Our process flow runs in the following way:

We work to apply best practices to the flow of paperwork procedures used by our business.:

1. You fill out the contact form, which contains details of your name, email and phone number. You also provide details of the service you require. The contact form is now the only means of initial contact provided. A phone number is included on emails for later 1:1 interaction.

2. We examine the request, and may contact you for any further information. A decision on materials to be used is made. Modeling needs are discussed.

3. We analyse your requirements and create a quotation for the assessed work. The quote is sent to you by email. Sometimes this is a 2 stage process, because the characteristics of the model design influence the cost of printing. We cannot know the printing costs before the electronic model exists. The overall process is thus faster when you can provide the model. We are also able to modify existing models if that is required, and in such cases we can provide an “estimate” rather than a quote at this stage. An estimated price is not fixed, a quoted price is fixed, but 3rd party charges such as shipping costs and credit card charges may be added.

4. You examine the quote, accept or reject it by way of the link provided in the quote email.

5. We generate an invoice which is sent to you by email.

6. ** You make payment for the invoice by way of bank transfer, for which details are given on the quote and invoice. We send you a receipt by email.

7. We commence the work and advise upon completion.

8. You drop by and pick up the finished product(s) or I send them to you by New Zealand Post Courier, or NZ Courier service (whichever is the least cost for that transaction).

** You notice here that payment is made before manufacturing starts. This is because we are not set up to provide credit, and as a small business not wishing to incur costs that may stem from payment disputation that would distract us from the task of providing a service to you.

Online payments.

• Online payment services all charge a fee. From our perspective as a small business, such fees should be paid by the immediate customer. Were this not done, then we would have to absorb the fees into business expenses, and ultimately every customer would be paying a share. We like to keep our costs as low as possible to maintain competitivness.

• Since banks currently do not charge a fee for direct transfers, and this is what most customers are happy to use, I see no reason why they should shoulder the added burden of paying a share of transaction fees relating to other customers.

• The various online payment systems discourage the practice of adding a transaction charge to a payment to the customer at the time of payment. Xero accounting system also is unable to do this.

• There is sometimes an extended delay in transferring payments to a business when using online payment facilities, whereas bank transfers within New Zealand occur mostly within 24 hours.

For these reasons I see no reason to turn on the online payment facility provided by Xero. If for some reason you really do need to use such a facility, I am able to turn on “PayPal” for specific transactions, and I can manually calculate the transaction fee and add it to your invoice. The fee is of the order 3.5%. Please advise us if you wish to avail yourself of the Paypal online payment facility. To pay using Paypal, you do not need to be a member to make a payment, and a wide range of cards supported by the Visa, Mastercard and American Express systems are supported. That is not the case with some of the other online payment systems.

GST

This business is not presently registered for New Zealand GST, as our turnover is below the threshold where registration is mandatory. We are a small business after all.

Whilst GST does form part of our cost structure for goods purchased in New Zealand and Australia, the fact we are not registered means we are not permitted to issue “Tax Invoices” and thus business customers are unable to claim back the GST paid to us, and pass on the cost to end-customers.

In the event the situation changes in the future and we need to become registered, we would then need to charge GST on all of our goods and services going forward and that means our prices would need to rise to some extent.

For now we do not need to do that, so our prices lower than they might otherwise be.

The GST situation is under frequent review and thus might change in the future.

Shipping

We presently use New Zealand Post courier for all products shipped to customers that are unable to come and pick up their goods. This is reviewed from time to time, and upon request, we can use NZ Couriers instead. They have a different charging structure and generally faster delivery times.

For overseas shipping the same policy applies, but we can also add Fedex as an option. An additional processing charge will be made for the costs of producing required customs declaration paperwork required for some destinations.

If you have a preference for shipping please let us know at the time of quote acceptance.

Modeling and Dimensional Accuracy

Many aesthetic/artistic models have no particular requirement for dimensional accuracy. On the other hand, “Engineering” parts that form part of a complete product or system often have dimensional accuracy requirements due to the need to fit parts together accurately.

Its a fact that polymer materials used in FDM 3D printing expand when the item is being printed at 200-400 degrees C, and contract when it cools, butthe amounts of expansion and contraction differ. Furthermore the effect differs on external features or on internal circular holes, other shapes and voids. This introduces a dimensional error relative to the specified and modeled size of the article. The effect varies by the type of plastic polymer applied to the print.

Generally, Its necessary to alter the model slightly to take these effects into account.

We are well acquainted with this issue and can make the required precise adjustments with good results.

Unfortunately the adjustments (as small as 100 microns - 0.1 mm) vary by the structure of the model and the material chosen, so its just not possible to predict the outcome without first making at least one test print using the selected material. Additional costs are incurred for the necessary extra printing and modeling work.

It helps minimise costs if we are acquainted with the need for dimensional accuracy before work begins.
In cases where we have :

1. An existing electronic model, please advise of any specific areas where high precision is required, and the amount of tolerance that is needed.

2. An engineering 2D drawing, please ensure that the required measurements and tolerances are indicated on the drawing.

Additional modeling charges will be made which will include the cost of any test prints that are required.
If we are advised of the need for better dimensional acuracy AFTER the printed model has been delivered, the costs of making correction and reprinting will be additional to the original quoted and invoiced charges.