Cut what you designed.
Stop redrawing it.
A pilot for manufacturers with CNC routers: new sizes and variants checked against your machine, material and tooling limits.
Your machine, material and tooling limits, held as data. Each variant generated with your measured stock and checked against your machines and tools at the design stage.
Limits in one place. Fewer surprises at CAM prep. Nothing changes on the machine.
What we’re testing
These are the problems we expect to hear. The pilot is how we test them.- Limits in too many places. Are your bed sizes and cutter limits hard-coded into each design file, or held by whoever runs CAM?
- Problems found late. Do out-of-limit sizes surface during CAM prep and need redrawing in CAD?
- One person holds the knowledge. If your CAD/CAM lead is off sick, who knows what the machines can take?
- Short runs cost more than they should. Does checking and redrawing custom orders eat into their margin?
How it works
- Record your limits. We enter your bed sizes, sheet stock, measured material thicknesses and cutter diameters into a database.
- Checked at the design stage. Each size or option generated with your measured stock and checked against your machines and tools, with the reason for anything you can’t make.
- Check before cutting. Output into your existing CAM, where your team reviews it before anything is cut.
Two routes
- Use Grasshopper? We connect to one of your existing definitions.
- Don’t? We build a model for one product family from your drawings. We take on one or two of these at a time.
Built so far
The approach first ran at our founder’s made-to-order furniture business. Grasshopper definitions already run on our servers. In development: checks against your machines and tools at the design stage. Planned: machine code for supported 3-axis flatbed routers.
Who can apply
The pilot is for independent manufacturers who cut sheet materials on CNC routers. You make configurable or repeatable products where machine, material or tooling limits shape your designs.You’re a fit if you have
- Routers. One to three 3-axis flatbed CNC routers cutting sheet materials such as plywood, MDF or composites.
- The right size. 5–50 people if you use Grasshopper, or 5–25 if we build the model for you.
- A product family. At least one product with a repeatable structure and variable sizes or options.
- Review time. An owner or CAD/CAM lead with time to check outputs against real production.
Larger manufacturers
One of the pilot places is for a larger manufacturer that uses Grasshopper. You’re a fit if you have:
- More than 50 employees, with 3-axis flatbed routers cutting sheet materials.
- Someone who owns your Grasshopper definitions, such as a computational designer.
- At least one product family you make repeatedly, not only client files.
- Someone who can agree a pilot without a full procurement process.
We especially want to hear from manufacturers that
- Use Rhino and Grasshopper.
- Sell configurable or made-to-measure ranges direct to customers.
- Redraw each new size or variant of the same product.
The pilot is not a fit if
- You cut only metal, work only on 5-axis machines, or don’t cut sheet materials.
- Every job is a one-off, with no repeatable product family.
- You work only from client-supplied files.
- You can’t share machine, material and product data under NDA.
Who provides what
| Datafurn provides | You provide |
|---|---|
| Setup of the database with your limits. | Machine, material and tooling data: bed sizes, sheet stock, thicknesses, cutters, clearances. |
| Connection to your definition, or a model built for one product family. | Drawings or specifications for the chosen product family, if we’re building the model. |
| Support throughout the pilot. | Review time from your owner or CAD/CAM lead to check outputs against real production. |
The pilot runs under NDA, so your machine, material and product data stay confidential.
What we measure
We record a baseline at the start and compare against it: rework at CAM prep, orders that break a limit, order-to-cut time and time to produce a new variant.
FAQ
What is a parametric model?
A parametric model is one design that generates every size and option of a product. It works from a set of inputs, such as width, depth or material thickness. Change an input and the model redraws the geometry. Grasshopper, a plug-in for Rhino, is a common tool for building them.
Do I need Grasshopper to take part?
No. If you use Rhino and Grasshopper, we connect to one of your existing definitions. If you don't, we build a parametric model for one product family from your drawings and specifications, then connect it to your limits.
Is the pilot only for small shops?
No. Most places are for manufacturers with 5–50 people. One is for a larger manufacturer that uses Grasshopper, with someone who owns its definitions and at least one repeatable product family.
What does the pilot cost?
Nothing. The pilot is free, needs no new hardware and changes nothing on your machine. You provide your machine, material and tooling data, and review time from an owner or CAD/CAM lead.
Can manufacturers outside the UK apply?
Yes. Datafurn is based in London, and the pilot is open to manufacturers in the UK, the US and beyond. Setup starts remotely, and we arrange calls around your time zone. If a visit would help, we agree it with you first.
We already script our limits in Grasshopper. How is this different?
Scripted limits live inside each definition. Datafurn holds them in one place, as data shared across definitions and machines. Change a sheet size or cutter once and every connected definition is checked against the new value.
Who owns the designs and data?
You own your product designs, drawings and production data. Datafurn owns its software, database schema and integration code. If we build a model for you, we agree in writing, before we start, who owns it and what you can do with it after the pilot.
Does anything change on my machine or in CAM?
No. We don't change your machine setup, and output goes into your existing CAM workflow. Machine code direct from Datafurn is planned for supported 3-axis flatbed routers.
Our CAM already catches problems. Why add this?
CAM catches problems at the end, when someone prepares the job. Datafurn checks each variant at the design stage, so fewer out-of-limit combinations reach CAM prep.
Does Datafurn guarantee every part is buildable?
No. Datafurn checks against the limits recorded in its database. A limit that isn't recorded can still reach the shop, which is why your team checks every output before cutting.
What do you need from us?
The pilot covers one product family, and Datafurn does the setup. We need your machine, material and tooling data, and review time from your owner or CAD/CAM lead to check outputs against real production.
Free pilotTested in your shopNo new hardware
Apply
Tell us about your products and we’ll arrange a 15-minute call to see if the pilot fits how you work.