as prohibit photo, video, and audio recording in our offices and manufacturing facilities.

Learn More About ITAR

Our Manufacturing Processes


Green injection molded part Injection Molding expand_less expand_more

Injection Molding

Get affordable, high-quality molded parts and bridge tooling within days. With our free moldability consultation, the design and molding process is rapidly accelerated to save you time and money.

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  • Low-volume molding up to 100,000+ parts with volume pricing available—no MOQ required
  • 100+ plastic, elastomeric, and silicone rubber materials
  • Automated CMM for fast, in-house quality documentation
Chrome CNC Part CNC Machining expand_less expand_more

CNC Machining

Leverage the same speed, precision, and reliability in machining that you’re accustomed to at Protolabs but unlock advanced machining capabilities like tighter tolerances and volume pricing through our manufacturing network.

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  • Machined parts in as fast as 1 day with optional plating and anodizing in as fast as 4 days
  • Cost-efficient machined parts at higher volumes
  • Tolerances down to ±0.001 in. (0.020mm) through our digital network
Silicone 3D printed part 3D Printing expand_less expand_more

3D Printing

Want quality parts and additive expertise at a single 3D printing source? Choose from seven different additive manufacturing technologies for cost-effective prototyping and highly precise, repeatable production parts.

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  • Additive technologies include metal 3D printing, SLA, SLS, FDM, and more
  • 30 plastic and metal materials in a range of finishes
  • 25 years of additive manufacturing expertise
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Sheet Metal Fabrication

From easy quoting to quick-turn production and finishing options, get up to 500 quality sheet metal parts in your hands in days from a single supplier.

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  • Instant quotes with interactive manufacturability feedback
  • Six sheet metal materials including aluminum, stainless steel, steel, brass, and copper
  • Finishing options from welding and hardware insertion to powder coating and silk screening


How the Production Process Works

We want to make partnering with us on a production project as smooth and streamlined as possible.


1. Talk with a manufacturing expert who will help customize your production quote around your full bill of materials.

2. Work with our team to optimize your project for production, including design for manufacturability and cost-down options.

3. An initial sample run of parts is manufactured and sent to you to ensure parts meet your standards before the full production begins.

4. Get process transparency and quality control as full production begins.

5. Post-processing and final quality measures are applied before parts are shipped.

6. Place subsequent batch production orders for the project at any time with our virtual warehouse.


Talk with Team




Production Support Across Industries

We work with innovative companies in every major industry so we know the rigid requirements you have to tackle during production.



Medical

  • Medical molding
  • High-temp plastics, LSR, and micro-resolution 3D printing materials
  • Industry certifications

Aerospace

  • Machined metals like stainless steel 17-4 PH
  • AS9100- and ISO9001-certified machining and 3D printing

Consumer Electronics

  • On-demand production to help drive mass customization
  • Batch production for parts when you need them
  • Wide material selection and finishes


Automotive

  • Tooling and fixturing
  • Material and design feedback for lightweighting
  • Experience in EV/AV segment

Industrial Equipment & Machinery

  • Durable material options for jigs and fixtures
  • Custom end-use industrial components within days

Robotics

  • Team can help manage multi-part assemblies and large BOMs
  • Precision CNC machining
  • Traceability throughout process


Medical Startup Brings Device to Production

San Diego-based AseptiScope partners with Protolabs to develop a unique stethoscope cover system that limits disease transmission. With on-demand manufacturing molds, development moved quickly and the system became available well ahead of the soon-to-be-adopted Center for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines.

Read Full Story

Checking Boxes on the Approved Vendor List

Procurement and supply chain teams need experienced manufacturing partners that offer competitive pricing, production scheduling, built-in quality assurance measures—all while providing fast quoting and manufacturing. That’s why we fit the bill (of materials) as your single-source manufacturer. See why we belong on your AVL.

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