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Inside Craitor: The Company Behind FieldFab, a 3D Printer for Extreme Environments

Last October, U.S. troops demonstrated just how far additive manufacturing has come by successfully 3D printing drone parts inside a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter mid-flight. As the aircraft carried out tactical maneuvers, the printer continued to operate, producing functional comp

Craitor
3Dnatives

Last October, U.S. troops demonstrated just how far additive manufacturing has come by successfully 3D printing drone parts inside a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter mid-flight. As the aircraft carried out tactical maneuvers, the printer continued to operate, producing functional components despite turbulence, shifting temperatures, and constant vibration. At the center of the experiment was FieldFab, a system developed by Craitor and built to withstand extreme temperatures, altitude, operational movements, and even rain or condensation. The test offered a compelling glimpse into the growing portability and reliability of 3D printing in demanding environments. To learn more about Craitor and the machine behind the mission, we spoke with Eric Shnell, co-founder and CEO.

3DN: Could you introduce yourself and explain your connection to 3D printing?

My name is Eric Shnell, and I am the co-founder and CEO of Craitor. I began this journey of 3D printing in the early 2010s as a hobbyist, building and modifying my own printers within the maker community.

Eric Shnell

While earning my undergraduate degree in Mechanical Engineering at UC San Diego, I trained and supervised students in the campus maker studios, which led to deeper work in deploying additive manufacturing reliably and at scale. That experience ultimately resulted in collaboration with the U.S. Marine Corps, where I supported advanced manufacturing efforts as a strategic technical advisor.