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Manufacturing · head to head

Materialise Magics vs Shima Seiki

Materialise Magics logo

Materialise Magics

Manufacturing

Industrial build preparation and data repair for metal and polymer additive manufacturing

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Shima Seiki logo

Shima Seiki

Fashion

Knit design and visualization software

From
$250/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Materialise Magics new seats and modules have been subscription only since 15 May 2024, so the perpetual purchase route is closed and existing perpetual holders are on a shrinking island.; Shima Seiki the Internet Archive's capture of Shima Seiki's homepage on 29 December 2020 named five distinct product categories, Knitting Machines, Design System/Software, CAD/CAM Systems, Inkjet Printing Machine, and PLM Solutions, all sold via an Inquiry form with no price figure published.
  • They diverge on capability: Materialise Magics covers Mesh repair, Shima Seiki covers Knit design.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Materialise Magics and Shima Seiki actually diverge.

Attributes where Materialise Magics and Shima Seiki differ
AttributeMaterialise MagicsShima Seiki
Starting priceOn request$250/month
Pricing modelquotesubscription
CategoryManufacturingFashion
FoundedUnknown1962

Identical on both: free tier (No), platforms (Windows), user rating (Not yet rated).

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 Materialise Magics

  • Mesh repair
  • Part orientation and nesting
  • Support generation
  • Build Processors
  • Simulation module
  • Structures module
  • Reporting and traceability

Only in Shima Seiki

  • Knit design
  • Stitch pattern creation
  • Color selection
  • Machine control
  • Production planning
  • Visualization
  • Shima Seiki machines
  • CAM systems

What people use each for

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

Materialise Magics

  • A service bureau running several brands of metal printer that wants one preparation environment instead of five vendor slicersnot Shima Seiki
  • Repairing badly formed STL or scan-derived meshes that a machine slicer will not acceptnot Shima Seiki
  • Automating support generation on metal parts where manual support editing is the bottleneck in the processnot Shima Seiki
  • Simulating and compensating for build distortion before committing an expensive metal buildnot Shima Seiki

Shima Seiki

  • Knit designnot Materialise Magics
  • Machine programmingnot Materialise Magics

Where each one falls short

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

Materialise Magics

  • New seats and modules have been subscription only since 15 May 2024, so the perpetual purchase route is closed and existing perpetual holders are on a shrinking island.
  • Build Processors are licensed separately per machine family, so adding a new printer brand adds a licence line as well as capital cost, and a mixed fleet multiplies the software bill.
  • The modules that deliver the biggest labour saving, notably e-Stage automated support generation, are paid extras, so the base seat alone leaves you doing manual support work.
  • Materialise publishes no prices anywhere, and quotes vary by region and reseller, so two similar bureaus can pay materially different amounts for the same configuration.
  • It is Windows only and remains a desktop application, which sits awkwardly with the cloud direction of Materialise CO-AM and means preparation capacity is tied to specific workstations and licence seats.

Shima Seiki

  • The Internet Archive's capture of Shima Seiki's homepage on 29 December 2020 named five distinct product categories, Knitting Machines, Design System/Software, CAD/CAM Systems, Inkjet Printing Machine, and PLM Solutions, all sold via an Inquiry form with no price figure published.

Pricing, plan by plan

Materialise Magics

On request
  • Magics Essentials$undefined/year
    • Mesh repair and editing
    • Part orientation and platform placement
    • Basic support generation
  • Magics with modules$undefined/year
    • Everything in Essentials
    • e-Stage automated supports, Simulation, Structures priced individually
    • Build Processors licensed per machine family

Shima Seiki

$250/month
  • Essential$250/month
    • Basic design
    • Standard features
  • Professional$500/month
    • Advanced design
    • Integration
  • Enterprise$undefined/month
    • Full solution

Which should you pick?

Choose Materialise Magics if

  • You need mesh repair.
  • You work on Windows.
  • You also want part orientation and nesting.
Materialise Magics review

Choose Shima Seiki if

  • You need knit design.
  • You work on Windows.
  • You also want stitch pattern creation.
Shima Seiki review

Questions people ask

Is Materialise Magics or Shima Seiki better?
Neither clearly leads. Materialise Magics starts at On request and Shima Seiki at $250/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Materialise Magics or Shima Seiki?
Materialise Magics starts at On request and Shima Seiki at $250/month.
Does Materialise Magics or Shima Seiki run on more platforms?
Both run on Windows, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
What is Materialise Magics best used for?
Materialise Magics is most often used for a service bureau running several brands of metal printer that wants one preparation environment instead of five vendor slicers, repairing badly formed stl or scan-derived meshes that a machine slicer will not accept, automating support generation on metal parts where manual support editing is the bottleneck in the process, simulating and compensating for build distortion before committing an expensive metal build. Of those, a service bureau running several brands of metal printer that wants one preparation environment instead of five vendor slicers and repairing badly formed stl or scan-derived meshes that a machine slicer will not accept are not what Shima Seiki is typically brought in for.
What can Materialise Magics do that Shima Seiki cannot?
Materialise Magics covers Mesh repair, Part orientation and nesting, Support generation, Build Processors. Shima Seiki covers Knit design, Stitch pattern creation, Color selection, Machine control.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Materialise Magics: Can I still buy a perpetual Magics licence?

No. Since 15 May 2024 Materialise sells new seats and new modules on subscription only. Existing perpetual licences continue to work but new capacity is subscription.

Materialise Magics: Do I need a separate Build Processor for each printer?

You need one per machine family, licensed separately from the Magics seat. Budget for it before you buy the printer.

Materialise Magics: Is Magics the same as CO-AM?

No. Magics is desktop build preparation. CO-AM is the Materialise cloud platform for AM workflow and production management, which absorbed the former Link3D product.

Materialise Magics: Does Magics slice?

It prepares and supports the build and hands off through a Build Processor, which produces the machine-ready file. The machine-specific processing lives in the Build Processor.

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