PADT, Inc - 3D Printing Service in Phoenix

They found the hard to find part that I needed on the other side of the country and had it sent overnight to save my relationship with my client. I couldn't have asked for more. The only local shop I called that actually made the effort. Bravo!

Met with a co-founder, which was nice, felt honored, spent 30 minutes reviewing design I had in mind, ended up getting referred to another engineer. He said he would have that engineer contact me. Waited a week, finally called them and set appointment. Co-director was off to China. Met with that engineer, he was helpful and informative, but a bit overbearing, seemed to talk over me at times and insulted my intelligence/character when assuming I was going to try to keep a byproduct of a special type of 3d printing process when I inquired about cost differences between SLA and FDM. Even though I was there in the office with files in hand, I still had to transfer the files over the internet to another person working in another part of the state for a quote. Thus, in order to submit the design for a quote, and after making an attempt to address security issues, I was given a special username and password for the ftp site. I checked it out and could look at any of the files anyone submitted. Not only was it not a secure connection over the internet but having been given a login and password, I was then able to view any of the files anyone submitted. What a joke for security that was. I then addressed this problem and ended up speaking to an IT manager. I suggested using Dropbox, but he informed me it wasn't very secure as the keycode may be floating around out there. But, he didn't want to go into great detail on that and failed to mention that there are third party providers that further encrypt data sent through dropbox, e.g. Sookasa. Rather, he mentioned that I drop off a CD or thumb drive at the facility, which would have made it my third trip to their office. He gave me the name of another engineer and suggested I attach a letter stating that the files stay with the CD or thumb drive, and then drop them off. That would have worked for me and would have been fine, but since I was out of town helping to take care of my mom, I suggested sending it via regular mail. He replied "Oh my God!", his tone suggesting the last straw that broke the camel's back had been laid. The call, now being escalated, didn't last long after that. Apparently my concern was beneath him. I called for the engineer he mentioned and left a message that same day. No return call. I eventually called back after a week and was transferred to the co-director who informed me that we wouldn't be a good fit. Wow, what a disappointment. I'm surprised with all the security breaches that have taken place recently, intellectual property is not given more attention against hacker attacks. Indeed, PADT wasn't a good fit. Perhaps for the individual trying to develop a prototype, this company isn't a good fit, but if you work for a corporation or something and have a lot of business to offer and a lot of extra cash in your wallet, you'll get more attention. But, I wouldn't expect secure file handling. In light of all this, I'm surprised of the partnership they've recently formed with the Center for Entrepreneurial Innovation. I actually attended the grand opening. You'd think they'd be more interested in working with the little guy and willing and able to address potential security risks.

I had a good experience working with PADT staff. They are very nice and helpful. When I asked question, they would ask me to send FEA model to them and they would help setup the analysis correctly and schedule a Webex with me. During the Webex meeting, I can ask all kind of questions and they would always make sure that I got the answer and fully understand the concept. Outstanding!

They know everything about 3D printing, they have 3D printers that print plastic and metal parts on site. They sell industrial grade 3D printers. Very knowledgeable engineers.

Great company that cares about the community. Attend their events, they are fun if you like stem