1. Accessing the Material Database
To manage your materials, navigate to Settings > Production Parameters > Materials. Click the “Add Material” button to access AMFG’s expanded global database of over 10,000+ materials, curated from top-tier global suppliers.
Search and Filtering
The new search functionality makes it simple for you and your customers to find the right material. You can explore the database via categorized folders or filter by:
Material Type (Metal, Polymer, Other).
Material Family (e.g., Aluminum alloy).
Material Series (e.g., 6000 Series Aluminum Alloy).
Material Grade (e.g., 6061 Aluminum).
2. Sentinel AI: Automated Material Selection
You can now eliminate manual data entry by uploading a 2D PDF drawing along with your 3D model. Sentinel AI instantly extracts the required material name from the document title block.
Database Matching: Sentinel AI matches the extracted name to the AMFG database.
Green Suggestion: The system provides a pre-selected suggestion highlighted in green for faster verification and quoting.
3. Assigning Materials to Machines
Once a material is added, you can assign it and its associated services to specific machines with a single click.
Machine Linking: This tells the system which machines are capable of operating with that specific material.
Quotation Forms: Only assigned materials will show up as options in the Quotation Forms for your selected machine.
For CNC: Most materials can be used on all machine groups, so use the “All machine groups” button
For AM: The linked materials and machines may be a little more specific, so when adding a material, you can assign it only to the relevant machines. This would mean that in the Quotation Forms, only your assigned materials will show up as options for selection when adding a machine.
4. Editing Material Details
All details displayed in the material pop-up are editable via the ‘Material Details’ sidebar.
Hyperlinked Descriptions: Material descriptions now support clickable links, allowing you to embed videos or website links for additional explanation.
Media & Datasheets: Upload up to 3 image examples or attach downloadable datasheets at the bottom of the pop-up.
Custom Properties: Define unique parameters for your facility by pressing the 'ADD MATERIAL PROPERTY' button.
Here, as described above, you can rename, upload a thumbnail, add a description, and add additional translations. You can also pull descriptions from our Material Database. Additionally, you can add custom properties for the material by pressing the 'ADD MATERIAL PROPERTY' button:
Enter up to 3 image examples by dragging and dropping a picture or pressing the 'UPLOAD FILE' button as below:
To add a downloadable datasheet for the material, navigate to the bottom of the 'Material Details' pop-up and add a datasheet:
5. Pricing and Technical Properties
Selecting a material series allows you to edit information used within pricing scripts. Updating this data will automatically refresh your pricing calculations.
Editable Fields include:
Cost per KG: Update your base material costs.
CNC Technical Data: Set Milling surface meters per minute, Turning cutting speeds, and Feed rates for roughing and finishing.
Custom Fields (1-5): Define parameters used by pricing workers (e.g., labor coefficients).
Within the custom fields, you can define any parameter you would like about the material series, and use that information in pricing workers. You can find more information regarding this in the following article: How to Use Material Series Data
6. Legacy Materials & Linking
All materials must be linked to a material grade from the AMFG database to ensure they function with the system's logic.
Legacy Custom Tab: Unlinked materials appear here.
Linking: To link a material, press the “Material Database” button in the sidebar and select the closest matching grade from the global database
Video tutorial: