Matt starts his day as a custom trophy maker with the production team, working on some 3D printed prototypes.

The 3D printers have been running all night, hard at work constructing a range of different parts. Some are for trophies we’re making for customers, and some are test prints. We like to test the capabilities of our machines in new ways as often as we can, and there’s a lot to learn about how 3D printers behave with different filaments and settings.

3D printers have become a key part of our manufacturing process for many of our trophies. 3D printed trophies offer precise shapes and working with these machines involves:

• Reviewing 3D Models & Prints – Checking digital prototypes for accuracy and manufacturability.
• Perfecting Surface Finishes – Sanding and smoothing prototype parts to create a flawless base for painting or plating.
• Testing Assembly & Stability – Ensuring all components fit together perfectly before production starts.

When the print is finished, it’s cured and set. This stabilizes the print and lets us examine it more thoroughly. We check for any imperfections in the surface that might need to be sanded down. During the printing process, the model prints its own supports as time goes on. Matt can then carefully snap off these supports to reveal the main body to be used in the final trophy.

While we eavesdrop on Matt’s conversation with Jake, I invite you to step aside for a moment and metaphorically walk with me to Rachel’s desk. Rachel is our creative artworker with the design team. You might speak to Rachel when you get to the proofing stage of your order because it’s her job to make sure text and images will be laid out exactly how they need to be on a trophy before it’s manufactured. She has a trophy of her own; a glass star. She earned it after achieving the most sneezes in the office over the course of 2025.

Jake and Matt have looked over this new design quite thoroughly now. I can’t show it to you because it’s not confirmed yet, but let me describe it to you in a non-NDA-breaking sort of way: a 3D-printed something is going to sit on a solid aluminium column. The trophy needs to be moody and dark and quite striking, with a lot of contrast. It needs to be heavy and imposing and, most importantly, the 3D-printed component needs to be very secure. That’s really the crux of the issue here today.

Once designs are approved, manufacturing gets underway; turning designs into tangible, prestigious awards. Unlike mass-produced trophies, custom trophy makers focus on craftsmanship, hand-assembling each piece with precision and care. This afternoon Matt is working on the personalisation and assembly of a variety of trophies. Each trophy is individually personalised with unique winners’ names, category titles and sponsor logos.

Personalising trophies can look different depending on the design. For the trophies Matt’s working on today, it means printing individual winners’ details on each trophy before we assemble the final pieces. He sets up the machine, and lines up the components on the bed. They need to be carefully laid out to ensure the printer puts the ink in the right place. If they’re at all off, text or graphics will appear wonky and uneven.

These particular awards feature a top and a base, so next we need to fix them together. The base has been engraved and the top acrylic printed, and they’re ready to be combined to create a finished trophy. Once the pieces are fixed, they cannot be removed, which is why the personalisation needs to happen first. This is just a fraction of the work that happens in production, which also includes:

• Cutting and Shaping Materials – Whether working with metal, wood, or acrylic, each material is crafted to its exact specifications.
• Hand-Assembling Each Trophy – Every piece is carefully put together by expert craftsmen to ensure durability and aesthetic perfection.
• Engraving & Personalisation – Adding names, event titles, and logos to make each award truly one-of-a-kind.

By the end of the day, rows of stunning trophies are polished, packed, and ready to be shipped, just in time for their big moment at an event.