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At a glance
RapidDirect is a Shenzhen factory that rebuilt itself as a website. Upload a CAD file and their quoting engine prices CNC-machined, molded, sheet-metal, 3D-printed, vacuum-cast or die-cast parts in seconds, flags design problems, and sends the job to their own Bao'an plant or a partner shop. They've worked for 20,000+ customers in more than 120 countries. Prototypes usually take three to five days, and there's no minimum order.
It started in 2009 as a single factory in Shenzhen, and you can trace the pivot year by year: foreign trade from 2014, a multi-process manufacturing network in 2016, the online quoting platform in 2019, and an automated DFM (design for manufacturability) checker in 2021. ISO 9001 came in 2020 and ISO 13485, the medical-device quality standard, in 2022. In 2023 they moved into an integrated site of about 10,000 m² that houses offices, production and supply chain. The newest addition is an "AI Creator Lab" that turns text or images into starting CAD models.
The customer projects are the fun part, and they read like a university engineering fair. There are 5-axis and mill-turn parts for LOUIE, the first engine of the Leeds University Rocketry Association; parts for Formula Student team Rennteam Stuttgart; a combat robot for UIUC's iRobotics team; plasma-jet engine components for Sylphaero; a tether-racing car; a passive exoskeleton billed as an "Iron Man suit" prototype; and the 2024 Core77 Design Awards trophies. They run a sponsorship programme for student and maker teams, and Nikon, Toyota, Festo, Microsoft and Emerson are among the logos on their homepage.
Working with them is self-service by default. You quote online, look over the DFM feedback, pay, and track the order. Engineers step in for trickier jobs or full NPI programmes that run from design all the way to packaging. On-time delivery is 98%, and they'll make anything from one part to a million.
RapidDirect suits engineers, student teams and product companies who want fast, instantly priced mechanical prototypes and bridge production across several processes from one account. If you need to know exactly which factory makes each part, or prefer long face-to-face supplier relationships, ask which parts are made in-house and which go to partners.
Business contacts the company publishes.
Yes. RapidDirect lists prototypes, low volume and mass production among the quantities it takes on.
RapidDirect publishes a minimum order quantity (MOQ, the smallest order it accepts) of No minimum order quantity.
RapidDirect publishes a lead time of CNC 1-day lead times; sheet metal 3-day lead time; 3D printing 1-day lead time; injection molding T1 samples in 2 weeks (as published per service). The real time depends on quantity and process, so confirm it when you ask for a quote.
RapidDirect takes orders through an English-language website, with support in English.
Both. RapidDirect has its own factory and also uses partner factories for some work.
By instant online quote, email, whatsApp and weChat. It accepts STEP, STL, IGES, PRT, SLDPRT, SAT, X_T and PDF files.
RapidDirect lists these certifications: ISO 9001:2015 and ISO 13485:2016.
NDA available
Ownership: Chinese.
Get 3 quotes
Describe the part once. We send it to RapidDirect and up to 2 similar shops, and they quote you directly.
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Sino-British founders (CEO Vader Yu and James Murphy) and English-speaking project managers
Shenzhen · Bao'anFive-axis machining, including a new 800 mm-travel five-axis centre
Shenzhen · Bao'anCustom screws and fasteners at scale: 120 screw machines, about 1.2 million pieces a day
Shenzhen · Longhua
01Basics · 11 minHow CNC machining works, what it's good (and not good) for, what it costs, and how to get CNC parts made in Shenzhen. Written for first-timers.
02Basics · 9 minHow anodizing works, why it looks and wears the way it does, the difference between Type II and hard anodizing, and how to order anodized parts in Shenzhen. Written for first-timers.
03Design · 9 minWhat design for manufacturing (DFM) means, why it decides most of your product's cost, the core rules, when to do a DFM review, and how DFM feedback from Shenzhen suppliers works.
04Basics · 10 minHow die casting works, which metals it uses, what it's good and bad at, what drives the cost, and how to get die-cast parts made in Shenzhen and Dongguan. Written for first-timers.
Last checked 29 September 2026
Compiled from public sources listed below. Not an endorsement — we don't audit, inspect or visit companies. Confirm details directly before you pay any supplier.
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