Print processes
Most architectural work is FDM. Resin is for the small pieces FDM cannot resolve, and multi-material is for models that need to read in more than one colour without being painted.
FDM standard
The workhorse. Massing, site models, terrain, volume studies, and anything where the overall form matters more than the surface. Fast, economical, and the right default for early studio work and internal reviews.
Typical layer height 0.2 mm. Maximum single-piece size 350 × 320 × 325 mm.
FDM detail
The same process at a finer layer height. Sharper edges, legible mullions and facade articulation, cleaner curved surfaces. Slower, so it costs more, but it is what makes a model hold up when someone picks it up and looks closely.
Typical layer height 0.08–0.12 mm. Same maximum size as FDM standard.
Resin
For components rather than whole buildings — furniture, figures, trees, railings, tracery, joinery details, or any part with features too fine for a nozzle. Resin parts are usually combined with an FDM body rather than printed alone.
Available opaque and clear. Small build area, so oversized parts are split and joined.
Multi-material
Up to nine materials in a single build. Use it when colour is carrying information — context in grey against a proposal in white, circulation picked out, phasing shown, or a glazing line that needs to read as glazing. Cleaner and more durable than painting an FDM model after the fact.
Multi-material builds take longer than single-colour builds of the same geometry, because the machine changes filament at every layer that needs it.
Quality levels
Quality level is separate from print process. It sets how much time goes into the build and how much review the model gets before it leaves. The same geometry in FDM detail can be produced at any of the three.
| Level | What it is for | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Standard | Draft and massing work, quick studies, iteration during a project | Speed-optimised settings. Layer lines visible, minor artefacts accepted. |
| Presentation | Course reviews, critiques, internal presentations | Balanced settings, supports removed cleanly, surfaces checked before release. |
| Premium | Client meetings, competitions, anything leaving the building | Slowest settings, orientation chosen for finish, full inspection, careful packing. |
If you are unsure, Presentation is the right default for anything being shown to other people.
Colours and materials
Standard stock is PETG in white, black and grey. It is dimensionally stable, holds edges well, and does not soften in a warm car or a sunny studio the way PLA does — which matters for a model that has to survive transport to a review.
| Option | Notes |
|---|---|
| White | The default for architectural models. Reads cleanly under any lighting and photographs well. |
| Black | Good for bases, context, and hiding structure. Shows dust and fingerprints more. |
| Grey | Useful for context massing set next to a white proposal. |
| Clear / translucent | Glazing, water, light studies. Available in resin, and as translucent filament on FDM. |
| Multiple colours | Multi-material builds. Describe which element gets which colour in the project notes. |
| Other | Specific colours can usually be sourced. Ask before you submit if the deadline is tight. |
Performance materials
The portal has a performance field, which most model work should leave on Standard. It exists for parts that have to survive something — a jig, a fixture, a functional prototype, a component that will be handled hard or sit somewhere hot. Heat-resistant and impact-resistant options are available, and engineering materials are quoted on approval rather than selected directly.
Display models do not need performance materials. Choosing one adds cost without changing how the model looks.
Build surface
The face touching the build plate takes on the texture of that plate. On a model with a flat base, that is the surface people actually see when it sits on a table, so it is worth choosing deliberately.
- Standard for this print type
- We pick the plate that suits the process and the geometry. Correct for most submissions.
- Smooth plate
- Glossy, near-mirror bottom face. Good for water, glazing, and anything meant to look poured.
- Textured plate
- Fine even matte grain. The most forgiving choice, and the usual pick for model bases.
- Matte finish
- Flat and non-reflective. Photographs well and hides layer lines on the contact face.
- Engineering plate
- For high-temperature and engineering materials. Not needed for standard model work.
Supports
Overhangs need material underneath them while they print. That material is removed afterwards, and removal always leaves some mark. Your support preference tells us how to trade finish against time and cost.
- Supports allowed
- Fastest and cheapest. Marks may be visible where supports touched the model.
- Avoid supports if possible
- We orient the model to minimise overhangs first, and support only what genuinely needs it.
- No supports on visible surfaces
- Supports go only where they will not be seen. Costs more, and sometimes means splitting the model.
- Split the model if it improves the finish
- We cut the geometry into pieces that each print cleanly, then join them. Best possible finish, most labour.
Splitting is often the right answer for anything with a deep overhang or an enclosed void. It also lets a large model print in parallel across machines, which can shorten lead time rather than extend it.
If you are not sure what to choose
Describe the model and what it is for in the project notes and we will recommend the setup when we quote. Useful things to tell us: the scale, whether it will be handled, whether it is being photographed, and whether anything needs to read as a distinct colour or material.
Some common starting points:
- Site or massing model for a review — FDM standard, Presentation, white, textured plate.
- Detailed building with visible facade articulation — FDM detail, Presentation or Premium, white.
- Competition or client model — FDM detail or multi-material, Premium, no supports on visible surfaces.
- Small components to add to an existing model — resin, Presentation.
- Functional prototype — FDM standard or detail, with a performance material if it has to take load or heat.