Prototype Machining in Illinois | CNC Prototyping
Prototype machining in Illinois. Prototyping is the first and most important step in an end-product’s journey from idea to shelf. To get it correctly the first time around, you should choose a prototype machine shop in Illinois that can not only bring your designs to life, but have engineers at the ready that can also help refine the product to make it even better.
At Roberson Machine Company, we specialize in rapid prototyping for a number of industries. 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 prepared to support your product development goals.
Contact us or call 573-646-3996 for a free consultation on CNC prototype machining in Illinois.
Prototype Services Illinois
We have an expansive factory floor with lathes, mills, and EDM machines for all of your precision CNC prototype needs. The entire staff at Roberson Machine Company is committed to ensuring your product development efforts go smoothly, which is why we carefully oversee all designing, programming, and fabricating to make sure every last detail is perfect.
Finally, we understand the importance of moving a finished prototype to production as quickly as possible in order to keep the assembly line humming. Once you’re completely satisfied with a product’s final design, we can transition it easily and efficiently into production, all in-house! We want to be your one-stop machine shop for all prototyping services.
CNC prototyping services we offer:
- CNC Turning
- CNC Milling
- 3, 4, and 5-axis machining
- Wire EDM
- High-level surface finishing capabilities
- Metal fabrication
- Both simple and complex part geometries
- Tight tolerances (as tight as 0.0001” inches for some parts)
- Variety of materials, such as aluminum, stainless steel, etc.
- Variety of capabilities, such as stamping, extrusion, bending, cutting, spinning, folding, welding, etc.
What is Prototyping?
Prototyping uses specialized manufacturing techniques, such as CNC machines, to create high-quality physical models of a design idea. It is often used for engineer testing or as the first step within the mass-production process. For example, many clients turn to Roberson Machine Company to build a physical part swiftly in order to capture a sales opportunity or validate a design.
Prototyping is an advantageous practice that is used for:
- Showcasing the physical model of a product to investors and customers in a relatively short amount of time
- Demonstrating the appearance, dimensions, and features of your product
- Creating multiple separate versions of the product with differing colors, surface textures, and finishing processes
- 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
- Identifying and fixing potentially costly design flaws before it ever touches the market
- Streamlining and improving upon the entire production process
Overall, rapid prototyping in Illinois saves money, time, and hassle by creating one product that can be tested and optimized to peak performance before investing in thousands of units. Contact us to learn more about how this process may help your business realize a variety of cost savings.
Who Utilizes Prototype Machining In Illinois?
Multiple Illinois industries are cognizant of the benefits of prototype machining and use it to reduce the chance of disruptions in the development process. Roberson Machine Company has successfully partnered with a sizable number of companies, both large and small, to realize their prototype manufacturing requirements. We have assisted the following Illinois industries and others develop prototypes efficiently and under budget:
- With the popularity of “just-in-time” manufacturing, the automotive industry requires new parts to be produced as quickly as possible and in any size production run. Roberson Tool partners with Illinois automotive suppliers ranging from small custom shops to well-known OEMs to produce prototype parts in multiple materials, delivered affordably and on time.
- Oil and energy firms have notable demands for prototypes: they need to be made to withstand the heavy pressure of mining, refining, and potentially being buried underground. Roberson answers these demands by specializing in machining prototypes made from exotic materials such as alloy steel, plastics, and brass.
- The Illinois medical industry mandates that parts are developed to some of the most precise tolerances in the machining industry: after all, making sure that defective parts do not make 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 is proud to use the latest 5-axis CNC machining tools that can not only rapidly produce medical part prototypes regardless of size, but also provide process and tracking reports needed by the FDA.
- Aerospace manufacturers need parts with highly technical geometries and dimensions, and in a majority of cases using rare metals that do not deform at high temperatures and altitude. In addition, the unique pressures and characteristics of flight necessitate parts built to exacting tolerance and design standards. Our experienced technicians are ready to tackle the challenges of aerospace prototype manufacturing, and our ISO 9001:2015-certified Illinois machine shop is driven to deliver aerospace manufacturers parts built to the highest standard of quality.
This history of prototype manufacturing for multiple Illinois industries allows Roberson Machine Company to be a true partner throughout the manufacturing process. Our expert team of engineers and machinists can help you identify flaws in your product, propose design and usability improvements, and otherwise build on the quality of your Illinois end product while lowering your R&D costs.
Reasons to Use CNC Machining for Rapid Prototyping in Illinois
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 design a product digitally, input that data into a computer, and let the CNC machine take it from there, trimming away bits from a piece of raw material to create the desired end-shape.
Using computers improves the efficiency of cuts and virtually eliminates human error which, in turn, means that you can make quick, flawless parts the first time AND every time thereafter. There are so many other reasons to choose CNC for your prototype, including:
- More precise – Computer-controlled machines use modern cutters that are very accurate and precise in order to create parts with very tight tolerances.
- Faster – Modern CNC machine can typically create one part in a matter of minutes, which is invaluable towards getting the end-results to market quickly.
- Many different materials to work with – CNC machine tools are able to work with practically any material that is machinable, which includes many kinds of metal and plastic substrates. This is a great advantage to product developers who want to test from one different material to the next.
- Fixed tooling is not necessary – CNC machined parts do not require the use of separate tools and dies, which helps reduce the lead time and initial investment costs for new product development.
- Easy to modify – New products often go through many moderations and iterations to improve upon the original design. With CNC machining, you can easily alter digital instructions as many times as necessary.
Prototype Manufacturing Near Me Illinois | Roberson Machine Company
CNC machining is used by many businesses who need high-quality and quick parts in small volumes for prototyping, engineering, and testing samples. When you choose Roberson Machine Company, we will work with you every step of the way to ensure that your designs are crafted to perfection on time and that all of your needs are met.
Contact us for CNC prototyping Illinois services of all kinds. Call 573-646-3996 for a free quote.