All model costs are quoted. This information gives an idea what you should expect for pricing.
Price for Standard Laser Marked 1:24000, 1:12000, 1:6000 Scale USGS models
Model relief Price per Suare Foot
1" and less $240
1" to 2" $280
2" to 3" $320
3" to 4" $360
4" to 5" $400
5" to 6" $440
6" to 7" $480
Examples
1) 21" x 21", 1:240000 scale model of the area around the Goden Gate Bridge has 1480' of relief or .74" relief in the model.
Model size: (21 x 21)/144=3.06 square feet, Total Cost: 3.06 x 240= $734
2) 18" x 24", 1:240000 scale model of Mt St. Helens has model has 6900' of relief or 3.45" of relief in the model.
Model size: (18 x24)/144=3 square feet Total Cost: 3 x 360=$1080
Price includes: material (10 pound foam), data (scale, download, project, format). cutting, image data processing (download, merge, grayscale dither), coating for laser marking, laser marking, sealing, crating for shipping. Price does not include shipping.
Base Model Price
Base models are unpainted, cut topographic models. They are typically finished by model shops or landscape artists.
Base model cost=cost of material + cutting cost + data cost.
Data Cost
Data supplied in a machine compatible format such as STL or BIL requiring no modifiaction has no added data cost.
There may be a charge for downloading public data, projecting the data, scaling the data and formatting the data for cutting.
There may be a charge for converting DWG or DXF polyline contours to a solid model for cutting.
Cost for Polyurethane Foam
Board foot (BF) cost for polyurethane foam is (12/02/2014):
10 pound density: $5.00/BF 20 pound density: $10.00/BF 30 pound density: $20.00/BF 70 pound density: $48.00/BF
Cutting Cost
Typically, models cut with large diameter tools (1/2", 1/4", 1/8") and few contours cost less than models cut with smaller diameter tools (.07", .05", .03", .015", .005"). Architect site models with few contours can have lower cost per square foot. Display models with high detail visual appearnce may require smaller tool diameter and cost more.
Cutting Cost Per Square Foot Examples
$84 52 steps, .05" tool, 1.02" relief, data STL file, $264 smooth, .015" ball tool, .593" relief, Mars MOLA data,
34" x 44", 15 pound foam, 100 data points per inch 16" x 32" museum display model in plastic, 200 data points per inch
$223 665 contours, .05" tool, 3.14" relief, 40" x 26" $207 269 contours, .05" tool, USGS 10 meter data, 20 pound foam, 48" x 61",
4 pound foam, 100 data points per inch, Aspen, CO Ventura County, 160.9 countors per vertical inch, CAD rendering
$223 472 steps, .05"tool, 3.3" relief, 30" x 42" $266 484 steps, .07" tool, 3.17" relief, state park visitor center model,
Boulder County, CO, 20 pound foam, 3:2 vertical USGS lidar data, 30 pound foam
$768 smooth, 300 data points per inch, .013" ball tool, USGS SRTM data Spain close up showing high resolution of the Space Shuttle Radar
57" x 46", plastic, mold master for pressure casting Topography Mission data at 300 data points per inch