In a move which indicates that popular social network Facebook has plunged seriously into hardware business, the company has acquired Silicon Valley-based modular consumer electronics startup Nascent Objects. The financial terms of the acquisition deal have not been officially disclosed.

The acquisition of Nascent Objects comes at a time when Facebook is already building gigantic Wi-Fi drones, data servers and virtual reality (VR) headsets.

Nascent Objects chiefly offers tools which help speed up the process of building physical hardware prototypes. Highlighting the fact that the software created by Nascent Objects essentially facilitates the streamlining of the manufacturing process for devices, including 3D printed hardware, the startup touts on its website that its technology “allows developers to go from concept to product in just weeks, much faster and less expensive than traditional methods.”

The acquisition of the startup will enable Facebook to accelerate the production process within Building 8, Facebook’s secret hardware lab.

Confirming Facebook’s acquisition of Nascent Objects, Regina Dugan – the head of Building 8 – said in a recent post on her Facebook page: “Nascent Objects…[is] joining Facebook to work with us in Building 8. Together, we hope to create hardware at a speed that’s more like software.”