Time to read: 14 min

As the operating system for custom manufacturing, the Fictiv platform is constantly evolving. Whether it’s workflow automation, our digital quality system, or guided expertise features, every release makes it faster, easier, and more efficient to source and supply mechanical parts.

So bookmark and share this page, and check back often to learn about Fictiv’s latest improvements!

December 2023

3D Printing Professionalization

  • UMA 90 (Carbon DLS) is now available in custom colors. UMA 90 is a one-part rigid resin, similar to conventional SLA resins, and is well suited for manufacturing jigs, fixtures, and general-purpose prototypes. n White, black, grey, cyan, yellow, and magenta resinscan be mixed to achieve a range of nonstandard colors. On our platform, you can now specify color using Pantone or RAL numbers to achieve your critical aesthetic requirements.

November 2023 

3D Printing

  • New Inspection Services for 3D Printed Parts: We now offer 3 types of inspection services:
    • Visual Inspection is our standard inspection in which we verify that the parts are free of any cosmetic non-conformance per our Cosmetic Standards policy. 
    • Dimensional Inspection Reports for customers who require critical dimensions measured with hand metrology. 
    • Advanced Inspection Reports where parts are inspected for finish quality and dimensional accuracy using CMM, Laser, or Optical measurements. 
  • Certificates of Conformity for 3D Printed Parts: quality documentation that verifies the part meets the requirements of your specifications (including finishing).
  • Improved Lead Times for 3D Printed Parts: We continue to refine our operations and manufacturing partner network to provide faster production speeds for your 3D printed parts. 

October 2023 

September 2023 

  • 3D Printing Quotes. When ordering FDM parts, you can now specify infill density during configuration to improve the durability and performance of a part. Based on the infill density specified, the platform will automatically update pricing and lead time for production. 
  • Simplified Purchasing: Fictiv Premium members can integrate directly with market-leading P2P suites including SAP Ariba, Coupa, and Microsoft Dynamics 365, further simplifying team-based procurement workflows. Quote information can be sent from Fictiv to your system with a single click—eliminating the need to copy and paste across multiple systems.
  • 3DP Material Information: To help make informed decisions in selecting 3DP printing material, we will display convenient summaries of material properties, potential applications and links to our online data sheets. These will automatically appear next to the material selection menu as you mouse over the list of materials we offer. 
  • Budgetary Injection Molding Pricing: When pricing 3D printed parts, we’ll analyze the part and provide a per unit cost estimate if the part were to be injection molded. This information can be used to assess unit costs for higher production quantities and is also an opportunity to receive a free detailed budgetary quote and DFM consultation for injection molding. 
  • New CNC Materials: Inconel 625 and 718 as well as O1 Tool Steel are now available as part of our CNC machining offering. 
  • Production Speed Options with Delivery Dates: Instead of showing a date for shipment, we now display estimated delivery dates so customers can more easily understand when they will have parts in hand.

August 2023

  • Improved 3D Printing Quoting: We now offer multiple production speed options for 3D Printing quotes from the faster possible lead time to the most economical. In addition, we’re able to provide automatic pricing at higher quantities.
  • 3D Printing Materials. We have added 14 additional 3D printing materials. They include:

July 2023 

  • CNC Machining Quotes. We’re pleased to announce lower prices and shorter lead times for high-quantity CNC. Now you’ll gain economies of scale when quoting and ordering larger batches of the same part. Get the details here.
  • 3D Printing Quotes. We’ve increased the maximum part size for FDM 3D printing  using ABS, ABS ESD, PC, PC+ABS materials to 914 x 610 x 914 mm.

June 2023

CNC Machining Quotes: We’ve made refinements to our automated quoting for large parts (i.e., greater than 18 inches), CNC-turned parts, and parts with undercuts. As a result, production lead times have improved and are shorter for these parts.

May 2023

CNC Machining:

  • Material certifications are now available for all materials offered through our North American network of manufacturing partners. These certifications can be added to your quote and automatically priced, enabling you to place your order without delay.
  • Get your part finishing done in less time. At higher production quantities, our quoting for finishing services has been optimized to reduce finishing lead times by up to 30%.

Fictiv Premium:

  • Fictiv Premium members can now request to join an existing Team Workspace directly from the platform. Requests go to all members of that Team Workspace, and any member can approve or deny the request.

International Shipping: 

  • We’ve improved our logistics management to provide more consistent overseas delivery times. All overseas manufacturing orders will now be shipped to the U.S. in 4 business days.

February 2023

Fictiv Premium: 

  • Team Spend Analytics 📊 enables Premium users to take control of NPD spend by providing a single place to see all team members’ spend and savings on a project over time. 
  • Plus, it’s easier to request and start a free trial of Fictiv Premium for new members.

Business Accounts: It’s now faster and easier to join your company’s business account.

January 2023

CNC Machining Quotes: 

  • Larger CNC part sizes are here! Fictiv can now machine parts up to 10 ft. More information about maximum build sizes for parts is available in the Help Center.
  • After uploading your parts, you can now specify ACME, Metric Trapezoidal, British Standard Pipe Parallel thread standards, and an expanded set of Metric and Imperial options using Fictiv’s thread specification feature. This saves you time by eliminating the need to upload a 2D drawing to specify threads.

CAD File Compatibility: CAD file formats from newly released software such as Solidworks 2023 have been confirmed to be compatible and are fully supported on our platform. So go ahead and treat yourself to the latest!

DFM Feedback: When your parts have DFM feedback, click “View feedback” on the Quotes List Page to review DFM reports, revise the parts, or start a chat with our team of experts.

Shipping: When entering a shipping address, the phone number is now validated to help ensure the speedy shipping of your order.

Tax Exemption: For applicable organizations, you can now request tax-exempt status from your Account Details page, and Fictiv customer success representative will assist you.

Team Workspaces:Fictiv Premium users can see a listing of all Team Workspaces and details such as the number of quotes and orders for each Team. You’ll also see the name of the user who created the Team as well as its members, so you know who to contact and request to be added.

December 2022

Business Accounts: This month, Business Accounts will notice several user management improvements.

  • Members can now see the status of all active or pending members in the My Account section (so you know who to 👉 to accept their membership.)
  • Quickly invite new users to your Business Account via a new shortcut button located in the top-right of the Fictiv platform.
  • Potential members can request access to an applicable Business Account, to access benefits such as Fictiv Premium features, PO and/or tax-exempt purchases, as applicable.

November 2022

New CNC Finish Options: Three new finishing options are now available for CNC machining configurations:

New 3D Printing Finish Option: We now offer vapor smoothing to give your Multi-Jet Fusion parts a more uniform, professional-looking surface finish. Get the look and feel similar to molded parts but in a fraction of the time.

Team Workspaces: We’ve added search functionality for users collaborating in teams or projects with Fictiv Premium. Within a team, you can now quickly look up orders by searching for a file name, PO#, order id, purchaser, quote owner, or email address.

Injection Molding Quotes: You can select your desired injection molding production location directly from the Project Requirements window: Domestic (USA), overseas, or no preference.

The summary section on the Checkout page also displays a detailed breakdown of tooling and parts prices and shipping fees for parts and samples.

Uploaded Drawings: When you upload and attach a PDF drawing, Fictiv’s drawing analysis feature can identify tight and linear tolerance specifications for holes. We now highlight both tight and linear tolerance holes in green so you can be sure all specifications will be accounted for.

October 2022

Search: We’ve added a simple search tool on the “Orders” tab on the “My Quotes and Orders” page. Quickly find orders by entering an order name, part file name, or purchase order number.

International Shipping: You can now add your DHL Express account as an international shipping option for overseas orders.

DFM Feedback: It’s easier to notify Fictiv that you have finished reviewing injection molding DFM reports in your quote. When ready, simply click the “Close and notify” button directly within the DFM reports window.

Quote Sharing: When sharing a quote with other team members, the email address field will suggest previous recipients, for ease and speed. To give your team even greater visibility to your quotes and orders, try Fictiv Premium. 

Quality Documentation: When you request inspection reports, you’ll see updated descriptions that provide better clarity for what is included in Certificates of Conformity (CoCs) and Material Certifications.
General Interface: If you have multiple Fictiv pages open in your browser, you can easily switch between tabs with updated titles such as “Create a quote” and “Quote list page,” or the name of a specific quote.

September  2022

Introducing Premium! Fictiv Premium is a first-of-its-kind paid annual membership program that enables multiple users in your business to coordinate custom manufacturing with high visibility and control—across projects, teams, and entire organizations. Request a free trial to access powerful new features:

  • Team Workspaces: Get real-time shared visibility into quotes, orders, DFM reports, quality, and inspection reports, all in one place: Team Workspaces. Skip the hassle of forwarding docs all over your organization to keep everyone on the same page.
  • Multi-Team Controls: Easily create and manage teams for oversight of purchasing activity and access to sensitive documentation by project, or department, acting as a custom part sourcing command center. Control how quotes and orders are handed off to the right members so your purchase process runs securely.
    Oh, and did you know that team names can include emojis? Well, hello “Team ⚾🐻💍!”
  • Lead Time Optimizer: Need to hit a specific target date for your parts order? The Lead Time Optimizer takes the guesswork out of setting up your order to meet specific delivery dates. You’ll see exactly which fulfillment options support your timing needs.
  • Preferred Pricing: All your members and teams automatically receive preferred pricing on all applicable quotes.

You’ll find a new Plans page to help you understand the differences between Premium membership and Essentials, our standard plan for individual users.

DFM Feedback: 

  • 3D Visualization for Injection Molding DFM: Injection Molding quotes include free DFM reports that use 3D visualization to illustrate pull direction, side actions, and issues related to draft angle and thickness.
  • Within injection molding DFM reports, we’ve improved the clarity of annotations by using color coding to identify which team added them. Your annotations will be colored red and annotations from Fictiv will be colored teal.
  • For CNC parts orders, you’ll now receive DFM feedback for parts that include powder coating, to help clarify coating standards.

International Shipping: Upon placing an overseas order, you’ll be presented with a 48-hour countdown reminder to complete the customs information form. The form is first accessible within a few minutes of your order being placed, and completion within 48 hours is key to preventing order delays and costs due to inaccurate information.

August 2022

Quote Sharing: We’ve got several updates to Quote Sharing this month that help you and your team stay on the same page without a lot of back-and-forth.

  • When viewing a quote, you’ll find an on-page notification if the quote has been ordered.
  • Keep track of when quotes were shared by looking at the Quote Activity Log.
  • Downloaded quotes also now include our DFM feedback for included parts. 
  • When you invite a new user to Fictiv by sharing a quote, they’ll also receive a handy link to “How to Get Started with Fictiv.” 

CAD File Processing: When you upload CAD files for your parts and use Fictiv’s Auto Thread Detection feature, it’s now easier to navigate through the threads. Why not take it for a spin? 

DFM Feedback: We’ve got three DFM updates this month. 

  • If you need to refer to specific DFM feedback, you can now easily reference a slide number. 
  • The format of file names of downloaded DFM reports now makes it easier to identify which part they are for. 
  • When you reorder parts, any DFM feedback from the original quote will carry over as well.

Injection Molding Quotes: It’s never been easier to change injection molded parts quantities prior to ordering, now directly within the Quote Detail page. Although we’d prefer you increase quantities, rumor has it that it works equally well if you need to reduce them.

July 2022

CAD File Processing: When you upload CAD files for your parts, our platform provides better modeled thread analysis, setup calculations, and undercut detection.

CNC Machining Quotes: You can now select and receive an instant quote for 22 new CNC materials, including a variety of exotic metals, steels, plastics, and types of bronze and titanium. Imagine the possibilities!

DFM Feedback: Your DFM experience for injection molded parts has been completely upgraded to accelerate the feedback process and finalize your designs for tooling in less time. View and track the status of DFM issues, comment and make annotations in the DFM report, and download DFM reports to share with your team.

Quote Sharing: It’s never been faster and easier to share a Fictiv quote with your purchasing team. Just look for the new “Forward to Purchaser” button on your Quote Detail page. Purchasers will receive an email with an optional note and PDF attachment, with instructions to view or edit the quote and to begin the checkout process on Fictiv.

June 2022

CAD File Processing: Our analysis speed and support of CAD file types has improved, particularly with STEP 242 files (model-based definition currently not fully supported). Plus, we’ve increased the processing speed of injection molded parts, so you can start configuring your order sooner. Meep meep!

Generated Drawings: Notes on tolerances and finishing specifications are now included when you use Fictiv’s 2D drawing feature for injection molded parts.

Quote Sharing: You can now include a PDF copy when you share a Fictiv quote.

May 2022

DFM Feedback: If you receive DFM feedback that indicates a revision to your part is required, you can now click a link in the notification to jump directly into a chat with our support team.

Generated Drawings: To improve clarity and accuracy, drawings generated by Fictiv’s 2D drawing feature are now process-specific (CNC, IM, urethane casting, etc.), including tolerance specifications, surface finish details, and process-specific notes. 

Quote Sharing: You can now include a helpful note to your collaborators when you share a Fictiv quote — because teamwork makes the dream work, y’all!

Track Shipment: When your parts have shipped, you’ll have access to a new Track Shipment tab in the part details window, including shipping status, the tracking number, and the link.

Uploaded Drawings: When you upload and attach a PDF drawing, Fictiv’s drawing analysis feature has been improved to make sure all your requirements, such as tolerances, are accounted for.

April 2022

CAD File Processing: Processing of native CAD file types in Fictiv has been improved to support new file types for recently updated software packages, such as Solidworks 2022 and others.

CNC Machining Quotes: You can now receive an instant quote for titanium CNC machined parts, so you can spend less time getting quotes, and more time engineering!

Create an Account: If you try to create an account with an email address that’s already in use, you’ll get an alert: “This email address is already in use. Please try to log in or use another email address to sign-up.”

DFM Feedback: You’ll now get a banner message on the Fictiv quote detail page on how to view and respond to DFM feedback. This is especially useful when a part in your order requires revision to be produced.

Generated Drawings: When you use Fictiv’s 2D drawing feature, you can now select and edit generated text for quality and accuracy.

Log In: We all have difficulty remembering our logins in from time to time, but it’s okay, we’re here to help! For your security, Fictiv limits the number of unsuccessful login attempts before the account is locked for a period of time. We now notify you of your remaining login attempts and help options in the case of a lockout.

Undercuts: For parts with undercuts, we’ve improved the accuracy of our lead time quoting to ensure your delivery dates are more reliable than ever before.

Uploaded Drawings: When you upload and attach a PDF drawing, Fictiv’s drawing analysis technology features improved detection of hardware installation requirements, so you’ll get your quote even faster. Oh, and if your drawing includes both imperial and metric measurement units — for whatever reason — well, Fictiv’s drawing analysis feature can handle it.

March 2022

CAD File Processing: You can now quickly configure your injection molded parts orders, thanks to ~23% faster analysis of your CAD files. Ka-ching!

CNC Machining Quotes: For MIC6 aluminum CNC machined parts, we now provide both domestic and overseas production options — and US production often means faster lead times.

General Interface / UI: When using modal windows (ie: the pop-up headlights of interface elements), headers and navigation elements are now standardized throughout the Fictiv interface. Also, when you view a PDF in Fictiv, the zoom increments have been adjusted for more natural control.

International Shipping: In the Customs Information tab of the Order Details page, the layout of your injection molding order line items has been simplified for better visual clarity. Parts, samples, and the mold now appear on a single row per part. Also, instructions for first-time importers now note that FedEx will contact you for Form 5106.

Order Details: You’ll now see thumbnail images of your parts on the Orders page immediately after placing your order, as well as on the Order Details page, in the Shipments tab (now the default tab when your order is fully shipped,) so you can quickly locate those must-have parts.

And if you’re like our beta users, you’ll love the new Part Status tab, with must-have features such as Track Shipment via the carrier’s tracking page. You can also more easily View Quality Docs (previously labeled “View inspection.”)

Quote Downloading: For simplicity and clarity, when you download a PDF quote, the (previously) two Notes sections are now combined — it’s like the Voltron lions combining, only instead of galaxy-altering power, you get a consolidated look at your quote notes (which is almost as good… right?). Also, if your injection molding order includes a mold, the “overseas shoring” tag will be added.

Quote Sharing: For clarity, when you share a Fictiv quote, the “member” or “recipient” you’re sharing with is now referred to as a “collaborator.”

Uploaded Drawings: When you upload and attach a PDF drawing that has been rotated, Fictiv’s drawing analysis highlights have been improved to prevent errors. Also, when tight tolerances are detected, the nominal dimension is now highlighted with the upper and lower bound tolerances when only one of the tolerance bounds is considered “tight.”