---
title: "MachDFM — know what won't cut clean, before it's on the machine"
url: https://partimation.com/machining/
description: "Feed MachDFM a 3D model and get the holes, pockets, flats, and bores that drive a machining job, a real removal simulation quantifying unreachable stock, a turnability screen for turned parts, and cycle time and cost off the same engine as the rest of the suite. Start free."
product: "MachDFM"
domain: machdfm.com
---

# Know what won't cut clean — before it's on the machine.

*Feature recognition · turnability · cutter reach · cycle time*

MachDFM reads a 3D model, detects the holes, pockets, flats, and bores that actually drive a machining job, runs a real removal simulation that quantifies and locates stock your tooling can't reach, and screens turned parts for chucking and tooling fit. The cycle-time and cost numbers come off the same engine that prices the rest of the suite, so a machining quote and a casting quote mean the same thing.

- **Feature-level** — holes, pockets, flats, bores, chamfers, fillets, bosses — detected automatically
- **Reach, quantified** — unreachable stock located and sized by real removal simulation
- **Mill & turn** — machining and turnability checks in one pass
- **Setups, priced** — a second (3+2) setup planned and priced when an undercut needs one
- **Cost-linked** — cycle time drives the same should-cost engine as every quote

Free to start · no credit card · your files stay yours.

## A setup shouldn't reveal its own problems.

- **Unreachable features, found too late** — A feature that your tooling can't actually reach without gouging usually surfaces on the machine, not on the screen — after the fixture's built and the setup's running.
- **Cycle time is a guess until it's run once** — Quoting a machined part means estimating cycle time from experience, not a simulation — so the first real job is also the first real data point.
- **G-code review means eyeballing and hoping** — Checking a program for gouges, air-cutting, or a bad rapid means reading code by eye, or running it and finding out the hard way.

## See the setup problems, and the price, before you post the program.

- **Features, detected automatically — Holes, pockets, flats, bores, chamfers, fillets, bosses — read straight off the model** — The STEP analytic-face features that actually drive a machining job — including counterbores, countersinks, and threads matched against a standard table — come out of the geometry automatically, each one carrying the confidence and the rule that found it.
- **Unreachable stock, quantified — A real removal simulation, not a proxy guess** — A voxel-based removal simulation runs against your tooling and reports exactly how much stock is left unreachable and where — so leftover material shows up on the screen, not on the machine.
- **Turning gets its own check — Chucking, tooling, and turnability screened before you quote** — Turned parts get analyzed for turnability directly — not run through a milling-shaped checklist that doesn't fit the process.
- **Setups, planned not guessed — When an undercut needs a second setup, it gets one — priced** — An undercut that used to stop at "needs 5-axis" now gets a real 3+2 setup plan when a 4/5-axis machine is available — each orientation gouge-checked by the removal simulation, indexing time and all, priced into the quote instead of flagged and left for the programmer.
- **Time and cost, from the same engine — Cycle time drives a should-cost you can defend** — Machine time, setup, and tooling feed the same costing engine behind every Partimation quote — a machining number and a fabrication number are genuinely comparable, not two different guesses.

## One engine, two processes — each gets its own page.

- **MillDFM — Milling in depth** — 2.5D and 3-axis feature analysis, pockets, holes, radii, tool access, setups, stock, toolpaths, and removal simulation — the milling side of MachDFM, on its own page.
- **TurnDFM — Turning in depth** — Rotational suitability, chucking, stock, tooling, and turn-vs-mill comparisons — the turning side of MachDFM, on its own page.

## Four steps from a model to a price you can send.

1. **Drop the model** — Upload a STEP file. No setup, no template — feature detection starts immediately.
2. **See the features and the leftover stock** — Holes, pockets, flats, and bores come back tagged, alongside a removal simulation quantifying any stock your tooling can't reach.
3. **Check turnability** — Turned geometry gets its own chucking/tooling screen, run alongside the milling checks.
4. **Get the cycle time and price** — Cycle time and cost come out of the same engine behind every Partimation quote.

## Start free. Upgrade when it's winning you work.

Priced for a one-person shop and a production job shop alike. Checking a part is unmetered — run as many as you like.

| Tier | Price (EUR / USD / GBP) | What you get |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Free | €0 / $0 / £0 | 10 parts a month; Feature detection + turnability screen; Advisory only, no credit card |
| Pro | €199 /seat · mo / $199 /seat · mo / £169 /seat · mo | Unlimited parts; Cutter-reach removal simulation; Cycle time + cost, G-code checks; 30 simulation runs a month |
| Shop | €699 /mo · 5 seats / $699 /mo · 5 seats / £595 /mo · 5 seats | Everything in Pro; Your shop's machine library & rates; Quote calibration + API access; 150 pooled simulation runs a month |
| On-prem | €15k yr 1, then €10k renewal / $15k yr 1, then $10k renewal / £12.5k yr 1, then £8.5k renewal | Runs on your hardware; Unlimited simulation, no metering; Signed updates, never phones home; 10 seats · optional device lock |
| Enterprise | from €25k / from $25k / from £21k /yr | Multi-site licensing, custom tooling and machine data, a model tuned on your own quote history, and an SLA. |

EUR and GBP prices exclude VAT, added at checkout where it applies. Early adopters keep their price as the suite grows.

## In the cloud by default. Behind your firewall when it has to be.

- **Cloud — Nothing to install** — Sign in and check a part from any browser. We run the compute, ship the updates, and keep your data yours — the shared model only ever learns from your own jobs to calibrate your rates.
- **On-prem & air-gapped — For parts that can't leave the building** — Aerospace and anyone under NDA can run the whole thing on their own hardware. Licenses and updates are signed files — it never phones home, so an air-gapped install stays air-gapped.

## Frequently asked questions

#### What features does it pull off a STEP model?

Holes, pockets, flats, bores, chamfers, fillets, and bosses are detected off the STEP model, each carrying a confidence and the rule that found it. The same feature detection the milling and turning paths run internally comes back on the upload itself, so you see the geometry driving the job before any template, process decision, or CAM work happens.

#### How is cycle time worked out — is it a rule of thumb?

Cycle time is reconciled against a real voxel material-removal simulation run against your tooling, not a minutes-per-cubic-inch rule. The same simulation reports which features the tooling cannot reach, how much stock is left over and where, and the gouge depth on any orientation that would cut into the part.

#### Does it handle turned parts, or only milling?

Milling and turning are screened in the same pass on one upload. Turned geometry gets its own chucking and turnability screen rather than being run through a milling-shaped checklist that does not fit the process, and a part needing secondary milling for its flats and holes is flagged instead of quoted as a pure turning job.

#### What do I have to set up before I get a number out of a model?

Upload a STEP file and feature detection starts immediately — no template, no process decision, no CAM setup first. Cycle time and cost then come out of the same engine behind every quote in the suite, so a machining number and a casting number rest on the same rates and the same cost model and mean the same thing.

## Related pages

- [RouteDFM](https://partimation.com/routing/)
- [CostDFM](https://partimation.com/costing/)
- [ToolDFM](https://partimation.com/tooling/)
- [SimDFM](https://partimation.com/simulation/)
- [In-house or send it out? Price the step instead of arguing about it](https://partimation.com/solutions/make-vs-buy/)
- [Quoted and actual keep diverging, and nothing learns | Partimation](https://partimation.com/solutions/quote-accuracy-drift/)
- [When the manufacturing problem surfaces on the floor](https://partimation.com/solutions/late-dfm-feedback/)

## Put your next setup through it.

Check a real part free in your browser, or book a walkthrough set up for your shop's machines and tooling.

## Tell us about your shop.

We reply within one business day.

> MachDFM is decision support, not a guarantee — every flagged feature names the check behind it, and 3+2 setup planning is not simultaneous 5-axis surfacing. Validate against your shop's tooling and practice before you post the program.