Fabdose
For product designers

Before it goes to the factory, find where it catches in production

Where will this material and process catch your design? Check where and why on your own computer before the file goes to the factory, then talk to the factory with a design you have already fixed.
Ready right after signup
(First time you open it, takes a minute or two to get set up on your computer, and that happens just once.)

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Your CAD files are never uploadedTen processes, one STEP file5 free analyses, no card
01

Before you send

Find where it catches in production, for this material and process, before the file goes to the factory.

02

Whenever you want

Run it on your own computer regardless of factory hours or replies.

03

The file stays on your computer

Your CAD file does not leave your computer.

When you find out

The factory will tell you where it catches. Only after you send the file and the reply comes back.

By then the direction is already set. See where it catches and fix it before you send, and you talk to the factory with the direction still in your hands.

01Your CAD tool

Checks the model

It answers whether the geometry is sound and whether it breaks the rules you configured. It was never asked which manufacturing process would accept the part as drawn.

02Your supplier

Checks the process

And they will tell you. On the quote call, days after the file went out, once you have already picked a direction and moved on.

03So the money question

Gets answered last

The one check that decides where the spend goes is the one that lands after the spend is hard to undo.

fabdose does that check first. Before you send, on your computer, against the material and process you picked.

One STEP file, read against each process

The range of checks differs by process. Injection molding is measured face by face and pinned on the model. Die casting, thermoforming, and blow molding check draft and undercut faces, compression molding checks draft faces, CNC checks internal corners and tool access, extrusion and 3D printing combine measurements with rule guidance, and sheet metal comes as rule guidance.

Plastics (6)

8 rules

Injection Molding

ABS / PC / PP / PA / POM +5

Per-face analysis

6 rules

Extrusion

ABS / PC / PP / Aluminum +6

Rule-based

Early coverage, expanding

6 rules

Blow Molding

PC / PP

Rule-based

Early coverage, expanding

6 rules

Thermoforming

ABS / PP / PC / PMMA

Rule-based

6 rules

Compression Molding

PA / PEEK

Rule-based

3 rules

Plastic 3D Printing

ABS / PA / PC-ABS / TPU / PEEK

Rule-based

Early coverage, expanding

Metals (4)

11 rules

CNC Machining

Aluminum / Steel / Brass / Stainless Steel / Magnesium

Rule-based

16 rules

Sheet Metal

Steel / Aluminum / Brass / Stainless Steel

Rule-based

22 rules

Die Casting

Aluminum / Brass / Magnesium

Rule-based

(alloy grades)

16 rules

Metal 3D Printing

Aluminum / Steel / Stainless Steel / Brass

Rule-based

Coverage deepens as more parts run through it. New processes ship once their rules hold up on real files, not on a fixed schedule.

Three of the rules, with the actual numbers

Injection molding & die casting, draft angle
2.0 degrees minimum on a smooth surface, 3.0 on a textured surface, 5.0 on deep features. Checked per face, and the report prints the measured angle next to the minimum. Die casting reuses the same per-face check for undercuts and draft, with its own NADCA minimum. Its flow distance limit, the point where a thin, long fill risks a cold shut, is still a reference number from the alloy data, not yet checked against your part's actual flow path.
CNC machining, internal corner radius
An internal corner cannot be smaller than the tool radius, so a sharp corner means EDM or a redesign. When the tool is not known, Fabdose asks for at least the local pocket depth divided by three and names a standard end mill that would get there. Right now this is the one CNC dimension read from your actual part; the rest of the CNC checks state thresholds rather than measure your geometry.
Plastic 3D printing
FDM wants 0.8mm minimum wall, measured against your geometry. Overhangs past 45 degrees need support, a standard threshold the report states rather than an angle it finds on your part. SLA and SLS carry their own minimum wall numbers, 0.5mm and 0.7mm.
Pro

Auto Comparison

Instead of naming one process, let Fabdose run your file through every process that fits your material. Each one comes back with its own suitability score, how many findings it hit, and how many of those are critical. Coverage depth differs by process, so the scores tell you where to look rather than which process wins. Your CAD tool checks the model. This checks the model against a process you have not picked yet.

See Pro pricing

How it works

One STEP file, four steps

  1. 01

    Drag in the STEP file

    Drop a .step or .stp file into Fabdose on your computer, up to 50MB, one part per run.

  2. 02

    Pick the process, or compare them

    Choose the process you have in mind and the material. Or pick Auto Comparison and let Fabdose run every process that fits that material.

  3. 03

    On your computer, whenever you want

    Your CAD file does not leave your computer. You run it on your own schedule without waiting on factory hours or a reply.

  4. 04

    Read where it catches

    Where a measurement is possible, the finding shows the measured value next to the value the process requires. If something is unclear, or you wonder about the material and process for your design, ask fabdose AI right away.

Free covers 5 analyses, one named process at a time. An account is required, a card is not.

Ask about your design

If you like, you can attach an item from the report to your question. You can also ask right away about product design, materials, processes, and the issues that follow. It explains why something was flagged, based on this analysis's material and process.

Ask right away about product design, materials, processes, yield, and the issues that follow. It answers knowing this analysis's material, process, and issues.

What comes back

One STEP file.
A report you can act on.

01Located findings.

Pinned on the model, or stated as a rule

For injection molding, undercuts and low draft come back as exact locations on the model, face by face. The other processes each check a different range, from draft and undercut faces to measured values to rules for you to check. The viewer says which is which instead of inventing a location.

02Drag, drop, done.

One drag, you're done

Runs without heavy CAD like Fusion 360 or SolidWorks. Desktop app for macOS and Windows.

03Your CAD stays put.

We don't see your CAD

Your CAD files never leave your computer. Your reports and analysis history are saved on your computer too.

In the report

In:
STEP or STP, up to 50MB, one part per run. No assembly handling, so a multi-body file is read as a single solid.
Findings:
ranked critical, high, medium and low, each with the measured value and the value the process requires.
Geometry:
bounding box, volume, surface area, face count, and the undercut faces found in the file.
Material:
weight estimate, shrinkage rate, melt and mold temperature ranges, and alternatives for the process you picked.
Sources:
The same material can have different minimum wall thickness or shrinkage limits depending on the process. We analyze against industry standards like ASTM and NADCA, and process-specific design guides.
Cost:
a modeled tooling and unit cost in USD, by region and quantity. Modeled, not quoted. Real quotes typically land 20 to 40 percent away.
Export:
the report as a PDF, included on the free tier.
Languages:
English, Korean, Japanese and Chinese.
Chat
ask about any flagged issue and get an answer based on that file's findings, not a generic chatbot. 30 questions free, unlimited on Pro.
Not included:
Fabdose is a rules-based pre-check. It does not send RFQs, match suppliers, return real quotes, or replace your supplier's review at quote time.

Why local

You need nobody's permission to run it

No upload, no NDA, no security review, no waiting for a revision to be cleared for release. That is what local is for here. It makes the check available at the moment you actually need it, mid-iteration, on a file that is not finished. Your CAD files never leave your computer, and your reports and analysis history are saved on your computer too.

  • No upload step, so there is no “is this version final” decision standing between you and a check.
  • No NDA, no internal security review, no procurement conversation before you can look.
  • Run it on a half-finished revision at 11pm without telling anyone.
Cloud SaaS
part.stp
Upload to vendor server
NDA + security review
Wait days for feedback
Fabdose
part.stp
Analysis on your computer
Results in under a minute

Your CAD file does not leave your computer. For report translation and chat, the analysis results and the questions you type in chat are sent to a server.

Check before it goes to the factory.

Five analyses free, no card. Fix what catches first, and the changes you trade with the factory get lighter.

Download FabdoseSign up on the web

Pro is $35 a month, a little over a dollar a day, for unlimited analyses and Auto Comparison across every process that fits your material. See Pro

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