As a 3D printing writer based in South Korea I frequently have the chance to test and review new machines from around East Asia. While most are pretty good, I had the opportunity a while back to test the Cubicon Style from HyVision and absolutely fell in love with it. I was excited to discover others, outside of Korea, who were likewise thrilled with it too. 3Design in New Zealand is one of them This led me one night to a lengthy discussion on Twitter with a gregarious Kiwi named Robert Reid. Robert, as things would have it, is the CEO of 3Design (@info_3design), a New Zealand 3D printing company who had recently started to import the Cubicon. As I learned, 3Design was the first company in NZ to stock, sell, and service 3D printers fulltime. Other general merchandise retailers were selling some machines, but as Robert tells it, once you bought the machine and took it home…you were on your own. Having taken the lead in mainstreaming 3D printing in New Zealand, their path was littered with challenges. Many of the tasks they faced came from the fact that New Zealand’s economy is currently in flux, as the nation transitions from a traditionally agrarian economy, to one based on high technology. This presented some unique problems, so the first thing Robert and his crew did was to focus on building a 3D printing team of experts to assist their customers with whatever challenges they experienced. Robert noted that, “many of the big stores just didn’t realize that 3D printing, with all of its quirks, is about service and knowledge…not numbers.” The team members were all trained in CAD, Solidworks, Magics, and Rino. They also developed and provide 3D training courses for customers of all skills; from beginner to advanced levels. And for customers who need extra help, 3Design offers 3D printing services in-house, on a file-by-file basis and turns customer files into solid objects. Past clients have included architects, engineers, product designers, and fashion designers.