I spoke to my legal department about relaying this story in a public domain. Permission was given with certain tactical information omissions. Its one of the many somethings I would love to tell you all, but am restricted by my confidentiality contract and security clearances, as to what I can and can't say. I was excited to get the final go ahead. You may find this interesting.

Round about 7 1/2 years ago we received some confidential CAD drawings from a newly signed client. They were nothing special, just some metal bracketing, housings, wireways, and a couple of simplified PCB's. In the pre-engineering and production meetings there arose questions as to the component layout and specs provided. In these cases, we by policy call in a member of the clients engineering team and have them do an overview of what it was we had to do to fit this into the end product. As well, all the relationships of the parts, specs on heat, wear, trim and material composites. The requisite NDA's were requested and put forth for signing, as a matter of internal policy.

I was not personally there, however was related the events by an over excited engineer of ours. A few days later and with great interest, I watched the video of the conference room presentation. (Everything is recorded here) The client engineer arrived and set his material and PPS in the board room. When everyone arrived for the meeting there was the requisite coffee, water, juice and doughnuts. Also as a mainstay, working paper note pads with a stack of pens for doodling cubes and characters during those exciting points. A laptop on the table with wifi connections to the screen hanging on the wall behind the presenter, and a couple of funny looking gadgets beside the laptop. The meeting began with the usual introductions, and coverage of questions of said CAD pieces and a few sidebars of our history of being "can do" in any situation.

It was near the end of the discussion, one of our document people asked what the two gadgets were for beside his lap top. The client engineer said that the attendees should "have a look" then passed them around the room. The one piece or pieces was a large plastic bolt in green with a large plastic nut made of red plastic threaded half way up the shaft of the bolt. Remarkable in its simplicity, one also noticed how smooth the tolerances were, and how accurate the finished product was between the two pieces. The other device was actually block style pad lock with working internal gearing and key way with a matching key. The client engineer had our people fascinated with these two devices, their design work and manufacturing processes.

It was then that one of our engineers asked what these had to do with the contracted project. The client engineer said they were pieces relating to construction of the objects. Furthered by our engineer again asking "We are making a toy maker ?" To which the client engineer replied (a tad indignantly) "NO, we are changing an entire industry, possibly entire related industries" ....."A sentient change in how everything is designed and created". Which ....was a bold statement.

A puzzled look came over the rooms faces. Then the statement came, like a wipe from a cold face cloth in the morning, or a smack on the bottom from mum or dad when we were insolent as children. Stinging, instant and shocking. "We are designing and building a 3 dimensional printer for industry, home and office".

Now 3D printing has been around a while, we knew of it here at the time, mainly in the aerospace and petrochemical venues. It was formally known as "fused deposition modelling". Its come to the fore in the last few years as a feasible industrial product design tool for mockups, one of a kinds, and samples for industries. It was only now the thought was that the costs were coming down and the future of a homefront product was in sight. The interesting thing though as we fast forward to present again, is that its now spawned into a multitude of different genre's used for making everything from food, living human organs, car parts, toys, working models etc. In future it will create new industry and new concepts and eventually you will be able to print your own Vanilla cupcakes.

Lets get back to our boardroom.

So by now, the faces of our staff were stunned, the silence was deafening. There were murmurs of "wow" and "crazy' and a few other superlatives uttered as well. The client engineer and our team ended up over 5 hours in the board room discussing the history, the uses, the future of the device. To say my people were fascinated beyond compare would be an understatement. It left a definitive indelible mark on their consciousness. All of the group in the room that day are PTK shareholders as well.

So lets fast forward to the now. What impelled me to obtain the proper permission to write this, was an ad at Staples, a few weeks ago for an at home 3D printer. While still a new entrant into the technology field, and probably will not replace regular printing equipment all together. It can and will still serve the average user in many productive ways. Spawning an industry of home based inventors using collective ideas for the better mousetrap. It also does serve as a bellweather warning to many printer, design, and manufacturing related industries that change is coming quickly, and they had better find acceptable ways to adapt. Including us at this company. As a small portion of our business is design/build and then with approval, we manufacture for the client.

Which many have started to do in house, thereby reducing or eliminating the need for someone like us. Where we will survive, because this is a small part of our overall business, some will not. We have already adapted and have large scale 3D printing equipment of our own. Where we were primarily metal fabrication we are now using plastics, in our working models. We knew after that conversation that change was coming, better to be ahead of the curve in any way we could than behind the eight ball. If we were to develop our specialty manufacturing side, we need to be in the game.

We did comprehensive studies on what was currently available at that time for the equipment we wanted. The change was good, more efficient and led to better quality working samples, faster turn around in design, and now we have offices with all manner of widgets on desks and hanging from ceilings. we saw the writing on the wall.

So.....being much bigger, more resourceful and cutting edge than we were.....you can 100% bet, so does the fruit company, the search company, the intelligence inside company, the singing sam company and so on down the line....seen the writing on the wall......and probably have seen AM and PC at their door.

In the case of POET, the change for the industry will have to be 100% adoption or face 100% obsolesence.

The stop watch for an entire industry, starts on receipt of the first offer.