Not only is Andy Dalman a prosthetics mastermind, a co-creator of one of the most (if not THE most) affordable 3D-printed prosthetic arms for children, and the patent-holder for an artificial bone design he invented, but he was also just chosen by the Society of Manufacturing Engineers as one of the 30 under 30 brightest manufacturing engineers in the US for 2015. (Read the full article here!) Folks, this guy is a pretty cool dude.
Andy graduated from North Dakota State University in May, and is now pursuing a mission to create affordable prosthetics for all who need them. He and his team, Tyler Skeate, Michael Walmsley and Cooper Bierscheid, have formed a non-profit organization called Protosthetics through which they hope to offer prosthetic arms to those who can’t afford the average +25K for prosthetics. The arm he and his team created costs about $400.
The Protosthetics team will be presenting this week at 1 Million Cups. Andy Dalman is also a Startup Drinks captain for our upcoming Startup Drinks event on July 22. Here’s a little backstory on Andy, as part of our Meet the Captains series!
Andy Dalman: Inventor, Engineer, Lego-Tinkerer
1. Do you have a nickname? If so, what is it?
I wish. I wasn’t that cool. No nicknames for me ☹
2. Any awkward tattoos? Please describe in detail.
Nope, but I do have an airbrush and doodle/stencil on myself. I walked around for a week with some radiation symbols stenciled on and got some amusing looks. I’m also wont to show up to events wearing nail polish or with some funny color in my hair.
3. If you could describe your startup as an animal what animal would it be?
The first thing that came up in group chat was a hermit crab. The similarity is that as hermit crabs replace their shells as they grow, prosthetics also need to be replaced as a child grows, lest they end up with too small of prosthetic. Protosthetics hopes to help provide a convenient and inexpensive solution for this process.
4. What is one of the most influential books you’ve ever read?
I grew up with a copy of Gray’s Anatomy (the medical reference text, not some TV novel!) in my library. That has inspired me to think about how the human body functions and fits together; I still reference it on a weekly basis or so to look something up for one of my projects.
My copy was authored in 1977, and while our understanding of parts of the body has grown since then, the body itself hasn’t really changed. It’s humbling to have this huge reference text (1216 pages!) that is quite a bit older than I am sitting on my desk.
5. If you could travel anywhere in the world right now, where would you go?
Probably Reykjavík, Iceland. Because reasons.
6. What is one the coolest places you’ve traveled?
The island of Oahu, Hawaii is in general an awesome place. Hanauma Bay is located on Oahu and is a beach/coral area located in an ancient volcanic crater- super cool! The North Shore is also fun.
