Uploads & quoting

Supported file types

A Part accepts STL, 3MF, STEP, STP and OBJ files, or a ZIP containing them. 3MF is the richest option: a project exported from Bambu Studio or OrcaSlicer carries your plates, supports, orientation and settings, and Faithful 3MF Mode honours them by default. STEP files are converted for slicing on upload.

How the automatic quote works

When a file lands we slice it for real, with the actual production profiles the farm uses, not a volume estimate. Material use and print time come out of that slice and become your fulfilment price. Most single-colour, single-plate files price in a few minutes with no human involved.

When the team prices it instead

Some files cannot be auto-priced honestly, so they go to the Makr3D team. This is not a rejection: you can still order, and the order simply waits in an uncharged state until the confirmed price lands. Nothing is ever charged or printed at a price you have not seen. The cases:

• Multi-colour prints. Automatic pricing cannot see purge and tool-change cost, so the team confirms multi-colour prices on your order.
• Files that already contain sliced G-code (a gcode.3mf). We never auto-quote sliced G-code; the team checks and prices it by hand. Detection is by content, so renaming the file does not change the route. Any time and material estimates embedded in the file are shown as advisory only.
• Very long prints are confirmed by the team before production.
• Slicer failures or timeouts. If our slicer cannot process the file, a person prices it instead. It usually means an unusual mesh, not a broken one.
• Layout problems: an object sitting outside the build plate, or objects overlapping on a plate. The team checks the layout on your order.
• Some destinations: where we have no automatic postage rate, shipping is confirmed by hand.

Multi-plate 3MF projects

A Part is exactly one model file on one plate. If your 3MF contains several plates, you pick the plate the Part prints as; the picker appears on the Part page. A project with more plates than we auto-price is confirmed by the team on your order instead.

ZIP rules

Archives are unpacked on our side; the slicer never sees a ZIP. The rules:

• Printable files must sit at the top level of the archive, not inside folders.
• One printable file in the archive: it is selected automatically, exactly like a direct upload.
• Several printable files: the upload pauses and you choose which one the Part uses. A gcode.3mf chosen from an archive routes to the team by the same rule as a direct upload.
• An archive inside an archive is rejected, as are corrupt archives and archives that unpack beyond our size limits. The error message on screen says which rule was hit.

Who can see your files

Only you and the production team. Files are stored privately, used solely to manufacture your orders, and never appear in anyone else’s catalogue. Buyers on your shop see product photos and previews, never the file. You keep ownership; the details are in the IP policy.