What Enable Manufacturing does

Enable Manufacturing Ltd is a UK-based private manufacturer founded in October 2019 and headquartered at The Dock, Leicester. The company has developed a proprietary hybrid manufacturing methodology branded Additive Casting®, which produces moulds and patterns via industrial 3D printing and uses them in foundries to cast metal parts in over 130 alloys — including magnesium, which direct metal 3D printing cannot process. The platform is delivered through three process variants: Sand Additive Casting for parts up to 60 tonnes, Investment Additive Casting for complex parts up to 250×250×250 mm, and Vacuum Additive Casting for ultra-fine intricate components. Enable supplements the manufacturing process with EnableChain™, custom supply chain and order-tracking software developed with The Curve, which manages its 50+ supplier network via configurable per-order supply chains and API integration.

The company generates revenue through quote-based per-part manufacturing pricing (cited examples range from £155/unit for aluminium extrusion housings to £400/part for lattice structures), supplemented by advisory consultation to help customers select appropriate manufacturing processes. Go-to-market combines direct sales via website, phone enquiry and CAD model upload with channel partnerships through digital manufacturing platforms (DiManEx) and service bureaus (Digital Manufacturing Centre). Target verticals include automotive, aerospace, heavy industry, lighting, motorsport, and marine, with positioning against both conventional casting (no tooling, faster lead times) and direct metal laser sintering (lower cost, broader material range, larger part envelope).

To date, Enable has funded technology development primarily through UK government grants rather than disclosed equity — including Innovate UK's Sustainable Innovation Fund, the Women in Innovation Award (£50,000), and the Advanced Propulsion Centre's Technology Developer Accelerator Programme (£135,000). The leadership team is led by Sales Director Phil Kilburn, Technical Manager Jon Wright, Head of Marketing Anja Stolte, and Non-Executive Director James Reeves, with a stated ambition to grow to £15 million of annual revenue within five years.

Name

Enable Manufacturing

Legal name

Enable Manufacturing Ltd

Website

https://enable.parts

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Enable Manufacturing is a Leicester-based manufacturer offering Additive Casting®, a proprietary hybrid process combining 3D-printed moulds with traditional foundry casting to produce complex metal parts in 130+ alloys for automotive, aerospace, heavy industry, lighting, motorsport and marine customers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Metal Casting Services

NAICS

Other Nonferrous Metal Foundries (except Die-Casting) (331529), Industrial Mold Manufacturing (333511)

SIC

Nonferrous Foundries (Castings) (3360), Miscellaneous Fabricated Metal Products (3490)

akta.pro primary industry

Electronics & Industrial Component 3D Printing Services (enclosures, fixtures, functional parts) (IMAAADAL)

akta.pro secondary industry

Industrial Machinery & Heavy Equipment (Production AM Parts) (IMAAAEAC)

Keywords

• Additive casting
• Metal 3D printing
• Investment casting
• Sand casting
• Hybrid manufacturing

Headquarters

HQ city

Leicester

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Metal Parts Manufacturing: Enable generates revenue by manufacturing custom metal parts using their Additive Casting process. Customers pay per part or per order based on complexity, material, quantity, and post-processing requirements. Pricing is quote-based, with examples ranging from £155/unit for aluminium extrusion housings to £400/unit for lattice structures, positioned significantly below DMLS alternatives.
2. Consulting and Process Advisory: Enable provides expert consultation to help customers navigate manufacturing options and select the right process, even if it isn't theirs. This advisory role builds trust and positions the company as a knowledgeable partner in the manufacturing decision-making process.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Enable Manufacturing is a UK-based contract manufacturer specializing in 'Additive Casting' — a hybrid process that combines 3D-printed patterns with traditional metal casting. The company produces low-volume, complex metal parts across three process lines (Sand Additive Casting, Investment Additive Casting, and Vacuum Additive Casting), targeting industrial buyers in automotive, aerospace, heavy industry, lighting, motorsport, and marine sectors. It also operates EnableChain, a proprietary software for supply chain tracking.

Product overview

Enable Manufacturing offers a unified hybrid manufacturing platform centered on its proprietary Additive Casting® process, which combines 3D printing with traditional metal casting. The platform includes three distinct casting processes: Sand Additive Casting for very large parts (up to 60 tonnes), Investment Additive Casting for fine detail parts (up to 250x250x250mm), and Vacuum Additive Casting for ultra-fine intricate parts (up to 190x160x160mm). All processes leverage industrial 3D printing to produce moulds and patterns for casting in over 130 different metals. The platform is supplemented by EnableChain™, an order tracking and supply chain management software that digitizes supply chain visibility from order to invoice.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• EnableChain: A custom order tracking software developed with The Curve to track orders from order to invoice across the supply chain, providing transparency and traceability for customers.
• Additive Casting

Products and services

• Sand Additive Casting Hybrid additive casting process combining 3D-printed sand patterns with traditional sand metal casting, suited to low-volume, complex geometry metal parts for industrial buyers.
• Investment Additive Casting Hybrid process using 3D-printed investment casting patterns fused with traditional investment casting, targeting higher-detail, complex metal parts.
• Vacuum Additive Casting Vacuum-assisted hybrid additive casting process pairing 3D-printed patterns with vacuum casting, intended for parts requiring reduced porosity and higher integrity.
• EnableChain Proprietary supply chain tracking software associated with Enable Manufacturing's additive casting workflow.

Quantifiable outcome

• 80% cost reduction compared to DMLS - lattice structures at £400/part versus £2,000-6,000/part for equivalent DMLS production
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• The CurvecoreTechnology or Integration · 3 March 2021Sheffield-based technology company partnered with Enable under the Women in Innovation programme to develop EnableChain™ custom software. The Curve conceived, developed, and delivered the supply chain tracking software over nine months, digitizing Enable's complex multi-supplier operations. The Curve was founded in 2019 by engineers who previously built the UK's most successful Global Telematics Platform.
• Digital Manufacturing Centre (DMC)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 2 February 2021DMC announced partnership with Enable Manufacturing to offer Additive Casting as part of their service portfolio. Located at Silverstone Park, DMC serves aerospace, space, defence, automotive, motorsport, and industrial sectors. The partnership integrates Enable's three casting processes (sand up to 60 tonnes, investment 250x250x250mm, ultra-fine 190x160x160mm) into DMC's digital manufacturing capabilities.
• Gen3DminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 October 2020UK-based software company specializing in lattice structure design and fluid flow geometry for additive manufacturing. Gen3D collaborated with Enable on a lattice structure project using Additive Casting. Their software includes manufacturing checks and compensation tools to adapt designs for the casting process while ensuring castability.
• DiManExcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 September 2020Enable joined DiManEx's Additive Manufacturing partner pool in September 2020. DiManEx provides a digital platform matching manufacturing businesses with AM suppliers. Enable's Additive Casting increases the parts DiManEx can source from 0.5% to 25% for clients with complex metal part requirements. For one client with 14,000 parts, this expanded coverage from 70 to 3,500 addressable parts.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Materialise: Materialise is an established 3D printing service bureau offering industrial-grade additive manufacturing services across polymers and metals. Like Enable, it serves engineering-intensive industries with complex custom parts, but operates at much larger scale and offers broader manufacturing capabilities.
• Xometry: Xometry operates an AI-driven on-demand manufacturing marketplace connecting customers with CNC, 3D printing, sheet metal, and casting suppliers. Comparable to Enable's DiManEx channel partnership approach, but with broader scope, larger supplier network, and public-market scale.
• Hubs (formerly 3D Hubs): Hubs is a global on-demand manufacturing platform offering CNC, 3D printing, injection molding, and sheet metal fabrication services. Comparable to Enable's marketplace channel strategy and targets the same engineering-driven customer base needing low-to-medium volume custom metal parts.
• 3D Systems: 3D Systems is a leading 3D printing hardware and services company offering metal DMLS printers and on-demand manufacturing services. Competes with Enable in industrial metal additive manufacturing and serves overlapping automotive, aerospace, and industrial segments.
• Protolabs: Protolabs is a digital manufacturing service provider offering rapid prototyping and low-volume production through CNC, injection molding, sheet metal, and 3D printing. It competes with Enable in on-demand metal part manufacturing for industrial customers, though at much greater scale.
• Stratasys Direct Manufacturing: Stratasys Direct is the service bureau arm of Stratasys, offering on-demand 3D printing and additive manufacturing services including metal DMLS. Like Enable, it serves industrial customers needing complex custom parts but with broader technology portfolio and established enterprise relationships.

Direct peers

• voxeljet: voxeljet manufactures industrial binder jetting 3D printers used to print sand moulds and investment casting patterns — highly comparable to Enable's Sand and Investment Additive Casting processes. James Reeves, Enable's Non-Executive Director, was previously Global Director of Polymer Sintering at voxeljet, underscoring direct technology overlap.
• Shapeways: Shapeways is an on-demand 3D printing service offering manufacturing services across metals, polymers, and ceramics. Similar digital-first service bureau model to Enable, though focused more on polymers and lower-volume custom parts.
• ExOne (now part of Desktop Metal): ExOne pioneered binder jetting technology for sand casting moulds and is a direct technology peer to Enable's Sand Additive Casting. Both serve industrial foundries with 3D-printed mould technology and target automotive, aerospace, and heavy industrial end markets.
• Sculpteo: Sculpteo is an online 3D printing service bureau offering on-demand manufacturing services including metal casting and additive manufacturing for industrial customers. Comparable business model to Enable — both are digital service bureaus bridging customers with manufacturing capacity.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/30115763

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Enable Manufacturing