Bartolomeo Paparella, founder of CREA 3D, revealed how his journey in the 3D printing industry began. « I started building my first 3D printer in 2012, together with a friend, and I tried to show it around. I was a mechanical designer, and I immediately understood that this technology had potential. Indeed, there was interest, and I decided to start selling the first assembled machines. Everything started there. And in January 2018, we partnered with Raise3D for distribution in the Italian market. »
At very beginning, he believed that this technology would serve for much more than to make figurines. Today he has this confirmation, and everything happened much faster than he expected. « You never get bored in this market! Everything is constantly evolving, so you just have to be good at anticipating the times. And I like this challenge » as he said. Today Crea3D® is a registered trademark known outside the Italian market, with 3 other business units:
• Fabbrix®: large format 3D printers and industrial grade materials
• FastParts: professional additive manufacturing service, design, 3D scanning and reverse engineering.
• CreaMED: digitization and additive manufacturing services for the medical industry
When talking about current Covid-19 pandemic, Bartolomeo emphasized on preparing by trying to anticipate the times. Prevention can significantly decrease the problems caused by an unexpected event. In times of crisis, 3D printing has proven to be a very important tool, especially in helping healthcare professionals with tools and applications made in no time at all. He thought that maybe it was time to start thinking about a new type of production that is more flexible, faster, and internal.
By analyse the philosophy of the industry, Bartolomeo found that the AM market reacted to pandemic exactly as he expected, with immediate and original solutions. He focused on the economic aspects of the pandemic and pointed out that the market has suffered a lot, especially the manufacturers of solutions that are too expensive for a large part of the public. He said « Looking at our reaction to events, we organized ourselves to work completely online, as we are used to. Sure, there is a decrease in turnover and there will still be, but our philosophy of providing professional solutions at affordable prices has proved to be a winning strategy. »
-Bartolomeo Paparella, Founders of CREA 3D SRL in 2013