ANNIVERSARY
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Taking Manufacturing to Another Dimension O
ne sale at Edmonton’s Western Manufacturing Technology Show was all it took for Rapid3D to establish itself in 2009. It was only the beginning — in the 15 years since, the Calgary-based company has become a top player in Western Canada’s 3D scanning market. 3D scanning is used today in manufacturing and other industries to help with complex measurement challenges, along with design and decision-making. “It’s all part of the digital manufacturing workflow,” says Rapid3D’s president and founder, Ira Laughy, “from the design to what gets delivered to your customers.” Take the example of designing aftermarket cabs for a tractor. “If you took a scan of the tractor, you can just use that scan data as the basis for your designs,” says Laughy. “You don’t have to reverse-engineer the tractor or keep the tractor for three weeks or a month while you do your design.” The data’s accuracy gives designers confidence as they work, streamlining component development through
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Implement Success | Spring/Summer 2024
ease of use to get products to market faster. “3D scanning technology is being pushed further every day,” Laughy says. Applications stretch into a range of other industries. The Royal Saskatchewan Museum, a Rapid3D client, can use handheld 3D scanners purchased from Rapid3D to scan precious artifacts and make exact reproductions suitable for public display.
3D scanning technology is being pushed further every day. Today, the company has 15 employees, with staff in Calgary, Edmonton, and Vancouver and a record of over 3,000 projects completed. Laughy attributes Rapid3D’s success to its complete service and experience, great word of mouth, and familiarity and reputation built over the years. “If people see you year after year, people feel more
comfortable making that investment with you.” In the end, 3D scanning is an invaluable tool in Western Canadian industry. Rapid3D’s purpose is to use it to help customers make confident and informed decisions. 3D scanning technology has made huge leaps in the years since Rapid3D was founded, with recent models like Creaform’s HandySCAN MAX Elite taking things to a new level of speed and accuracy for large part scanning. Advancements in ag manufacturing tech have been no less momentous. Laughy says it’s an exciting time to work with partners in agriculture. “It’s becoming much more of a topic of conversation globally: how do you feed a growing population? With that comes a lot of technology and innovation,” says Laughy. “And farmers are innovative, adaptive, creative people. (They) make things happen.”
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