Built by 3D-printing businesses, for 3D-printing businesses

Before CertHub, we each ran our own 3D-printing business. Like many small makers, we began by creating products we enjoyed and gradually found ourselves needing to understand UKCA marking, toy safety and the EN71 standards.

That was when the problems started.

Clear information was difficult to find, professional advice was often unaffordable for a small business, and even basic questions rarely seemed to have straightforward answers.

Finding suitable EN71-3 evidence for filament was another challenge. Documents were scattered across the internet, difficult to verify or sometimes failed to identify clearly which filament range they were supposed to cover.

We spent a huge amount of time researching the requirements, speaking with laboratories and learning how the different parts of toy compliance fit together.

We realised that thousands of other small 3D-printing businesses must be facing exactly the same confusion.

So we decided to do something about it.

We created 3D CertHub to give small makers access to reliable EN71-3 material evidence without every business having to pay hundreds of pounds to test the same filament independently.

We began selecting popular filament ranges, sending samples to independent accredited laboratories and making evidence supported by that testing available at an affordable price.

Where suitable Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black colours were available, we used representative CMYK testing to provide broad coverage across the range.

Where CMYK was not available or was not enough, we selected alternative or additional colours based on the particular range, its finishes and the differences between the available products.

We also began testing components used in 3D-printed toys, including sound and clicker mechanisms, switches, keyring parts and other bought-in components needing suitable material evidence.

As our certificate library grew, so did the community around us.

But certificates were only one part of the problem.

Toy manufacturers still needed to:

Most small makers were trying to manage all of this using a mixture of downloaded templates, spreadsheets, photographs, handwritten notes and folders on their computer.

Individual records might exist, but they were rarely connected. A filament certificate might not show which products relied on it. Testing could relate to an earlier version of the design. A material change could be made without everything affected by it being reviewed.

We knew there had to be a simpler way.

That led us to build the 3D CertHub Technical File app.

The app guides makers through creating and maintaining a UKCA Technical File for their 3D-printed toys.

It brings together:

The app was designed around the real experience of testing, documenting and manufacturing 3D-printed toys, not around how somebody sitting in an office might imagine the process should work.

Your information remains stored locally on your own computer, and you stay in control of your business records.

The app organises and documents the process. It does not pretend that software or a certificate removes the maker's legal responsibility for the finished product.

3D CertHub has grown from two small 3D-printing businesses looking for answers into a specialist resource used by makers across the UK.

We continue to:

We are a BSI member and have a direct Primary Authority partnership with Devon County Council Trading Standards.

These relationships help us stay informed and continue developing CertHub responsibly as standards, requirements and official guidance change.

We understand:

That experience is behind everything we build.

CertHub was not created to turn compliance into a box-ticking exercise. It was created to give small 3D-printing businesses a clearer and more affordable route to doing things properly.

We struggled to find that route when we started.

Now we are building it for everyone who comes next.

Sue and Lee
Founders of 3D CertHub UK

Explore the Technical File app, browse our independently tested EN71-3 certificates or start with our plain-English UKCA guidance.