San Francisco-based Flux, which develops AI software for printed circuit board (PCB) design, has introduced a feature that produces 3D printable enclosures directly from a user’s board layout. Users describe the housing they need in the Flux chat window, and the software builds a case sized to the board’s actual geometry, which can then be exported in standard 3D printing file formats. The capability is included in all Flux plans, and the company offers a two-week free trial.
The feature extends Flux’s platform from electrical into mechanical engineering, covering the path from board design to a 3D printed prototype enclosure.
Closing the Gap Between Electrical and Mechanical Design
Fitting a PCB inside a working housing has typically required either hiring a mechanical engineer or learning a mechanical CAD (mCAD) program. For small hardware teams, each board revision can trigger another round of mechanical design, which Flux says can add weeks to a project and tens of thousands to its total cost.
The generated enclosures appear as 3D models with latches, screw holes, mounts, curved edges, vents, and port cutouts. Users can preview the result, request changes to its appearance or function through further prompts, and then export the file for printing. Since teams can print the part themselves, a physical prototype can be ready overnight.
Automatic Updates When the Board Changes
Flux links each enclosure to its source board design. When a component is moved or replaced on the PCB, the software revises the case on its own and updates the accompanying manufacturing and assembly instructions, removing the need to remeasure or remodel the housing by hand.
“Software developers take for granted that they can come up with an idea, build a prototype, and quickly iterate on it. Hardware developers haven’t had that luxury until now,” said Flux cofounder and CEO Matthias Wagner. “With Flux, they can skip the time and expense of first-round manufacturing and iterate on 3D-printed prototypes even before they’ve tested the board.”
He added: “Instead of trying to get your idea across with a slide deck, you can actually hand what you’re building to a partner, an investor, or a potential cofounder.”
Testing Without Formal Manufacturing
“Testing is a real dilemma for small hardware companies,” Wagner said. “The time and cost involved in creating a testable prototype are really high. But if you don’t test, you often wind up regretting it. Flux is the first practical solution that allows builders to skip the mCAD stage entirely and go from board design to an enclosed, 3D-printable prototype in one workflow.”
The enclosure feature sits inside Flux’s browser-based electronic CAD (eCAD) environment, which also handles the steps from a text prompt to a manufactured board.
Designing Around the Board Without mCAD Expertise
Flux is targeting a gap specific to small hardware companies: the mechanical design step between a finished board and a testable prototype.
Los Angeles-based software developer Zoo offers a free, open-source Text-to-CAD platform that turns short text prompts into 3D CAD models, which can be exported as STL, STEP, and other formats for 3D printing or further editing. Like Flux, it generates a model from a written description. As of March 2025, however, the platform was limited to single objects, could not handle assemblies, and worked best when users clearly outlined size, shape, and feature requirements, whereas Flux builds its enclosures around the board’s actual geometry.
San Francisco-based Backflip AI targets a different CAD bottleneck. Its AI copilot for CAD, available as an Autodesk Fusion add-in and a standalone web app, converts 3D scans, STL files, and other mesh data into editable parametric CAD models. The company says this cuts the cost of digitizing a physical part from roughly $1,500 to about $10, and CEO Greg Mark puts the turnaround at one to five minutes, compared with hours or days of skilled reverse-engineering work. Both companies hand a step that has required a skilled CAD user over to software, but Backflip reconstructs existing parts from scan and mesh data, while Flux designs new housings around electronics.
Flux brings prompt-based design to the enclosure, using the board layout from its own eCAD environment as the reference.
Register now for AMA: Software 2026. Join 3D Printing Industry on 22 October for expert presentations, panel discussions and live audience Q&A exploring the software shaping additive manufacturing. Register here.
To stay up to date with the latest 3D printing news, don’t forget to subscribe to the 3D Printing Industry newsletter or follow us on LinkedIn.
Explore the full Future of 3D Printing and Executive Survey series from 3D Printing Industry, featuring perspectives from CEOs, engineers, and industry leaders on the industrialization of additive manufacturing, 3D printing industry trends 2026, qualification, supply chains, and additive manufacturing industry analysis.
Featured image shows Flux is your AI hardware engineer. Image via Flux.
