Meet Bill Craig of 3D Rapid Prototyping in Garden Grove

Today we’d like to introduce you to Bill Craig.

Thanks for sharing your story with us Bill. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I came to California right after high school in 1982 to work for a family friend’s Printed Circuit Board (PCB) Business. They had expanded their business from my home town Rochester, New York and opened up a new location in Huntington Beach, CA.

After being in that business for over 20 years in various capacities from building the PCB’s (every process from planning to finished product), Engineering Manager, Production Manager, and Sales I was looking for a new challenge.

One day in 2003 while visiting a long time vendor / customer Frank Kurisu of SolderMask, Inc. he wanted to show me this new piece of equipment for a business he just started. It was a Z Corporation 810 3D Printer.

I had never heard of 3D printing before and I was amazed at what I saw, then sort of half kidding I said if you ever need any help growing this business I would love to join you.

A few months later he offered me a job and a vision of the future so I left my long time career to start something new.

After helping develop the business that started out as a service bureau making models for designers, we expanded to equipment sales and service and we were seemingly growing year to year.

Then one day Frank decided that he no longer wanted to keep 3D Rapid Prototyping and was more interested in focusing on his core business SolderMask, He offered to sell the business to myself and my brother Paul who had joined the team during the early part of our journey.

Neither Paul or I had ever owned a business and we did not know if we could do it on our own or if we could get the money.

After some negotiations Frank said since I own this business outright I will draw up a 5 year contract and then you can pay me back and take over the business on your own right now. No bank loans needed.

So, in March of 2011 we found a place near our home 7 miles from the original office and moved the business into its current location.

Over the past 6 1/2 years many changes have happen in our industry and we have had to keep up the latest technologies and competition as well as continue to educate the public about what is that 3d printing can do for them.

There has been many news stories and T.V episodes over the years talking about the use of 3d printing that has both helped promote this but also has caused hype sometimes negatively with misinformation.

We have many stories to tell about interesting projects and customers that we were personally involved in over the years that include:

TV show, The Doctors – Episode printing from Ultrasound data giving a blind woman the ability to hold a model of her fetus.

TV show, Numbers – Episode “Shadow Markets”

More recently we printed a replica of “Fearless Girl” the statute that is standing in front of the bull on wall street.

Our customer base is a wide range of Industries such as Education, Footwear, Architectural, Industrial Design, etc.

We have many big name and small name customers that we love to talk about as we take pride in taking care of them. It’s not always easy as 3D printing equipment is still relatively new and they are not made in mass production so there are issues.

If a customer has the expectation that buying a 3D printer is like the desktop printer that they use for their paper documents they will not be happy with the many challenges we face keeping them running 100% of the time. It is not “plug-n-play”.

What I enjoy most about our industry is we are still at the tip of the iceberg as only 10% of the folks we talk with even know what it is, so we do a lot of educating. Once we find customers with applications that it could benefit them getting them set-up and using it is very rewarding.

Also working with designers, entrepreneurs and dreamers brings many new adventures our way.

I am hoping that I can continue our business until I am ready to retire (in 10 years or so) and be able to pass it on to the next generation. Somebody with the same passion and interest in taking care of our customers.

Has it been a smooth road?
No, it has not always been a smooth road and yes, many struggles along the way.

Vendor changes and issues, equipment troubles, customer issues, etc.

So, as you know, we’re impressed with 3D Rapid Prototyping – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
We are mostly a representative of the 3D Systems product line of equipment. We do sell a few other products but the majority of it is 3D Systems.

We pride ourselves on educating the customers and helping them make an informed decision of the equipment that best fits their need and budget.

We are a small (7 employee) mostly family business with an interest to always do right by our customers.

What we lack in the offerings that a “Big Business” might have (lower price, deeper pockets) we excel at customer service and care. (VAR) Value Added Partner

Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
I love the energy, many things to do, and weather.

I least like the traffic so I try to plan around it as much as I can.

Pricing:

• Price range for Professional 3D Printers starting at just under $5K to mid range $30K to 50K and on up to $100K
• Price range for Production 3D Printers from $150K to $1M.

Contact Info:

• Address: 7201 Garden Grove Boulevard, Suite A
• Website: www.3drp.com
• Phone: 714-379-8398
• Email: [email protected]

Getting in touch: VoyageLA is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.