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Founded in 1984, Coleman & Associates is a team of model-making professionals who are experts in 3D development, mold making and production. The team prides itself in producing the highest quality models and prototypes available. Clients include attorneys who need models for litigation work, and architects, engineers and manufacturers that require accurate models as sales tools. Clients also need beautiful display models of larger-than-life projects for lobbies and museums.  

Objet’s Alaris30 takes several days out of process, produces highly accurate models

Coleman and his staff are thrilled – as are their clients. “The Alaris30 takes several days out of the process and gives us a more accurate model because it’s easy to customize,” says Coleman. “This approach represents the next step up in the evolutionary process of model making. We are always finding new ways to integrate our Alaris30 with the model-making process. It has become an indispensable tool in making scale models for, not just our litigation clients, but all our clients.” 

Coleman & Associates also finds the Alaris30 useful in work for its architectural and engineering clients.  The work horse of the firm for the past 10 years has been its laser cutters. The laser takes the CAD data and cuts it into 2D artwork. Once it’s cut, a model maker painstakingly fabricates the individual pieces into the finished product. With the addition of the Alaris30, model makers can now print completed components that are incorporated into the finished model. Sometimes the entire model can be 3D printed instead of fabricated, saving significant time and labor.

“Clients can now send us their 3D files and have models by the end of the week,” says Coleman. “We could not do that before we had the Alaris30. It’s a great new service that really sets us apart.”

Alaris30 saves valuable hours on architectural projects

Coleman & Associates is often working on very tight timelines, says Coleman, with immovable deadlines such as a scheduled trial. “When it’s crunch time for a client, in the past it wasn’t unusual for our model makers to be working late into the night,” he says. “Now that we have our Alaris30, that happens a lot less often. It’s less pressure on our staff, and clients still get their models on time. Everyone wins.”

Alaris30 has had direct impact on firm’s ability to win and keep clients

Coleman loves the fact that his model makers can print out parts overnight, unattended. He also notes that clients are increasingly using organic, ergonomic shapes in their projects. “Our laser cutters can’t reproduce a human skull or a tool grip on a hammer,” Coleman says. “In the past, we’ve used artistic means to create a close likeness for our clients. Now we can take the data and reproduce models that exactly meet our clients’ specifications. Our Alaris30 printer has helped Coleman & Associates strengthen its reputation for creating the highest-quality models and that’s had a direct impact on our ability to win and keep clients. It’s an important part of our firm’s evolution.”