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April 29, 2008

Ponoko gets greener with U.S. global head office

Launched at the prestigious TechCrunch40 conference in September 2007, Ponoko today announced the establishment of a new global head office and manufacturing facilities in San Francisco as the website gains traction among U.S. users.

The milestones mean that Ponoko will begin to realise the environmental benefits of distributed manufacturing for sustainable design, and come as the company's business model is endorsed by the appointment of web entrepreneur Graham Hill to its board of advisors. Mr Hill is the founder of treehugger.com, a leading international website dedicated to driving sustainability into the mainstream, with over 2.6 million visitors each month¹.

"Being able to make products on-demand, close to where people live, reduces waste and cuts down on the carbon emissions associated with transporting products to consumers. Our facilities in San Francisco mean that we're starting to see this become a reality in the United States, and the appointment of Graham to our board of advisors is a huge endorsement of Ponoko's vision for a more sustainable approach to the way goods are created, made and delivered," says Ponoko co-founder and CEO David ten Have.

Ponoko is the world's largest marketplace for product plans. The website works by connecting designers with consumers to share, buy, sell and make these designs into individualized goods, on demand.

Since launching, Ponoko.com has attracted a wide range of product plans for items ranging from household items and accessories to jewellery and wearable art. Today Ponoko also launches a new website that showcases these designs, and enables consumers to purchase products and plans directly from designers and makers by credit card or PayPal.

"The new website features make it even easier for people to buy and sell truly unique products using Ponoko," says Ponoko co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer Derek Elley, "and continues the growth of a new class of business people using the Internet to design, sell and make digital product plans into real goods, on demand."

"Consumers no longer have to accept what they find on the shelf—instead they can have something that's designed and made especially for them, something 'individualized' from scratch—and not just personalizing a t-shirt or coffee cup. For designers, the ability to easily share and have their creations made to order means that anyone can take their designs to the world, without the traditional costs of setup and inventory."

Mr. Elley says that it made sense for Ponoko to return to San Francisco to launch the next phase of its business.

"Over half of the U.S. visitors to Ponoko.com are from California, and San Francisco is well known for having a community of creative people who think outside the square: the type of person who immediately recognises the business appeal, and environmental benefits of Ponoko-made goods," he says.

Ponoko will now focus on expanding the range of materials it can offer people to make their personalised designs from and introducing different manufacturing technologies as it continues to grow its on-demand making network.

"The new website and our facilities in San Francisco mean that we have a strong base from which to build our capabilities as we seek to connect designers direct with consumers. This will enable designers to be increasingly creative, and provide more choice for people who want to turn an idea for an individualized product into a reality," said Mr. ten Have.

¹ Figures for March 2008 from www.treehugger.com

For more information contact:

Derek Elley
Chief Strategy Officer
USA +1 415 690 3364
NZ +64 21 88 66 81

 

Ponoko

Ponoko (www.ponoko.com) is the world's largest marketplace for product plans. Creators and consumers use these plans to share, buy, sell and make individualized goods. Armed with nothing more than an idea, professional and hobbyist designers, crafters, makers, hackers and artists can turn their ideas into real products—and new revenue streams—using Ponoko's web commerce and digital make-on-demand services. Ponoko cuts the waste from oversupply by making products on-demand, and cuts carbon emissions by sourcing local materials and making products as close to the point of consumption as possible; introducing a new sustainable era in the way products are designed, made and delivered.

Graham Hill

Graham Hill is the founder of Treehugger.com, a leading source of news, solutions and product information dedicated to driving sustainability into the mainstream. Past businesses include forays into fashion, web-development, viral email and plant-based air filters. In 1995, with his cousin, he started and grew the web-developer, SiteWerks, to 60 people doing work for large companies such as Microsoft and sold it to a New York company in 1998. Additionally, he owns a product business that sells a New York souvenir he designed a few years ago into 150 stores including MOMA. Graham has a Bachelor of Architecture with distinction from Carleton University in Ottawa and did advanced studies in Industrial Design at E.C.I.A.D, Vancouver.

September 17, 2007

Ponoko launches among world's hottest technology start-ups.

New Zealand company Ponoko will establish itself as one of the world's hottest new technology businesses today when it launches as one of only 40 participants at the prestigious TechCrunch40 conference in San Francisco. Ponoko has been chosen from more than 700 start-up companies from 26 countries that applied to present at the event.

Ponoko is the world's first personal manufacturing platform. Using the www.ponoko.com website, people can invent and design new products, then have them made to order, or sell their designs to others.

"Ponoko enables anyone to turn an idea for a product into a reality, by connecting designers and consumers with an international network of digital manufacturing hardware that can be controlled direct from any PC. It also acts as a global marketplace for original ideas and new inventions, by allowing people to buy, sell and share designs," says Ponoko co-founder and CEO David ten Have.

The benefits of Ponoko include making it easier and cheaper for designers to bring their ideas to market. It also makes it easier and cheaper for consumers to buy products that aren't mass produced.

"Products can be made anywhere in the world. Because they can be made close to where a buyer lives, they don't have to be shipped over great distances or stored in bulk in warehouses. This keeps costs down and is kinder on the environment," says Mr ten Have.

Ponoko's presentation at TechCrunch40 will be discussed by an expert panel of technology investors, commentators and representatives from some of the world's largest technology companies. The event will be attended by leading technology media, and by over 900 people at locations around the globe.

"Being selected to present at TechCrunch40 will give us tremendous exposure to an influential community with a strong interest in new ideas and innovative business models. The conference is a fantastic opportunity for Ponoko to establish itself on the world stage," says Ponoko co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer Derek Elley.

Mr. ten Have and Mr. Elley are no strangers to successful technology start ups. Mr ten Have co-founded and was CTO of web development firm, Provoke, helping to build a multi-million dollar company within five years. Mr Elley co-founded and was CEO of Internet marketing agency, First Rate, which is now New Zealand's only Google AdWords Qualified Company, tracking over $750 million in customer revenues and managing more than 1 million ad clicks monthly.

Ponoko currently has a digital manufacturing bureau in Wellington and plans to open bureaus in the United States over the next few months. Independent bureaus will also be invited to become accredited to the service.

"Ultimately, our aim is to establish a community of digital manufacturing hardware operators around the world. This will include established owners of digital manufacturing equipment, but has the potential to be hugely diverse, including offices, homes or schools. Today's presentation at TechCrunch40 will play an important role in helping to make people aware of Ponoko's huge potential," says Mr. Elley.

For more information contact:

Derek Elley
Chief Strategy Officer
USA +1 415 690 3364
NZ +64 21 88 66 81