Twin Cities, Minnesota · engineer-owned

Plastic part design and prototyping, from sketch to molded part.

MeulenWorks designs plastic parts, prints prototypes, builds printed prototype molds so you can test injection-molded parts before anyone cuts steel, and reverse-engineers parts from 3D scans. One engineer, start to finish, in the Twin Cities.

Owned and run by a working mechanical engineerReply within two business daysThe CAD files are yoursMinneapolis–St. Paul; parts ship anywhere
Services

Four ways to get a plastic part made right.

Pick the one that matches where you are. Most projects start with design and move through the others as they need to. Each has its own page.

Design

Plastic part design

From a sketch, a sample or a problem statement to CAD you own. Designed for the process it will be made with, whether that is printing today or molding later.

  • Concept, CAD and drawings
  • Design for 3D printing, injection molding, rotational molding, thermoforming or profile extrusion
  • STEP, STL and PDF drawings delivered
  • Design fee plus a per-revision fee, quoted up front
How design jobs run →
Prototypes

3D-printed prototypes

FDM for tough, functional parts; SLA for fine detail and smooth surfaces. Check fit and function on a real part before you commit to anything.

  • FDM: PLA, PETG, TPU and engineering filaments
  • SLA resin for detail, finish and molds
  • One-offs through short runs
  • Light assembly: inserts, tapes, strips
FDM or SLA, and what you get →
Injection molding

Prototype molds for injection molding

The part designed for molding, then an SLA-printed prototype mold and a short run of molded parts in the production resin. Prove the design before steel tooling.

  • Moldable part design: draft, walls, radii, gates
  • Printed cavity and core, ready to shoot
  • Molded samples in the real material
  • Notes for the toolmaker when you go to production
How prototype molding works →
Reverse engineering

3D scanning and reverse engineering

Have the part but not the file? Send the part, or your scan data, and get back clean CAD you can modify, print or mold. Replacement parts, obsolete parts, improved parts.

  • Scan-to-CAD with real features, not a mesh
  • Fit-checked against the original
  • Improvements designed in while it is open
  • Drawings for a machine shop or molder if needed
From part to file →
How it works

One person, one clear path.

  1. Tell me what you needUse the quote form, or call. A sketch, a photo, a sample part or a paragraph is enough to start. No CAD required.
  2. Scope and quoteYou get questions or a written quote within two business days: what will be done, what it costs, and when.
  3. Design and reviewCAD you can look at, comment on and approve. Revisions are priced per round, so there are no surprises.
  4. Prototype and approvePrinted parts in hand, or a printed mold and molded samples. Nothing goes to a run until you have held it.
  5. DeliverFiles, parts, drawings and the notes the next shop will need. Everything you paid for is yours.

Who this is for

  • Inventors and startups with a product idea and no plastics engineer on the team.
  • Small manufacturers and shops that need a fixture, a housing, a replacement part or a short run without a big-shop minimum.
  • Engineers and designers who need extra hands on a part, a mold or a scan.

Not a fit: food-contact, medical or safety-critical parts. I will say so up front rather than take the job.

About the owner

Nick Van Watermeulen, mechanical engineer.

I'm a mechanical engineer in the Twin Cities. I've spent my career designing plastic parts and the tooling and processes that make them: injection molding, rotational molding, thermoforming, profile extrusion, and 3D printing. MeulenWorks is where I take on the design, prototyping and short-run work that a one-person customer can't get from a big shop: you talk to the engineer, the engineer does the work, and you get the files.

Meulen is Flemish for mill. The family name came from people who ran one, and the wheel on the mark is the whole idea: a steady input, turned into finished work.

LinkedIn · Minneapolis–St. Paul, Minnesota

FAQ

Common questions.

Do I need a CAD file to start?

No. A sketch, a photo, a sample part or a plain description is enough. If you have CAD, send it and the design step gets shorter.

What do I get at the end of a design job?

Native CAD plus STEP and STL files, a PDF drawing where one is useful, and a short design note explaining the choices. They are yours to take anywhere.

How many parts can you make?

Printed parts from one to a few hundred, quoted per tier so you can see the price break. Printed prototype molds are for short runs of molded parts; when you need thousands, I design for it and hand you off to a molder with the drawings ready.

Which materials?

FDM in PLA, PETG, TPU and engineering filaments; SLA resins for detail and for molds; molded samples in the production resin you plan to use, within what a printed mold can handle.

Will you sign an NDA?

Yes. A mutual NDA before you share details is fine; send yours or ask for a simple one.

How are jobs priced?

Design: a fixed design fee plus a per-revision fee, quoted before work starts. Parts and molds: a written quote per quantity tier with a delivery date. No hourly meter running in the background.

Where are you, and do you ship?

Minneapolis–St. Paul. Local pickup and drop-off by arrangement; parts and molds ship anywhere in the US.

Contact

Talk to the engineer.

Call or text

952-846-9386

Weekday evenings and weekends are fine; texts get the fastest reply.

Send a request

The quote form below is the surest way to start; it lands on the job board with everything you typed.

Reply within two business days.

Where

Twin Cities, Minnesota. Local pickup and drop-off by arrangement; parts ship anywhere in the US.

Request a quote

Tell me what you are building.

This lands directly on the job board as a new inquiry. You get a reply with questions or a quote, usually within two business days.

No account, no newsletter. Files can be sent after the first reply.