How to Buy Materials
Pay for your 3D Printing
After printing, please weigh everything you've printed, including failed prints and supports.
- Fill out a paper form and drop it to the Dyson Helpdesk
- Input the weight into the Dyson Centre Payments Form
- You will receive an email with a payment link
RS Ideawerk Usage Cost
£1 per 30g of PLA, rounded up to the next 30g. Plus a £7 cover charge for those who aren't engineering undergraduates or masters students.
Ultimaker Usage Cost
£1 per 20g of PLA, rounded up to the next 20g. Plus a £28 cover charge for those who aren't engineering undergraduates or masters students.
___________________________________________
Pay for your laser cutting
We supply MDF, Plywood and Acrylic sheets for laser cutting and can order other materials from https://hobarts.com
Engineering undergraduates and masters students only pay for the materials they use, excluding VAT.
Researchers and other individuals pay VAT on materials and a £47 usage charge.
See the table below for costs (excluding VAT), then fill out the Dyson Centre Payments Form . You'll receive an email with a payment link shortly after.

___________________________________________
Materials Available in the Dyson Centre
We often have scraps and spares in the Dyson Centre so it's worth asking at the helpdesk, but if you need more than a handful its best to buy/order it specially.
We have
Electronic components
Find them in the small drawers on the electronics bench
Screws, Nuts and Washers
We have some random spares boxes by the hand tool wall
Sheet Metal
We have scrap aluminium, mild steel and stainless steel by the powered guillotine.
Block Metal
We have small amounts in the Machine Tool Area
___________________________________________
Purchase items from the Store Room
The engineering department Store Room has a large catalogue of tools and materials. Come to the Dyson Centre desk to view a paper catalogue, then just take the nearest staircase down to the ground floor and turn left to get to the store room counter.
Personal purchases can only be made between 13:30 and 15:00 on weekdays.
For more information, see the Engineering Stores Catalogue
___________________________________________
Purchase Items from Other Suppliers
The Dyson Centre helpdesk can order items online for 3rd year and 4th year project students, and societies using their job code. Just email dyson-helpdesk@eng.cam.ac.uk with links to the items you need and your job code.
___________________________________________