Will Kubikly tell me whether a material is food safe?

No. It suggests materials with reasons, labelled as suggestions. Whether a specific grade is permitted for food contact in your market is confirmed by your supplier's declaration and, where needed, by laboratory testing.

Can it design a product with a mechanism, like a press or a peeler?

It can show the parts and how they sit, including in an exploded view, which helps explain the idea. The mechanism itself (pivots, springs, clearances) is designed in CAD.

Can I make a 3D-printed sample to try in the kitchen?

You can print the STL (4 credits, in millimetres) as a form study to check size and grip. Printed parts are hard to clean properly and are not a food-contact sample, so keep the print away from food.

What if my kitchen product has electronics in it?

Design the outer form here and say where the buttons and display go. The board, wiring and electrical safety are for an electronics engineer; the electronics enclosure page covers what to prepare.

Product Designer · by product · first concept free

Design a kitchenware concept in 3D

Kitchen products live hard lives: hot water, detergent, knives, drops onto tiled floors and a drawer full of other utensils. Kubikly turns a kitchen idea into a 3D concept with a brief that raises the material, cleaning and manufacturing questions early, so you ask the right ones before anyone quotes.

Start my free concept Open a demo concept

Ideas you could start with

“A colander that collapses flat and hooks over the edge of the sink”
“A spoon rest that holds two spoons and catches drips, for a narrow hob”
“A set of three storage tubs that nest inside each other when empty”
“A garlic press that is easy to clean, with no small holes to pick out”
“A silicone and steel spatula with a hanging loop and a thinner front edge”

Food contact is a supplier question

Anything that touches food has to be made from materials permitted for that use in the market where you sell it. In the EU, food-contact materials fall under a framework regulation (EC 1935/2004), with further rules for plastics; the United States has its own FDA rules, and other markets differ. In practice you ask your material and manufacturing suppliers for a declaration of compliance for the exact grade and colour they will use, and a testing laboratory may need to check the finished product.

Kubikly's material suggestions come with reasons, but they are suggestions, not compliance statements.

Design for the sink and the drawer

Cleaning: avoid narrow gaps, blind holes and seams where food collects. A part that comes apart for washing is good; one that needs a tool to come apart is not.
Heat: say whether it goes in the dishwasher, the microwave or the oven. Many plastics soften or warp with heat, wood does not like the dishwasher, and metal does not belong in a microwave.
Grip: wet, greasy hands need a shape that locates the fingers, and handles need room for knuckles above the worktop.
Storage: products that nest or stack take less room in a cupboard and in a shipping carton.
Moulding: walls that taper slightly (draft) release from a mould more easily and help parts nest. The brief lists draft angles and parting lines as points to check with the manufacturer.

From kitchen idea to concept in Kubikly

Choose Describe it, or Improve a product with a photo of the tool that annoys you.
Set the kind of product to Kitchenware, or to Container or jar for storage.
Say how it is used and cleaned: “goes in the dishwasher”, “used one-handed while stirring”.
Read the material suggestions and their reasons, then change them by asking: “make the handle beech and the head silicone”.
Describe a variant for a second size, such as “a half-size version for one portion”, and compare the two.
Render an In use shot on a worktop to judge the scale against everyday things.

Limits worth knowing

The concept shows form, parts and proportions. It does not test heat resistance, food safety or strength, and threads, snap-fits and the inner workings of mechanisms are not modelled. Fine surface texture on a grip will not appear in the model. Treat the manufacturing considerations in the brief as a checklist for your first conversation with a manufacturer, not as a specification.

Frequently asked

Will Kubikly tell me whether a material is food safe?: No. It suggests materials with reasons, labelled as suggestions. Whether a specific grade is permitted for food contact in your market is confirmed by your supplier's declaration and, where needed, by laboratory testing.
Can it design a product with a mechanism, like a press or a peeler?: It can show the parts and how they sit, including in an exploded view, which helps explain the idea. The mechanism itself (pivots, springs, clearances) is designed in CAD.
Can I make a 3D-printed sample to try in the kitchen?: You can print the STL (4 credits, in millimetres) as a form study to check size and grip. Printed parts are hard to clean properly and are not a food-contact sample, so keep the print away from food.
What if my kitchen product has electronics in it?: Design the outer form here and say where the buttons and display go. The board, wiring and electrical safety are for an electronics engineer; the electronics enclosure page covers what to prepare.