SoBA Grad Michael Manhardt Discusses Revamping Business Plan for Acuity Designs

SoBA alumnus Michael Manhardt knows first-hand that sometimes, even the best-laid business plan doesn’t always work out as expected.

But when he and his team at Acuity Designs http://acuitydesign.co/ in Missoula ran into roadblocks in the functionality of Helix, a 3-D printer intended to produce full-scale models and prototypes, they didn’t throw in the towel on the Kickstarter-funded project. Instead, they retooled their plan and came up with a new printer that would still fill a manufacturing need for their customers.

The concept for Helix was born in June 2013. By that November, Acuity had successfully raised the capital to design and build Helix, intended as a professional, affordable 3-D printer widely available to engineers, architects, schools and universities, and manufacturers.

That’s when they first ran into trouble.

Full Story: http://www.business.umt.edu/SoBA/NewsAndEvents/LatestNews/TabId/1204/ArtMID/3715/ArticleID/540/SoBA-Grad-Discusses-Revamping-Business-Plan.aspx