(March 12, 2018) Pyeongchang – SOFTWARE-ENABLED SMART MANUFACTURING COMPANY PLETHORA UTILIZES A MATSUURA MX-520 5-AXIS VERTICAL MACHINING CENTER, which has been utilized to machine joints for prosthetic legs for amputee athletes. One of plethora’s first projects on their newly installed Matsuura MX-520 was for Biodapt Performance Prosthetics and Adaptive Equipment in St. Cloud, MN.
BioDapt, owned by Paralympian, Mike Schultz, designs, manufactures and distributes high performance lower limb prosthetic components used for action sports and other similar activities. Their goal is to manufacture the highest quality and highly versatile components that allow amputees to participate in sports and activities. This equipment can be and is used by many elite adaptive athletes at the highest level of competition as well as the average person who just wants to get out and be active doing the sports and activities they enjoy.
The 36-year-old from St. Cloud, Minn., carried the U.S. flag into Friday night’s opening ceremonies in Pyeongchang. He was told this week that he was elected by fellow athletes for the honor.
“It means a lot. It means I’ve made a positive influence on a lot of the athletes one way or another. That feels really good,” Schultz said in phone interview Friday morning from Pyeongchang with USA Today.
His influence is evident in the prosthetics he designs. His U.S. snowboard teammates will be wearing them to train and race on the mountain. BioDapt has prosthetics that are being used by “more than 20” Paralympians, which is one more thing that Mike has pride in.
Schultz founded BioDapt in 2010 when he realized there was a need for better prosthetics for action sports athletes. In 2008 he suffered injuries in a snowmobile race that resulted in having his left leg amputated above the knee. After the accident, he created his own prosthetic knee using a mountain bike shock and other equipment he had in his garage.
Schultz enters the Paralympics as one of the top snowboarders in the world having won a silver medal in banked slalom at the 2017 world championships.
As a supporter and friend of teammates wearing prosthetics from his company, there’s a little added responsibility that Schultz shoulders, according to USA Today.
“The whole reason I got into snowboarding was through my company and developing this equipment,” he explained to USA Today. “I feel that is part of my purpose for being here. I definitely put time and effort into that. I don’t feel guilty about it as an athlete because it’s the reason I’m here.”
Men’s and women’s snowboard-cross will be held today and the banked slalom event, new to this year’s Paralympics, will be held March 16. But first Schultz embraced the moment of leading his teammates into the Olympic Stadium on Friday night.
“I take a ton of pride in what our flag and our anthem stands for,” he added. “For me to be chosen to carry the flag, nothing better could be happening in this point in time. It’s a huge honor.”
“One of my most rewarding things is providing equipment for my teammates and other athletes around the world to be more active and to participate in sports,” he said. “Winning medals is big.
“But when I get all this positive feedback on how happy they are to be participating in sports again, that goes much deeper.”
Learn more about Plethora at: PLETHORA.com.
Learn more about BioDapt at: biodaptinc.com
Learn more about CAMPlete and Matsuura at: https://camplete.com/machine-partners/matsuura-cnc-post-processing-simulation-optimization/
MORE ABOUT MATSUURA MACHINERY USA:
Matsuura Machinery USA, Inc., located in St. Paul, MN is the U.S. subsidiary of Matsuura Machinery Corporation in Japan. Since 1935, Matsuura has been the forerunner in designing innovative technology and manufacturing solutions to a variety of industries around the globe. Matsuura Machinery USA, Inc. delivers unmatched excellence in 5-axis, vertical, horizontal, linear motor, multi-tasking CNC machine tools and machines with a powder bed metal AM platform with machining capability. Matsuura Machinery USA, Inc. provides the service, applications and technical field support that have always been the Matsuura standard for business. For more information on Matsuura products, contact: [email protected] or visit: www.matsuurausa.com.
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