Prototype Machining O’Fallon, MO
Prototype machining O’Fallon, MO. From idea to shelf, prototyping is the first step to creating products primed for mass-production. To get it right the first time around, you should choose a prototype machine shop in O’Fallon that can not only make your designs come alive, but have specialists at the ready that can also help refine the product to improve upon it.
At Roberson Machine Company, we specialize in rapid prototyping for a variety of businesses. If you can dream it, we have the capabilities to make it a reality—no matter the complexity! Our team of contract manufacturing professionals are ready to support your product development initiatives.
Contact us or call 573-646-3996 for a free quote on CNC prototype machining in O’Fallon, MO.
Prototype Services O’Fallon
We have an expansive factory floor with mills, lathes, and EDM machines to meet your CNC prototyping expectations. The entire staff at Roberson Machine Company is devoted to ensuring your product development journey goes off without a hitch, which is why we meticulously oversee the entire design, fabrication, and programming process to make sure every last detail meets your standards.
Finally, we know how important it is to move a completed prototype to production so that it can get on the market as soon as possible. Once the prototypes design has been approved, we can easily transition it to our in-house production side. This allows us to be your one-stop shop for prototyping services of all kinds.
CNC prototyping services offered at Roberson Machine Company:
- CNC Milling
- CNC Turning
- Wire EDM
- 3, 4, and 5-axis machining
- Metal fabrication
- High-level surface finishing capabilities
- Tight tolerances (as tight as 0.0001” inches for some parts)
- Both simple and complex part geometries
- Variety of capabilities such as welding, extrusion, stamping, folding, bending, spinning, cutting, etc.
- Variety of materials such as stainless steel, aluminum, etc.
What is a Prototype?
A prototype is a first-attempt physical model of a product that’s made through a special manufacturing process like CNC machining. It is often used for testing or as the first step within the mass-production process. For instance, many clients turn to Roberson Machine Company to create a physical part quickly in order to validate a design or capture a sales opportunity.
Prototyping is a very beneficial technique that is used for:
- Showing customers and investors a physical model of your product in as little amount of time as possible
- Exhibiting the appearance, features, and dimensions of your product
- Creating multiple separate versions of the product with different textures, colors, and finishes
- Ensuring that all parts are standardized in terms of size, shape, dimension, and quality
- Testing the product on the market before bringing it to full production
- Finding and fixing potentially costly design defects before it ever touches the market
- Improving and streamlining the whole production process
Overall, rapid prototyping in O’Fallon saves money, time, and hassle by creating a single run of a product that can be tested and optimized to peak performance before having to invest in thousands of units. Contact us to learn more about how this process can help your business realize a variety of cost savings.
Who Uses Prototype Machining?
Many O’Fallon, MO industries have recognized the advantages of prototype machining and utilize it to reduce potential disruptions in the development phase. Roberson Machine Company has successfully partnered with a sizable number of companies, big and small, to realize their prototype manufacturing needs. We have helped the following O’Fallon, MO industries and more develop prototypes quickly and efficiently:
- With the advent of the “just-in-time” manufacturing process, the automotive industry requires new parts to be produced as fast as possible and in any quantity. Roberson Tool works with O’Fallon, MO automotive suppliers ranging from small custom shops to well-known OEMs to build prototype parts in several different materials, delivered affordably and on time.
- O’Fallon, MO oil and energy firms have notable demands for prototypes: they must be made to withstand the rigors of refining, mining, and underground burial. Roberson answers these demands by excelling in machining prototypes made of exotic materials such as brass, alloy steel, and even plastics.
- The O’Fallon, MO medical industry mandates that parts are developed to some of the most exacting tolerances in the machining industry: after all, preventing defective parts from making it to consumers is quite literally a matter of life and death. As well, medical parts are often quite small and complicated in design. Roberson Machine Company has in our shop the latest 5-axis CNC machining tools that can not only quickly produce medical part prototypes no matter the dimensions, but also provide process and tracking reports required by the FDA.
- Aerospace manufacturers demand parts with highly technical geometries and dimensions, and in a majority of cases using specialized metals that can withstand high temperatures and altitude. As well, the special pressures and characteristics of flight necessitate parts built to strict tolerance and design standards. Our experienced technicians are eager to tackle the unique demands of aerospace prototype manufacturing, and our MO machine shop is devoted to delivering aerospace manufacturers parts built to the highest standard of quality.
This track record in prototype manufacturing for multiple MO industries makes Roberson Machine Company a true partner throughout the manufacturing process. Our expert team of specialists can help you identify flaws in your product, propose design and reliability improvements, and otherwise build on the quality of your O’Fallon, MO end product while lowering your R&D costs.
Reasons to Use CNC Machining for Rapid Prototyping in O’Fallon, MO
Prototyping can use a variety of methods to complete projects, but CNC machining is far and away one of the most effective. Short for computer numerical control, CNC allows you to digitally design your product, program the design data into the computer, and let the CNC machine take care of the rest, shaving away bits from a piece of raw material to create a desired end-shape.
Using computers eliminates human error and improves the efficiency of the cuts which, in turn, means that you can produce flawless, quick parts both the first time and every time afterwards. There are so many other reasons to choose CNC for your prototype, such as:
- More precise – Computer-controlled machines use modern cutters that are very accurate and precise in order to create parts with tolerances sometimes as tight as +.05 mm.
- Faster – Modern CNC machine tools work with sophisticated computer programs that can convert files into finished parts within a matter of hours, which is invaluable towards getting products to market faster.
- Different materials to choose from – CNC machine tools are able to work with virtually any machinable material, which includes many kinds of metal and plastic substrates. Product developers can then test different materials to see which is best for their application.
- No fixed tooling necessary – CNC machined parts do not require the use of separate tools and dies, which helps reduce the initial investment costs and lead time for new product development.
- Easy to modify – New product development often requires a series of improvements and modifications to the original design. With CNC machining, you can easily alter digital instructions as many times as necessary.
Prototype Manufacturing Near Me O’Fallon, MO | Roberson Machine Company
CNC machining is an ideal solution for product developers who need fast-turnaround and high-quality parts in small volumes for testing samples and prototyping. When you choose Roberson Machine Company, we will work with you at every point to ensure that your designs are crafted to perfection on time and that all of your needs are met.
Contact us for CNC prototyping O’Fallon services of all kinds. Call 573-646-3996 for a free quote.