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Manufacturing · head to head

Formlabs PreForm vs Yokogawa CENTUM VP

Formlabs PreForm logo

Formlabs PreForm

Manufacturing

Free print preparation software that only drives Formlabs printers, because the money is in hardware and resin

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Yokogawa CENTUM VP logo

Yokogawa CENTUM VP

Manufacturing

Distributed control system for continuous process plants with a documented 30-year upgrade path

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Formlabs PreForm has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Formlabs PreForm preForm only drives Formlabs printers, so the free software is really an entry cost to a closed hardware and resin ecosystem rather than a tool you can keep if you change machines.; Yokogawa CENTUM VP there is no published price list and no way to size a budget without engaging Yokogawa or an EPC, so early-stage comparison against DeltaV or Experion is guesswork until quotations arrive.
  • They diverge on capability: Formlabs PreForm covers Automatic orientation, Yokogawa CENTUM VP covers Field Control Station.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Formlabs PreForm and Yokogawa CENTUM VP actually diverge.

Attributes where Formlabs PreForm and Yokogawa CENTUM VP differ
AttributeFormlabs PreFormYokogawa CENTUM VP
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelFree with a Formlabs printerquote
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWindows, macOSWindows, On-premise

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Manufacturing).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Formlabs PreForm

  • Automatic orientation
  • Support generation
  • One-click print
  • Material presets
  • Dashboard
  • Fleet Control

Only in Yokogawa CENTUM VP

  • Field Control Station
  • N-IO
  • Human Interface Station
  • ProSafe-RS integration
  • Vnet/IP
  • Migration from CS 1000 and CS 3000
  • Exaquantum integration
  • Alarm management

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Formlabs PreForm

  • A dental laboratory preparing surgical guides on a validated resin and printer combinationnot Yokogawa CENTUM VP
  • A prototyping team running several Form printers that needs job queueing and usage trackingnot Yokogawa CENTUM VP
  • A jewellery workshop laying out castable patterns to maximise parts per buildnot Yokogawa CENTUM VP
  • An education lab that needs software with no per-student licence costnot Yokogawa CENTUM VP

Yokogawa CENTUM VP

  • Replacing end-of-life CENTUM CS 3000 controllers during a refinery turnaround without pulling field cablingnot Formlabs PreForm
  • Greenfield LNG train where the control and safety systems must share one operator console and one event lognot Formlabs PreForm
  • Specialty chemicals batch plant needing sequence control with recipe management and full electronic batch recordsnot Formlabs PreForm
  • Combined cycle power station where 99.99999 percent availability figures are written into the contractnot Formlabs PreForm

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Formlabs PreForm

  • PreForm only drives Formlabs printers, so the free software is really an entry cost to a closed hardware and resin ecosystem rather than a tool you can keep if you change machines.
  • Formlabs resin is sold in proprietary cartridges, and the ongoing consumable cost over a printer's life dwarfs anything a paid slicer would have charged.
  • Third-party resins can be used only through open material settings that step outside validated profiles, which affects print reliability and the comfort of warranty support.
  • Parameter-level control is deliberately limited compared with open slicers, so advanced users cannot tune exposure and layer behaviour the way they can on an open platform.
  • It is Windows and macOS only with no Linux build, which is awkward for research groups and labs standardised on Linux workstations.

Yokogawa CENTUM VP

  • There is no published price list and no way to size a budget without engaging Yokogawa or an EPC, so early-stage comparison against DeltaV or Experion is guesswork until quotations arrive.
  • Engineering and commissioning routinely cost several times the hardware and software, and owners who budget from the equipment quote alone are consistently short.
  • The ecosystem is closed: controllers, I/O and diagnostics are Yokogawa, and third-party alternatives at the controller layer do not exist, so the vendor holds pricing power for the twenty years or more the plant runs.
  • Operator stations run on Windows and are tied to specific validated Windows releases, so operating system end-of-life forces console refresh cycles that are governed by Yokogawa validation rather than by your IT policy.
  • Engineering staff who know CENTUM are scarce outside Japan, the Middle East and South East Asia, and in North America and Europe you will pay a premium or depend on Yokogawa’s own services organisation for changes.

Pricing, plan by plan

Formlabs PreForm

Free
  • PreFormFree
    • Free download with no licence fee or subscription
    • No installation or seat limit
    • Works only with Formlabs printers

Yokogawa CENTUM VP

On request
  • CENTUM VP$undefined/year
    • Priced as an engineered system, not a per-seat licence
    • Cost driven by I/O count, controller redundancy and number of operator stations
    • Engineering, FAT, commissioning and training quoted separately and usually exceed hardware

Which should you pick?

Choose Formlabs PreForm if

  • You need automatic orientation.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Windows, macOS.
  • You also want support generation.
Formlabs PreForm review

Choose Yokogawa CENTUM VP if

  • You need field control station.
  • You work on Windows, On-premise.
  • You also want n-io.
Yokogawa CENTUM VP review

Questions people ask

Is Formlabs PreForm or Yokogawa CENTUM VP better?
Neither clearly leads. Formlabs PreForm starts at Free and Yokogawa CENTUM VP at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Formlabs PreForm or Yokogawa CENTUM VP?
Formlabs PreForm has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Formlabs PreForm and On request for Yokogawa CENTUM VP.
Does Formlabs PreForm or Yokogawa CENTUM VP run on more platforms?
Formlabs PreForm runs on Windows, macOS. Yokogawa CENTUM VP runs on Windows, On-premise.
Can I use Formlabs PreForm for free?
Yes. Formlabs PreForm has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Yokogawa CENTUM VP starts at On request.
What is Formlabs PreForm best used for?
Formlabs PreForm is most often used for a dental laboratory preparing surgical guides on a validated resin and printer combination, a prototyping team running several form printers that needs job queueing and usage tracking, a jewellery workshop laying out castable patterns to maximise parts per build, an education lab that needs software with no per-student licence cost. Of those, a dental laboratory preparing surgical guides on a validated resin and printer combination and a prototyping team running several form printers that needs job queueing and usage tracking are not what Yokogawa CENTUM VP is typically brought in for.
What can Formlabs PreForm do that Yokogawa CENTUM VP cannot?
Formlabs PreForm covers Automatic orientation, Support generation, One-click print, Material presets. Yokogawa CENTUM VP covers Field Control Station, N-IO, Human Interface Station, ProSafe-RS integration.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Formlabs PreForm: Is PreForm free?

Yes, with no licence fee, subscription or installation limit. It is free because it only prepares jobs for Formlabs printers.

Yokogawa CENTUM VP: Can I upgrade from CENTUM CS 3000 without rewiring the plant?

Yes. Yokogawa sells migration packages that replace the controller and keep existing field wiring and marshalling, which is the main reason CENTUM installations stay CENTUM.

Formlabs PreForm: Can PreForm drive a non-Formlabs printer?

No, and it never will. It is the front end for Formlabs hardware, which is where the revenue is.

Yokogawa CENTUM VP: Is CENTUM VP sold as a subscription?

No. It is a capital purchase of hardware and licences with an annual service agreement for updates and support.

Formlabs PreForm: Can I use third-party resin?

Only via open material settings, which take you outside validated profiles and the reliability those profiles are tuned for.

Yokogawa CENTUM VP: How does it compare with Emerson DeltaV on cost?

Neither publishes prices. CENTUM tends to win on brownfield migration cost because the field wiring stays; DeltaV tends to be cheaper on small greenfield systems.

Formlabs PreForm: Does it run on Linux?

No. Builds are provided for Windows and macOS only.

Yokogawa CENTUM VP: Do I need a separate safety system?

Yes, for SIL-rated functions. ProSafe-RS is the Yokogawa SIS and shares the CENTUM engineering database and operator console.

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