Tight deadlines are often called for on many of our prototypes and models, no matter what the size. One of the largest jobs we have produced stood at 2 metres tall, when we were asked to manufacture 3 models of the iconic Japanese collectible toy, the Bearbrick. These were required within two weeks.

For ease of manufacture and assembly each Bearbrick model was machined as 6 separate parts, the limbs, head and body. These parts were CNC machined using our customer’s 3D CAD model data in low density foam.

This material was chosen for several reasons including cost efficiency and weight due to the amount of material required, as each part of the model was solid. This was also taken into consideration for the final surface finish, the foam was repeatedly sanded and spray-painted with several layers in order to achieve an even and consistent surface. This could only be done by hand by our model makers to guarantee the aesthetics of the models would be without flaws.

The Bearbrick brand owners and designers, Medicom, required the models to be exact copies of the original toy, so at each stage of production our progress was inspected to confirm the models had not lost any of the Bearbricks recognisable features.

Once the models were complete, our customer Comme des Garcon installed the three bears in their prestigious shop window in London.