Get a quick manufacturability read on a STEP file
Someone sent you a STEP file and you need to know, fast, whether it can be made and which process fits, without launching heavy CAD or shipping it to a factory. Fabdose opens the file on your computer and gives a designer-readable report in under a minute.
The problem
STEP files arrive from clients, teammates, and contractors in formats from every CAD tool, and you often need a manufacturability read before you can answer a simple question or quote a project. Opening a full CAD package just to eyeball it is slow, and sending the file to a shop for review takes days and exposes the geometry. There is rarely a fast, private way to just look.
What Fabdose does in that moment
- 1
Drop the file, no CAD required
Drag the STP or STEP file into Fabdose on your computer. You do not need Fusion 360 or SOLIDWORKS installed. The app reads the geometry directly and keeps the file local.
- 2
Pick a process and read the report
Choose the process you have in mind. Fabdose checks the file against that process's rules and, for injection molding, returns the exact faces with undercuts or low draft, plus an order-of-magnitude cost signal, in your language.
- 3
Decide your next move
Now you know whether the part is sound, where the risk is, and which process fits. You can answer the client, plan the next revision, or move toward a quote with confidence.
The result
You get a grounded yes-or-no on manufacturability in under a minute, without a CAD launch or a factory round-trip, and the file never leaves your computer.
Honest limits
Fabdose reads geometry face by face for injection molding (undercut and draft) and pins the findings on the model. The other processes are checked to a different depth each. Fabdose measures what it can find in the file and states the rest as rules for you to check. More are added once their rules hold up on real files. It does not return real supplier quotes.
Questions
- What file types does Fabdose accept?
- Fabdose reads STEP and STP files, the ISO 10303 CAD exchange format that every major CAD tool can export. You do not need the original CAD application, which is what makes it handy for files you receive from others.
- Which processes can I check a STEP file against?
- Today: injection molding, extrusion, blow molding, thermoforming, compression molding, and plastic 3D printing on the plastics side; CNC machining, sheet metal, die casting, and metal 3D printing on the metals side. Injection molding is measured face by face and pinned on the model; the other processes are checked to a different depth each, measuring what Fabdose can find in the file. New processes are added once their rules hold up on real files.
- Do I need to install CAD software first?
- No. Fabdose runs standalone and reads the STEP file directly, so there is no Fusion 360 or SOLIDWORKS dependency. Both macOS and Windows (Microsoft Store) are available now.
Free tier needs an account, no card. Your STEP files stay on your computer.