Who This Checklist is For
If you're an administrative buyer or operations manager at an aerospace, defense, or energy firm, and you've been tasked with evaluating a metal additive manufacturing (AM) system or service—this is for you.
Maybe engineering has dumped a stack of "complex geometry" drawings on your desk. Or your VP heard about Velo3D's Sapphire printers from their work with SpaceX or Anduril and wants a quote. You're not a metallurgist. You're not a 3D printing engineer. You're the person who has to figure out what this actually costs, how long it actually takes, and whether the supplier can actually deliver.
This checklist covers five steps: from understanding what you're buying to what happens after you place the order. I learned most of this the hard way—rushing through a vendor evaluation in 2024 that cost us two months of delays.
Step 1: Define Your Requirement (Not Just a Part Number)
This sounds obvious, but it's the step most people rush. You don't just need a "metal part." You need to know:
- Critical dimensions and tolerances. A drawing from your CNC department? That's a machining drawing. AM has different design rules. You need a DFAM (Design for Additive Manufacturing) review, or at least a list of which features are truly critical vs. negotiable.
- Material specs. Are you running Inconel 718, Ti-6Al-4V, or aluminum F357? Each behaves differently in the build chamber. The wrong spec sheet will get you polite silence from a good supplier.
- Post-processing needs. The raw print needs support removal, heat treatment, HIP (hot isostatic pressing), and sometimes CNC finishing. If you're comparing quotes, make sure each vendor includes the same post-processing scope. I've seen quotes vary by 40% because one vendor assumed you'd handle HIP yourself.
What I mean is: don't send a vendor a CNC turning drawing and ask for a 3D printing price. They'll quote it, but the number won't mean much unless you've aligned on the manufacturing approach. I realized this after our first vendor call when they asked, "What's the build orientation?" and I had to admit I didn't know that mattered.
Step 2: Talk to Engineering First (Not Last)
Again, obvious, but here's the nuance: engineers don't always know what they need from a procurement standpoint.
When I took over purchasing for our R&D group in 2023, I assumed the design team had everything figured out. They knew they wanted to print a turbopump housing component for testing. But they hadn't considered:
- How many units they needed for validation (3? 30? 300?)
- Whether the supplier needed ITAR registration (turns out, yes, for defense work)
- What the acceptable defect rate was for a test article vs. flight hardware
The "can I create a turbopump housing without supports" question is real—and suppliers like Velo3D specialize in that. But if you don't ask engineering for a clear NRE (non-recurring engineering) scope, you'll get a surprise charge when the supplier has to redesign the model for their build chamber.
Put another way: your internal team's assumptions about what's "print-ready" are probably wrong. Budget for at least one design iteration in your first purchase.
Step 3: Qualify the Supplier's Technical Capability
Not all metal AM is the same. A supplier with a laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) system from EOS might not be able to print the same complex geometries as a Velo3D Sapphire XC.
Here's what I check now (after getting burned):
- Can they print your material? Even exotic ones like Inconel 939 or copper alloys?
- What's their maximum build volume? The Sapphire XC has a 600 mm diameter x 550 mm height envelope. If your part is larger, you're looking at segmenting or going to a different supplier.
- Do they have experience with your industry? Aerospace and defense have specific NIST standards, and some suppliers specialize in medical devices. A medical-qualified supplier might not be the best fit for a combustion chamber liner.
- What's their track record with the specific defect you're worried about? I asked one vendor about defects in metal additive manufacturing and they gave me a generic spiel. Another supplier—using Velo3D's platform—showed me their process for identifying support failures in high-angle overhangs. That specificity matters.
If I remember correctly, we narrowed our list from eight vendors to three based solely on material compatibility. The rest had impressive systems but couldn't run the alloys our project required.
Step 4: Calculate Total Cost of Ownership (TCO)
The 3d printing average cost question everyone asks. The short answer: per-part cost in AM ranges from $50 to over $500 for a small aerospace component, but that's meaningless without context.
Your TCO includes:
- Price per part. Bulk discounts exist. If you're ordering 50 units vs. 5, the per-unit cost drops significantly—sometimes by 30% or more.
- NRE and setup fees. Some suppliers charge $1,000-$5,000 for the first article, especially if design optimization is needed.
- Post-processing. Heat treatment (HIP at $2-$5 per pound), supports removal, and any CNC finishing. One of the quotes I got listed "support removal" as a separate line item that added 15% to the total.
- Shipping and logistics. AM parts are usually shipped ground unless they're rush orders. That's been my experience with domestic suppliers—international adds a week and significant cost.
- Risk cost. What happens if the part fails inspection? Some suppliers charge for rebuilds at full price; others offer a discount on subsequent runs. Velo3D's platform, for example, has high process monitoring that reduces reprint risk, but not all suppliers pass that savings to you.
Based on industry data from Additive Manufacturing Research (2024), the total cost per part for low-volume (<100 units) production is typically $150-$600 for complex geometries. But the cheapest per-part price can backfire if the supplier can't guarantee repeatability.
I still kick myself for not asking about reprint policy before our first order. We got two bad parts out of a batch of 10—both failed due to thermal distortion. The supplier replaced them at 80% cost, but we lost two weeks of schedule.
Step 5: Verify Lead Time and Payment Process
This is where the admin magic happens. You've chosen your vendor. Now confirm the logistics before you issue the PO.
- Standard lead time. Most metal AM parts take 3-6 weeks from NRE approval to delivery. Some rush services cut that to 2 weeks—at a premium, usually 30-50% surcharge.
- Invoicing and payment terms. Do they accept Net-30? Check if they charge after NRE completion or only at final delivery. If they request 50% upfront, verify that your finance team will approve that.
- Documentation. For aerospace and defense, you'll need AS9100 certification, material certificates, and possibly a First Article Inspection report per AS9102. Confirm they provide these as standard—some suppliers charge extra for documentation.
- Emergency protocol. If a part fails inspection at week 5, what's the reschedule? One vendor we evaluated had a queue priority system for reprints. Another didn't—you just went to the back of the line. That mattered when our program had a fixed launch date.
In March 2024, we paid $400 extra for rush delivery on a bracket assembly. The alternative was missing a $15,000 engine test. The premium bought certainty, not just speed.
If you ask me, verifying invoicing capability is the most overlooked step. I once had a supplier who couldn't produce a proper PO-compliant invoice. Finance rejected the expense report. I ate $2,400 out of the department budget because I didn't check their billing format beforehand. Now I confirm invoicing procedures before even sending the RFQ.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Assuming AM is always cheaper than CNC. For simple geometries, traditional machining wins. AM shines for complex, low-volume parts where tooling costs would be prohibitive.
- Ignoring build plate utilization. A supplier charging per-part might actually price based on how many parts fit on a single build plate. Ask if they can nest multiple parts.
- Not budget for design iteration. Most first-time AM parts need at least one redesign. Plan for NRE costs and a schedule buffer.
- Expecting overnight delivery of a modified part. Even rush orders for metal AM take 7-10 days minimum in my experience. If you need a part tomorrow, you want a CNC service, not a powder bed fusion system.
- Forgetting about customs if importing. Parts from overseas suppliers can get held up for ITAR compliance. If your project involves defense or munitions, make sure the supplier is ITAR-registered. Velo3D's US-based operations are ITAR-compliant, which is a common reason firms in aerospace choose them over foreign vendors.
Prices as of February 2025; verify current rates with suppliers.
Disclaimer: This checklist reflects my experience as a procurement administrator for a firm evaluating additive manufacturing services. Regulatory and pricing information is for general guidance only; consult your finance and compliance teams for specific requirements.