Our Mission
At Craitor, we are working to strengthen the DoD supply chain to enhance materiel readiness and warfighter capability.
We aspire to expand the edge manufacturing capabilities for the warfighter and de-risk additive manufacturing within the DoD and commercial sectors.
Leadership
Eric Shnell / CEO
Eric is CEO and Co-Founder of Craitor. He holds a degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of California, San Diego, where he researched robotics and additive manufacturing. Eric has been recognized as a Gordon Fellow for his work in engineering leadership with the UCSD and broader San Diego community.
Eric is the primary Systems Engineer and Lead Design Engineer for the FieldFab system and has spent over 2 years embedded with units from the USMC, US Army, US Navy, and USAF, deploying 3D printing capabilities in austere environments, printing mission-critical hardware in the field.
Dan Valdes / COO
Dan joined Craitor in 2020 as COO after retiring from the USMC after 21 years of service. During his service, Dan operated as a technical expert in communication maintenance and was a Communications Maintenance Chief during his tours in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Marine Corps Forces Central Command. After returning to the States, he put his knowledge of maintenance to use in the research and development of applications for Additive Manufacturing within the USMC.
Dan helped found the Additive Manufacturing Training Center at Camp Pendleton and personally developed the Additive Manufacturing Training Program that is currently used across the DoD and is recognized by the US Department of Labor. He has been a valuable contributor to the DoD Advanced Manufacturing ecosystem and has leveraged his expertise to deploy 3D printing capabilities where they are needed most.
Akhil Birlangi / CTO
Akhil Birlangi has a Masters in Electrical Engineering from the University of California, San Diego. He is CTO and Co-Founder of Craitor and is the Electrical Design Lead for FieldFab. Akhil has spent the last 4 years researching and developing 3D printing electronic hardware from military specification. This encompasses optimizing electronics for wet/dusty/humid conditions, driving PCB development, and designing and deploying ML/computer vision technologies.
Akhil has developed custom electrical hardware that allows Craitor to operate independently of other computer systems and stay operational in the harshest environments.
Will Landry / VP Sales & Marketing
Will Landry brings over 7 years of entrepreneurial and leadership experience at the intersection of technology, commercialization, and mission-focused innovation. As Craitor’s Vice President of Sales and Marketing, he leads go-to-market strategy and drives growth across both commercial and government sectors. Prior to joining Craitor, Will founded The Lichen Lab, a hardware technology startup that partnered with leading life science companies and research institutions to deliver scalable energy-saving solutions.
Earlier in his career, Will coordinated community involvement and operations at Overcast Network, an international online gaming community of over one million users. Will holds a MicroMBA from the Rady School of Management and a B.S. in Biology from UC San Diego. He is passionate about serving the defense community, protecting the natural world, and strengthening social trust.
James Penney / Director of Business Development
James joined Craitor in 2024 but first met Akhil and Eric at Port Hueneme demonstrating advanced manufacturing capabilities at the Navy's Repair Technology Exercise two years prior. James has been involved in multiple areas of additive manufacturing since 2018 and has seen the industry change and adapt. He applies this experience towards customer success initiatives, finding critical applications of Craitor's technology, and collaborating with industry partners.
James has a Masters in Materials Science from the University of California Los Angeles with career research highlights in powder metallurgy applications of titanium metal matrix composites, cold spray coatings, particle accelerators, vacuum furnaces, and additive manufacturing. Previously contributing to multiple SBIR projects for the DOE, James now leads SBIR efforts for DoD applications of Craitor's technology.