At A Glance
3D printing is transforming how manufacturers produce jigs and fixtures, turning what was once time-consuming and costly into a fast, flexible, and cost-effective process. By cutting lead times up to 90% and costs up to 90%, additive manufacturing enables on-demand production, optimized designs, and digital storage of tooling files. The result is faster throughput, reduced scrap, freed-up skilled labor, and the ability to justify and implement continuous design improvements. With tools like Fixturemate in GrabCAD Print Pro, manufacturers can design and print fixtures in minutes—making 3D printing not just an efficiency boost, but a real competitive advantage.
3D printing isn’t just for prototypes anymore. More and more manufacturers are turning to it for one of the most practical applications on the shop floor: jigs and fixtures.
Why? Because additive manufacturing delivers results:
- 40–90% faster lead times
- 70–90% cost savings
That’s not just incremental improvement—it’s game changing.
Every operation, manual or automated, relies on jigs and fixtures to improve quality, reduce cycle times, and lower costs. But normally, making these tools takes too much time, money, and labor.
3D printing flips that equation. It’s fast, inexpensive, and makes customization simple. When you swap traditional methods for additive, the benefits are immediate:
- Faster throughput
- Lower inventories (print on demand)
- Skilled workers freed up for higher-value work
- Less scrap and rework
More importantly, the barrier to making a new tool disappears. A fixture that once seemed too costly to justify can now be designed, printed, and on the floor in days, not weeks.
Optimized Designs, Stronger Results
For years, fixture design was limited by cost. If a jig worked “well enough,” it rarely got redesigned. That meant that small inefficiencies like extra seconds in assembly or slightly higher scrap rates, were just accepted.
3D printing changes that mindset. With low costs and fast turnaround, redesigning is worth it. Even a tiny improvement adds up:
- 2 seconds saved per cycle = 70 hours of labor saved per worker, per year
- 1% scrap reduction = 1,250 fewer wasted parts annually
Multiply that across your operations, and you’re looking at real money back on the bottom line.
How does FDM compare to traditional CNC machining for these companies?
BMW
BMW’s jigs and fixtures department used a Fortus printer to manufacture assembly tools. This tool is used to affix the rear name badge.
Oreck
Oreck uses this jig during assembly of its vacuum cleaners. Here a vacuum top cover is placed into the pallet upside down.
Xerox
An operator at Xerox modified 350 connectors in about an hour on this toggle press.
Print When Needed, Store Digitally
Traditionally, fixtures were treated like assets—built, stored, tracked, and maintained for years. That approach carries hidden costs in inventory, storage, and retrieval.
With 3D printing, many manufacturers now go digital. Instead of storing the tool, they store the CAD file. Need the fixture? Print it on demand. Break one? Print another. Unexpected demand spike? Print duplicates.
This digital warehouse model saves money, space, and labor while giving teams more flexibility.
If you’ve got a CAD file and access to a printer, you can use fixturemate, an automated tooling software – now available in GrabCAD Print Pro, to design a fixture in under 20 minutes. Add in up to 90% savings, and it’s easy to see why more manufacturers are adopting additive for their shop floors.
3D printing jigs and fixtures isn’t just efficient—it’s a competitive advantage.
