PLA 3D printing service
PLA is a rigid, plant-derived thermoplastic and the default choice for parts that need to look right rather than survive a working environment. It prints more accurately than any other filament because it barely shrinks as it cools, which is why prototypes and display models are made in it. It softens at temperatures a closed car reaches in summer, so it is the wrong choice for anything that lives outdoors or near a motor.
Get an instant price PLA is priced instantly. No account, no sales call.
What PLA is good for
- Concept and fit models
- Display and presentation parts
- Jigs used once
- Large parts where warping would ruin the geometry
What PLA is the wrong choice for
- Anything left in a car or in direct sun
- Load-bearing parts under sustained stress
- Parts near a heat source or motor
The long-form guide, with design rules and the alternatives side by side: PLA 3D printing, explained.
Designing for PLA
- PLA holds fine detail better than ABS or ASA and needs no enclosure, so a tall thin feature that would curl in another material usually survives.
- It is brittle rather than tough: it fails by snapping, not bending, so avoid thin unsupported cantilevers on a part that will be handled.
PLA against the other materials
| Material | Heat | Stiffness | Impact | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PLA | Low | High | Low | Not suitable |
| PETG | Medium | Medium | Medium | Short term only |
| ABS | High | Medium | High | Not suitable |
| ASA | High | Medium | High | Suitable |
| TPU flexible | Medium | Flexible by design | High | Short term only |
| Nylon PA12 | High | Medium | High | Short term only |
| Polycarbonate | Very high | High | Very high | Short term only |
| PC-ABS | High | High | Very high | Not suitable |
| Carbon fibre filled | High | Very high | Low | Short term only |
| PETG CF | Medium | High | Low | Short term only |
| ABS CF | High | Very high | Medium | Not suitable |
| Wood filled PLA | Low | High | Low | Not suitable |
| Standard resin | Low | High | Low | Not suitable |
Printing PLA at 3Descu
| Scale | One of the largest 3D printing factories in Eastern Europe, 200+ printers |
|---|---|
| Process | FDM, filament extrusion |
| Maximum part size | 320 x 320 x 320 mm on the standard fleet, up to 500 x 500 x 500 mm on the large-format machines |
| Layer height | 0.12 mm to 0.28 mm, 0.20 mm by default |
| Minimum order | €20 |
| File formats accepted | STL, OBJ, 3MF, STEP, STP, up to 50 MB per file |
| Where it ships | Across the European Union, the United Kingdom, Switzerland and Norway, by courier from Romania |
| Uploaded files | Deleted 90 days after upload |
| Quality system | ISO 9001:2015 certified |
| Who prints it | TREIDESCUPRINT SRL, J18/753/2022, on its own machines |
Delivery
| Destination | Standard | Express |
|---|---|---|
| Romania | 1-2 business days | 1 business day |
| Bulgaria, Hungary | 2-3 business days | 1-2 business days |
| Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Greece, Austria, Croatia, Slovenia | 3-4 business days | 2 business days |
| Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia | 4-5 business days | 2 business days |
Get an instant price Upload a file and the price appears in under a minute.
What this page does not claim
There is no tolerance figure and no strength figure for PLA on this page. A printed part does not have the properties of the spool it came from, and this shop has not measured its own, so publishing a number lifted from a filament data sheet would be publishing somebody else's result as ours. What is missing and why is set out under design rules, and where a part needs one of those figures it is measured on a real printed sample rather than quoted from a table.
Get an instant price Upload a file and the price appears in under a minute.
Also known as polylactic acid, PLA+. Material data sheets and a dimensional report can be supplied on request.