Learn How Jewellery is Made Using CAD/CAM
Day One: Learn How Jewellery is Made Using CAD/CAM
Introduction: The Digital Revolution in Jewellery Design
Have you ever stood mesmerised before a jewellery shop window, wondering how those intricate rings and pendants are created with such extraordinary precision? Perhaps you've admired a piece with impossibly detailed filigree work and thought, "How on earth did they make that?"
The answer lies in a technological revolution that has transformed this ancient craft: Computer-Aided Design and Computer-Aided Manufacturing, or CAD/CAM.
As a jewellery CAD specialist who has spent years working with these technologies and training others through my book "The CAD/CAM Jeweller," I'm thrilled to guide you through the fascinating world of digital jewellery design and how it's revolutionising the industry.
In this comprehensive guide, we'll explore three essential areas:
What CAD/CAM actually is and how it's revolutionised jewellery creation
What a jewellery CAD designer does and potential career paths in this exciting field
The most common software packages used in professional jewellery design
Whether you're a jewellery professional looking to expand your skills, a student considering career options, or simply a curious enthusiast, this post will provide valuable insights into the technology that's reshaping how beautiful adornments come to life.
What is CAD/CAM and How Has It Transformed Jewellery Making?
Traditional vs. Digital: A Craft Transformed
For thousands of years, jewellers worked with hand-sketches, carved wax models manually, and fabricated metal through painstaking processes. These traditional methods produced stunning pieces but had inherent limitations in terms of precision, consistency, and the complexity of designs that could be realistically achieved.
CAD (Computer-Aided Design) is the digital design component—where jewellery pieces are created virtually on a computer. CAM (Computer-Aided Manufacturing) is the production element, where these digital designs are transformed into physical objects.
The CAD/CAM Process in Jewellery
Using specialised software like Rhinoceros (commonly known as Rhino), designers can create incredibly detailed 3D digital models with precision down to fractions of a millimetre. The software allows for perfect symmetry, exact measurements, and complex geometric patterns that would be extraordinarily difficult—if not impossible—to create by hand.
Once the digital design is finalised, the CAM process begins. This typically involves:
3D Printing - The digital file is sent to a high-precision 3D printer that creates a wax or resin model of the jewellery piece
Casting - This model is then used in the traditional lost-wax casting process, where it's encased in a plaster-like material, melted away, and replaced with molten precious metal
Finishing - The raw cast piece is then finished by skilled craftspeople who polish, set stones, and add final touches
Some manufacturing facilities might alternatively use CNC milling to carve pieces directly from metal or wax blocks, particularly for certain types of designs or materials.
The Advantages of CAD/CAM in Jewellery Design
The integration of CAD/CAM into jewellery creation offers remarkable benefits:
Unparalleled Precision
Every curve, dimension, and angle can be controlled with incredible accuracy. Stone settings can be perfectly aligned, filigree work can be identically repeated, and symmetry can be mathematically perfect—all while maintaining the artistic integrity of the design.
Pre-visualisation
Perhaps one of the most powerful advantages is the ability to create photorealistic renderings of designs before production begins. This allows clients to see exactly what their commissioned piece will look like, making adjustments before any precious materials are used. It also enables designers to experiment without the material costs of physical prototyping.
Efficiency and Flexibility
Changes that would require starting from scratch with traditional methods can be implemented with a few clicks. Designs can be quickly modified for different stone sizes, finger sizes, or material requirements. This flexibility dramatically reduces production time and allows for more design iterations.
Complexity Without Compromise
CAD/CAM enables the creation of structures and details that would be extremely challenging using traditional techniques alone. Interlocking components, complex lattice structures, and mathematically precise patterns become achievable, opening new creative possibilities.
Customisation at Scale
While bespoke jewellery has always existed, CAD/CAM makes custom design more accessible. Designs can be easily modified for individual clients while maintaining production efficiency.
The next time you admire a contemporary piece with perfect symmetry or impossibly fine details, you're likely looking at the results of this powerful blend of digital precision and traditional craftsmanship.
The Jewellery CAD Designer: Role and Career Path
What Does a Jewellery CAD Designer Actually Do?
A jewellery CAD designer creates digital 3D models of jewellery pieces intended for manufacturing. However, the role extends far beyond technical computer work—it's a sophisticated blend of artistic creativity and technical expertise.
On a typical workday, a CAD designer might:
Create new designs based on briefs from clients or the design team
Modify existing designs for different sizes or variations
Generate photorealistic renderings for client approval and marketing materials
Prepare files for 3D printing or manufacturing, ensuring they meet technical requirements
Collaborate with traditional bench jewellers who will finish and set the pieces
Research trends and techniques to continually evolve their design capabilities
The best CAD designers combine digital fluency with a deep understanding of traditional jewellery making principles. This ensures that what looks beautiful on screen will also be structurally sound, comfortable to wear, and manufacturable when translated to precious metals and gemstones.
Career Paths in Jewellery CAD Design
The career trajectory for a jewellery CAD designer can take several routes:
In-House Designer
Many begin as junior designers at established jewellery brands or manufacturing companies, working under more experienced colleagues to develop their skills. With time and experience, they may progress to senior designer positions or CAD manager roles overseeing teams of designers.
Independent Designer/Freelancer
Some CAD designers establish themselves as freelancers, offering their expertise to multiple clients—from independent jewellers who lack digital capabilities to larger companies requiring additional capacity during busy periods.
Entrepreneur
With sufficient experience, CAD designers might launch their own design studios or jewellery brands, leveraging their technical skills to develop unique product lines.
Hybrid Craftsperson
Many professionals combine CAD design with traditional bench skills, becoming complete all-rounders in the jewellery creation process. This versatility is particularly valuable in smaller workshops or for independent designers.
Educator/Consultant
Experienced CAD designers may share their knowledge through teaching, writing, or consulting, helping the next generation master these essential skills or advising companies on implementing digital workflows.
What makes this career particularly exciting is its presence across the entire jewellery industry spectrum—from heritage luxury houses to contemporary fashion brands, from bespoke independent workshops to large-scale manufacturing operations.
Essential Skills for Success
To thrive as a jewellery CAD designer, you'll need to develop:
Technical Proficiency
Mastery of jewellery-specific CAD software is fundamental. This includes understanding the nuances of different modelling approaches and keeping abreast of software developments.
Jewellery Construction Knowledge
Understanding how pieces are physically assembled, how settings work, and what makes a design manufacturable is crucial. Without this knowledge, beautiful designs might prove impossible to produce.
Material Awareness
Different precious metals behave differently during casting and finishing. Knowledge of how gold, platinum, silver, and alternative materials respond to manufacturing processes informs better design decisions.
Gemstone Expertise
Understanding stone shapes, sizes, setting techniques, and durability considerations ensures designs properly accommodate their featured gems.
Design Sensibility
Beyond technical competency, a good eye for proportion, balance, and aesthetics distinguishes exceptional CAD designers from merely competent ones.
Precision and Patience
Complex designs can take days to model correctly. Attention to detail and methodical working practices are essential for success.
Many successful CAD designers come from traditional jewellery backgrounds, bringing their understanding of craft into the digital realm. Others transition from adjacent fields like industrial design, product design, or architecture, adapting their 3D modelling skills to the jewellery context.
For those looking to enter this field, building a portfolio that demonstrates both technical capability and creative vision is essential. Employers and clients want to see that you can execute complex designs with precision while understanding what makes a beautiful and wearable piece of jewellery.
Essential Software for Jewellery CAD Design
The digital toolkit of a jewellery CAD designer typically includes one or more specialised software packages. Here's an overview of the most common options:
Rhinoceros (Rhino)
Rhino has emerged as the industry standard despite not being specifically designed for jewellery. This NURBS-based modelling software (Non-Uniform Rational B-Splines) provides the precision and flexibility jewellery design demands.
What makes Rhino particularly powerful for jewellery design is its:
Precision modelling capabilities with smooth curves ideal for jewellery forms
Relative affordability compared to other professional software
Extensive plugin ecosystem that extends its capabilities
Widespread industry adoption ensuring skill transferability
Jewellery-Specific Plugins and Extensions
MatrixGold
The most popular jewellery-specific plugin for Rhino, MatrixGold adds specialised tools for:
Stone setting features with automated prong creation
Ring sizing and adjustment tools
Weight calculations for different metals
Advanced jewellery-specific rendering capabilities
Libraries of common components and findings
These additions transform Rhino from a general 3D modelling tool into a jewellery-specific powerhouse.
Purpose-Built Jewellery Design Software
3Design
This purpose-built jewellery CAD software offers excellent tools for creating complex pieces. Its strengths include:
Powerful parametric modelling capabilities, allowing easy adjustment of dimensions
Integrated gemstone libraries
Specialised jewellery rendering functions
Intuitive workflow tailored specifically to jewellery design
Alternative and Complementary Software
Blender
This powerful free, open-source 3D software isn't specifically for jewellery but offers excellent subdivision modelling capabilities. Some designers use it alongside Rhino, particularly for organic forms and sculptural elements.
ZBrush
A digital sculpting programme that excels at creating organic, sculptural jewellery pieces. Many designers use it in combination with Rhino—sculpting organic elements in ZBrush before importing them into Rhino for technical refinements.
Fusion 360 and Solidworks
While primarily industrial design tools, both offer powerful parametric modelling capabilities that some jewellery designers prefer, particularly for geometric designs or pieces with mechanical elements.
Which Software Should You Learn?
For those entering the field, I recommend starting with Rhino for several compelling reasons:
Industry Standard - Skills in Rhino are highly transferable and sought after by employers
Balance of Precision and Flexibility - It handles both geometric and organic forms effectively
Jewellery Optimisation - With plugins like MatrixGold, it becomes jewellery-specific
Learning Resources - There's a large community of users and abundant training materials
Many professional designers eventually learn multiple software packages, using different tools for different aspects of design. For instance, you might use Rhino for precise technical work and ZBrush for organic, sculptural elements. However, Rhino provides an excellent foundation that will serve you well as your career develops.
The Future of Jewellery CAD/CAM
As we look ahead, several emerging technologies are poised to further transform digital jewellery creation:
Direct Metal 3D Printing
While currently limited by resolution and material constraints, direct metal printing technologies are advancing rapidly. This could eventually eliminate the casting process entirely for certain types of jewellery.
AI-Assisted Design
Artificial intelligence is beginning to assist with generative design processes, helping to create complex patterns and structures that follow specific parameters while exploring possibilities human designers might not consider.
Virtual Try-On Technology
Augmented reality applications now allow customers to virtually "try on" jewellery designs before they're produced, further enhancing the pre-visualisation advantages of CAD.
These developments suggest that digital skills will become even more central to jewellery creation in the coming years, making this an exciting time to engage with CAD/CAM technologies.
Conclusion: Merging Tradition with Technology
The integration of CAD/CAM into jewellery creation represents not the replacement of traditional craftsmanship but its evolution. The most successful applications of these technologies honour centuries of jewellery-making wisdom while embracing new possibilities.
For aspiring designers, learning CAD is now as essential as understanding metalsmithing principles. For established jewellers, incorporating digital workflows can expand creative horizons and production capabilities. And for enthusiasts and collectors, understanding these processes adds another dimension of appreciation for the remarkable objects we wear.
Whether you're looking to develop professional skills or simply satisfying your curiosity about how contemporary jewellery comes to life, I hope this exploration of jewellery CAD/CAM has provided valuable insights into this fascinating intersection of art, craft, and technology.
Remember that even the most complex digital designs begin with simple elements, and proficiency develops through practice and experimentation. The journey from novice to master is one of continuous learning—embracing both the precision of technology and the soul of traditional craftsmanship.
