How Additive Manufacturing Stepped Up When Disaster Struck

Solutionology Stories Podcast Episode #28 | 29:51 min

Description

A Hurricane, a Crisis, and a Call for Manufacturing Innovation

In October 2024, a major hurricane struck the U.S., leaving destruction in its wake—including the disruption of a critical injection molding supply chain for a top automotive manufacturer. With production at a standstill and losses mounting by the hour, the company turned to Stratasys Direct, one of the world’s largest additive manufacturing service providers, for a solution.

Justin “Bud” Runquist, VP of Sales and Marketing at Stratasys Direct, led the charge in mobilizing an emergency manufacturing response. His team turned to additive manufacturing (AM) at scale, proving that 3D printing is not just for prototyping—it’s a viable production method in crisis situations.

From Concept to Reality in 12 Hours

Faced with an urgent request, Stratasys Direct had to determine if additive manufacturing could meet the scale, quality, and speed required. Within hours, they had parts on a printer. By the end of the day, they had functional components in hand, shipping them overnight for validation.

The automotive manufacturer tested the parts immediately and confirmed their viability. Their next question: How quickly can we scale up production?

A Distributed Manufacturing Network in Action

Stratasys Direct quickly recognized that meeting the demand—500 parts per day, with the first shipment needed within seven days—required a network approach. They reached out to trusted partners, including DI Labs, to expand capacity.

The response from the additive manufacturing community was overwhelmingly positive. Manufacturers across the industry stepped in, demonstrating the power of distributed manufacturing: a collaborative, decentralized approach that allows for rapid scaling.

Key Takeaways: Lessons in Agility and Preparedness

The success of this emergency production effort provides valuable insights for the future of manufacturing:

Speed Matters: In a crisis, the ability to pivot quickly is essential. Stratasys Direct and its partners had to move from concept to full-scale production in record time.
Collaboration is Key: No single company could have met the demand alone. Distributed manufacturing allows multiple entities to contribute, ensuring supply chain resilience.
Quality & Standards Drive Success: Not every supplier could meet the rigorous quality standards required. Establishing industry-wide certification and validation processes will be crucial as AM continues to scale.
Additive Manufacturing is Production-Ready: Once seen only as a prototyping tool, AM has proven its ability to manufacture end-use parts at scale, providing a flexible alternative to traditional methods.

The Future of Additive Manufacturing: A Tipping Point

As Runquist pointed out during the podcast, additive manufacturing is at a tipping point. While early adopters have long embraced its potential, the challenge now is crossing the gap into mainstream adoption.

Manufacturers must shift their mindset—from using AM as a last resort to integrating it as a primary production method. The industry also needs clearer standards and validation protocols to ensure consistency and trust in AM-produced parts.

Looking Ahead

This story highlights the transformational power of additive manufacturing—not just in emergency response, but in the broader effort to create more resilient and adaptable supply chains.

As companies continue to explore AM, partnerships like the one between Stratasys Direct and DI Labs will be essential in proving its real-world viability. The next five years will be critical in determining how AM fits into large-scale production, but one thing is clear: it’s no longer just for prototyping—it’s a game-changer for manufacturing.

Follow our Solutionology Stories Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLMo39wYkklXud2wHcfBRLQ2_cMjl0B3hQ&si=vKlmB5wjwfYNP6Pp

More about DI Labs: https://dilabs.cc/

More about Stratasys Direct: https://www.stratasys.com/en/stratasy …

Chapters

00:00 Welcome Bud

02:31 Line Down!

11:00 Quality Standards for Distributed Manufacturing

15:21 Pushing Use Cases for Volume Production

25:34 A Tipping Point for Additive Manufacturing

Introduction

Carl Douglass (00:00):
Welcome to the Solutionology Stories podcast. Today, we’ve got a great guest, Bud Runquist, who’s the VP of Sales and Marketing with Stratasys Direct, one of the world’s largest additive manufacturing service providers and a division of Stratasys, the 3D printing and additive manufacturing equipment manufacturer.

Brian Douglass (00:19):
Wow. That was a mouthful. But our topic today is AEM (Additive Manufacturing) at scale, and we’re going to explore how Stratasys Direct led a network-distributed production effort for one of their clients. We’ll also discuss how this model should become more mainstream and what we might experience in the coming years.

Carl Douglass (00:39):
But this wasn’t just a casual journey—as you’ll hear, it was an emergency response to a natural disaster in the U.S. that severely impacted the supply chain of a top automotive manufacturer. The response effort represents a blueprint that should be used not just for emergencies but also for supply chain resilience and augmentation in other industries.

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as we did.

Meet the Guest

Carl Douglass (01:09):
He doesn’t like when I say this, but I’m going to say it—we’ve got a celebrity guest today! Sorry, Bud.

Bud Runquist is the VP of Sales and Marketing at Stratasys Direct Manufacturing. Stratasys Direct provides additive manufacturing services, much like DI Labs. While some might say they’re a competitor, we see Stratasys Direct as a business partner, and today’s conversation will highlight that.

We’ll be discussing a critical supply chain breakdown that Stratasys Direct helped resolve last year in 2024, after a hurricane destroyed an injection molding plant.

Before we dive into the story—Bud, you’ve been at Stratasys for six years now, right?

Justin “Bud” Runquist (02:05):
Yeah, that’s right. Six years now.

Carl Douglass (02:07):
You’ve held several leadership roles, starting in sales and client relations. Today, you lead that side of the business, and from an outsider’s perspective, it’s clear you’ve had a significant impact on the organization.

Bud Runquist (02:25):
It’s been an awesome journey, for sure. I wake up thinking about additive every day—and hopefully, you can tell from the smile on my face, I love it.

Carl Douglass (02:32):
That enthusiasm was obvious the first time I talked to you. That’s what makes you a celebrity in my mind—your passion for additive manufacturing. I’m really looking forward to hearing more about your insights.

The Supply Chain Breakdown: What Happened?

Carl Douglass (03:17):
So let’s jump in. In October 2024, a hurricane wiped out part of the injection molding supply chain for a major automotive manufacturer. You were on the front lines—what happened?

Bud Runquist (03:40):
It was an unfortunate situation. One of our long-standing customers called up our sales rep and said:

“We’ve got a situation here. We’re going to be shut down.”

For a large OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer), a shutdown means millions of dollars lost per day. They were scrambling for alternatives to their traditional injection molding process. They asked us:

“Is this even possible?”

Credit to our sales rep—he had an open mind and said:

“We can solve this. I know we can solve this.”

We immediately evaluated:

What’s the best additive technology for this part?
What materials meet the requirements?
Is this feasible at scale?

The Emergency Response: Additive Manufacturing at Scale

Bud Runquist (04:08):
That same day, we had parts on a printer. By the end of a 12-hour shift, we had the first parts in hand and shipped them overnight to the customer for testing.

The next morning, they called us back:

“This works. How quickly can you scale up?”

That’s when we realized:

“We need to reach out to our industry partners.”

We couldn’t do it alone—the demand was 500 parts per day, with the first shipment due in seven days.

One of our first calls was to DI Labs. We needed trusted partners who understood quality and scale. The response from the AM community was incredible. People jumped in, saying:

“Yeah, I’m in. Let’s do this!”

The Power of Distributed Manufacturing

Brian Douglass (06:30):
I love that the first thing you did was validate the parts immediately. Is that a lesson you’ve learned over the years?

Bud Runquist (06:49):
Absolutely. This wasn’t the first time we’ve done large-scale AM production. But it was the first time we had a customer say: “We need it in seven days.”

We had to act fast and use our network to scale production.

Timing was everything. Speed was everything. Cost? That wasn’t the focus. The alternative cost of waiting for traditional manufacturing was 100X higher.

More and more companies are realizing that additive isn’t just a stopgap—it’s a cost-effective and repeatable solution for low-to-mid-volume production.

The Need for Industry Standards

Bud Runquist (10:18):
Another challenge? Ensuring quality across the network.

Some suppliers didn’t meet our standards, and we had to say no. The industry needs standardized processes to ensure consistency.

Carl Douglass (12:02):
That’s a huge issue. In traditional manufacturing, outsourcing is common, but in additive, it’s risky because quality varies so much.

Bud Runquist (12:52):
Exactly. At Stratasys Direct, we have a Director of Quality who sets our standards. But not every company does.

We need MES (Manufacturing Execution Systems) and PLM (Product Lifecycle Management) systems that support certified, repeatable additive production.

The Future of Additive Manufacturing

Carl Douglass (26:46):
Bud, any final thoughts or aha moments?

Bud Runquist (27:27):
Yes—distributed manufacturing is closer than we think.

AI, digital twins, and cloud-based part catalogs are going to transform this industry. Companies need to start thinking:

How can we implement AM strategically?
What’s our plan for scaling AM production?

I’m excited about where this industry is headed.

Brian Douglass (29:30):
Bud, this was an amazing conversation. Thanks for your insights and for everything you do for the AM industry.

Bud Runquist (29:44):
Thank you, guys. It’s an honor to be here and work alongside you.

Closing Thoughts

This conversation highlights how additive manufacturing is evolving beyond prototyping into high-volume production. The industry is at a tipping point, and distributed manufacturing will be a key driver of future growth.

Stay tuned for more episodes of Solutionology Stories!