A 3D-printed business card with an NFC chip: when a business card is more than a business card

This time at PROfarm 3D we made something for ourselves. We wanted to create a business card that wouldn’t be just an ordinary plastic card, but would also show what we can combine today using 3D printing.

The result is a 3D-printed business card in the standardised ID-1 format — the same size you know from payment cards, for example. At first glance it looks like an ordinary business card, but there’s something extra hidden inside.

A business card with an NFC chip inside

The card has a total thickness of 7 layers of 0.12 mm, i.e. approximately 0.84 mm.

In the fourth layer, we inserted a programmable NFC chip during printing, which ends up completely hidden inside the card. The chip stores a link to our website.

So all you need to do is hold an NFC-enabled phone to the card and the link appears on the phone automatically. No QR codes, no extra components stuck to the surface — the electronics are simply part of the product itself.

When 3D printing meets electronics

Projects like this are an interesting demonstration of where 3D printing can go. It’s not just about printing the required shape, but also about being able to combine multiple materials, colours and other components directly during production.

In this case, we combined a classic business card with NFC technology and created something that looks like an ordinary plastic card at first glance but hides an additional function.

What else can be hidden inside a product?

An NFC chip is of course not the only option. Depending on the specific application, you can also think about other ways to integrate electronics or other components into a 3D-printed product.

Whether you need company business cards, identification tags, promotional items or a completely custom solution, we’ll be happy to work out with you how to design and manufacture such a product.

Have an idea of your own?

If you can think of something that could be made in a similar way, don’t hesitate to contact us.

Just describe your idea, send a sketch or your vision of the final product. Together we can find a solution that conventional manufacturing may not allow at all.