DiManEx announced a shipping partnership, but that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

The Netherlands-based company provides a sophisticated supply chain solution to manufacturers that emphasizes digital part production, including 3D printing. Their service seems to combine elements I’ve seen from other players all in a single comprehensive solution.

DiManEx Digital Inventory

One of the foundational elements of DiManEx’s solution is the concept of digital inventory, where parts are produced as needed directly from a digital repository of 3D models, rather than producing them in advance and storing them for future use at great expense. This concept is only possible due to the availability of digital manufacturing equipment, particularly including 3D printers.

DiManEx says they provide an “end-to-end” service, and it appears so. They say:

“Instead of mass-producing parts, then warehousing and transporting them, 3D printing and related manufacturing techniques allow you to produce parts on-demand and closer to the end user. This increases flexibility and speed in your product lifecycle. It improves your environmental footprint and helps you save costs on materials, logistics and stock keeping units (SKUs).”

Supply Chain Inspector

But it’s not possible to just “start” doing this; a company must first identify which parts in their inventory are suitable for manufacturing in this way. DiManEx has something they call the “Supply Chain Inspector” that apparently can do this. They explain:

“It enriches your existing data with 3D printing capabilities, so you can identify how digital manufacturing technologies can help you optimize your supply chain. Once you’ve selected the right parts, we help you ensure that they are print-ready and assign their production to the Additive Manufacturing Partner in our network that best matches your needs and specifications.”

Distributed Manufacturing Network

That’s the other part of DiManEx: they operate a network of independent manufacturing partners who are able to accept work from clients. Participating in such a network is often a good idea for these manufacturers, who might otherwise be unable to access the same clients.

The idea of a manufacturing network is not unique to DiManEx; there are several other players in the space, including 3D Hubs and Xometry. But there seems to be something a bit different about DiManEx in that they spend extra effort for participants around the reasons for using the network.

The truth is that manufacturers don’t really care about manufacturing networks; they only care about getting the best quality parts at the right time and at the right cost. While a digital inventory concept can definitely lower costs in many situations, it’s important for customers to understand exactly how and the manner in which the service fits into their operations.

That seems to be the sweet spot for DiManEx, who caters to those aspects of their service. In other words, it’s not the network; it’s how parts can be produced in an optimal way for the client.

Customer Focused Additive Manufacturing

This is a tremendous example of a customer-focused service, which is always the best way to develop a company.

So when I see that DiManEx has added Logistyx Technologies as a provider of multi-carrier shipping services for transferring completed parts from manufacturing network participants to end-users, I saw this as simply adding another brick to their comprehensive service.

Via DiManEx