• Autodesk launches public beta of Autodesk 123D modeling software with ‘Make it’ services that connect to Personal Factory.
• Personal Factory users can get an instant price to have their custom goods made locally on demand.
• 123D first ‘making app’ on Personal Factory App Gateway, set to revolutionize consumer access to the biggest range of customizable goods yet.

SAN FRANCISCO — (BUSINESS WIRE) — May 19, 2011 — Ponoko, Inc. – the virtual manufacturing pioneer –today announced that its Personal Factory platform will support the new free* 3D modeling software, Autodesk 123D, which is now available in public beta.

The partnership between Autodesk and Ponoko allows the companies to meet the growing demand from people who want to design, make or sell their own products. A leader in 3D design, engineering and entertainment software, Autodesk is extending its 3D design software expertise to consumers with Autodesk 123D by allowing creative individuals to explore, design, refine and fabricate their custom product ideas.

Connecting Autodesk 123D to Personal Factory, the world’s most advanced platform for the mass customization of goods, enables anyone to access the manufacturing technologies that they need to get their designs physically made.

Ponoko Chief Executive David ten Have says Autodesk 123D is the first of many apps that will be available on the Personal Factory App Gateway.

“The Personal Factory App Gateway is at the leading edge of the maker movement,” says ten Have. “Integrating ‘making apps’ like 123D with Personal Factory means developers of product design and customization tools do not need to build manufacturing infrastructure into their software. Personal Factory enables consumers and makers to get an instant price to have their custom goods made locally on demand.”

The entry of a leading US public company like Autodesk into the market shows the digital making industry is heating up.

“Autodesk shares Ponoko’s vision of a world where products can be digitally designed and made on-demand and as close to the point of consumption as possible,” said Samir Hanna, Vice President of Consumer Products at Autodesk.

The partnership with Autodesk coincides with the launch of the latest release of Ponoko’s platform – Personal Factory 5. New in this version is CNC routing which makes it easy to create large format items like tables and chairs. CNC routing complements the laser cutting and 3D printing options currently available through Personal Factory.

This latest release also includes the Personal Factory App Gateway – a directory of apps consumers can use to design and make custom goods – clothing, homeware, lighting, jewelry, furniture, toys, electronics, car parts, and much more. Autodesk 123D software is the first of these, and eight other examples, showcased on the website, are currently under development and set to follow soon.

Feeding into the App Gateway, the Personal Factory Developer Program is now up and running. Software developers – large and small – can join it to create making apps using the Personal Factory API, and distribute them on the App Gateway.

Ponoko, with offices in both San Francisco and New Zealand, has 13 digital making hubs around the world – 9 throughout the USA, 3 in Europe and 1 in New Zealand. Its virtual manufacturing software is used by designers, hobbyists, micro-businesses, and DIY manufacturers who have already made over 100,000 individualized goods.

“We are at the center of a growing multi million dollar community using our software platform to make and sell custom products,” says ten Have.

Ponoko derives revenue from providing Personal Factory as a software service and a royalty from products made using it. Ponoko was founded by David ten Have and Derek Elley in 2007 in New Zealand.

About Ponoko

Ponoko, Inc. is the creator of Personal Factory, the world’s most advanced platform for the mass customization of goods. It’s used by creative consumers to turn their design ideas into custom goods on-demand and locally using a global making network. Over 100,000 customer designed goods have been made in 13 locations throughout the USA, Europe and the South Pacific. ( www.ponoko.com )

About Autodesk

For more information about Autodesk 123D, please visit www.123Dapp.com.

*Free products are subject to the terms and conditions of the end-user license and services agreement that accompanies the software.

Ponoko and Personal Factory are registered trademarks or trademarks of Ponoko Limited and/or its subsidiaries and/or affiliates in the USA and/or other countries. Autodesk and Autodesk 123D are registered trademarks or trademarks of Autodesk, Inc., and/or its subsidiaries and/or affiliates in the USA and/or other countries.