BLACKSBURG — Rendyr is another step closer to cutting its way into fields and hobbies such as woodworking and the production of 3-D models.
The small Blacksburg company, which operates out of the Virginia Tech Corporate Research Center, launched over three years ago with the overall goal of producing a laser cutter that would be less expensive and more convenient to use.
It built a portable laser cutter called Optic. This past week, the company launched a crowdfunding campaign on Kickstarter with the goal of raising $50,000.
As of Wednesday night, the company had raised just over $320,000. Its founders say the money will go toward a key step: Beginning manufacturing of the device.
The Kickstarter campaign is slated to continue until Feb. 24, Rendyr’s founders said.
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Laser cutters, which rely on a highly focused light beam to heat and cut through a variety of thin materials, are useful tools in a number of fields, including architecture where they’re often employed to build 3-D models.
The lasers can cut more quickly and precisely than other tools, creating designs that would be impossible by hand. The machines rely on a computer program to effectively tell the laser where to go.
One of the challenges, Rendyr’s founders say, is that, in addition to often being more expensive, the usually large devices aren’t portable and instead must be parked in a dedicated production area like an appliance.
With Optic, the material sits on a flat surface and the laser cutter moves over it. The device folds up into a rectangular-shaped box that can be carried.
“It allows us to have a much more compact machine that’s usable for a cutting area,” said Rendyr co-founder Kaelum Hasler, who had the idea of a desktop laser cutter years ago during his freshman year at Virginia Tech.
Hasler said the intent is for the machine to be adapted to the user’s needs, as opposed to designing a workshop around the device.
Hasler said others who regularly turn to laser cutters include woodworkers who want to engrave their work and small business owners who design and sell products on popular platforms such as Etsy, where craft items are commonly sold.
Rendyr maintains a YouTube channel where it promotes and demonstrates Optic. Among the videos are one where the team uses the laser to cut out the material needed to make a felt pouch and another where it customizes an iPad with a design.
The Rendyr name is a play on the word render, or, as co-founder Martin Angst said, taking an idea and turning it into something tangible.
“Rendering something came to mind,” said Angst, who met Hasler through a research project in robotics.
The spelling of the word, however, was slightly modified for website purposes.
Like many in the area who have formed science and technology-based ventures, Angst and Hasler are both Virginia Tech graduates.
Rendyr is also the product of an ecosystem that has over the years aimed to foster the growth of high-tech innovation businesses in the region.
Rendyr participated in the Roanoke-based Regional Accelerator and Mentoring Program, or RAMP, during the summer of 2020. The company also went through Lighthouse Labs, an accelerator in Richmond.
Both Angst and Hasler gave much credit to figures in the regional network for helping in their company’s progress. People they identified and credited included director of RAMP Mary Miller and Doug Juanarena, whose past work included being an early investor in a Blacksburg email firm that was later absorbed by cloud computing company Rackspace Technology.
With Angst and Hasler included, Rendyr currently employs four full-time — the other two being product engineer Hans Stahl and digital content producer Robert Worley. The company also employs six interns and maintains consultants and advisors.
The company has a goal within the next year to add five to 10 more people to the team, Angst said.
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January 30, 2022 at 06:00PM
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