Case Study: Perkins+Will achieves rapid, iterative architectural prototyping with MakerBot 3D printers

Perkins+will Rapid Prototyping Architectural Models on Makerbot 3d Printers

Perkins+Will, a global architecture firm, needed faster, lower‑effort physical models to iterate designs and present concepts to clients earlier in the design process. To accelerate decision‑making and move tangible review forward in their workflow, Perkins+Will adopted MakerBot 3D printers in its offices.

By using MakerBot, the firm can produce dozens of process models via overnight prints—for example, more than 40 six‑inch towers for a Lviv monastery study—enabling next‑day review and rapid iteration. MakerBot’s printers freed the team to test many more ideas in the same timeframe (often “printing at the speed of drawing”), speeding design decisions and improving outcomes through increased prototyping and refinement.

Perkins+Will

W. Scott Allen

Associate Architect and Designer