How a Digital Manufacturer Saved $40,000 a Year and Aced Its Audits with M-Files

Growth is great — until your network drives, folder permissions, and audit binders can’t keep up.

Protolabs, a global digital manufacturer producing 750+ million parts a year for aerospace, medical device, and industrial customers, was outgrowing its folder-based file system. Permissions across multiple sites created IT bottlenecks, information was siloed by facility, and finding audit evidence for ISO 9001 and AS9100 reviews took far too long.

With M-Files, Protolabs:

✅ Migrated 18,000 safety data sheets in just 3 days
✅ Saved $40,000 annually by retiring a legacy system
✅ Connected seven manufacturing sites to collaborate without access barriers
✅ Automated quality workflows for approvals, corrective actions, and supplier management
✅ Cut audit prep time with instant access to the documents auditors ask for

As their Quality Program Manager put it:

“If we have an auditor that comes in, we have everything we need at our fingertips. As soon as you show M-Files to an external auditor, they understand you’re in a structured environment.” — Brian Creighton, Quality Program Manager, Protolabs

Read the full case study here: Protolabs | M-Files

Ready to make audits and quality management easier?
Talk to your CP Digital representative today.