HAVING a disease so rare that it is named after you is not something most people can see the bright side of, but Callum Davies isn’t like most people.
Most people wouldn’t be able to convince a businessman on the verge of retirement to jump on board and fund a new start-up company either, but that was exactly what the 24-year-old did.
“I was selling 3D printers and I met Phil Hoare who was retiring and he decided he wanted a little 3D printer to play around with,” he said.
“I told him about my thoughts for the possibilities for 3D scanning and he decided to come on board and see the project through.”
Mr Davies is now the business development manager at Filor 3D Services.
The young organisation is looking to capitalise on the myriad of possibilities in mining, construction and beyond.
The technology is able to scan and measure anything from wear and tear on an individual piece of equipment, to the exact dimensions of a heritage building, to progress on entire construction sites.
It opens up exciting possibilities for virtual reality – with virtual tourism and educational tours of famous sites able to be built with the technology – as well as measurements for heritage needs and car crash site mapping.
Mr Davies said his degenerative bone condition, of which he and his brother are the world’s only sufferers, meant he came up against more barriers than most, although he had never let it get the most of him.
“Having a sense of humour about it is one way I learnt to deal with the bullying when I was younger,” he said.
“I learnt pretty quickly if you start laughing the bully gets bored and it’s like water off a duck's back.”
Mr Davies was excited by the breadth of possibilities opening up for the company and also hoped to motivate other physically disabled people to see what they can achieve.
“I never wanted to be on a pension – I can’t sit still,” he said.
“I need to be constantly pushing my mind as much as possible – to push the limits is what drives me.”
