Senator Risch Announces Continuous Composites as Small Business of the Month in Congressional Record

Mr. RISCH. Mr. President, as a senior member and former chairman of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, each month I recognize and celebrate the American entrepreneurial spirit by highlighting the success of a small business in my home state of Idaho. Today I am pleased to honor Continuous Composites Inc. in Coeur d’Alene as the Idaho Small Business of the Month for February 2021.

Continuous Composites is a technology company developing composite additive manufacturing solutions co-founded by Ken Tyler, John Swallow, and Tyler Alvarado in 2015. The company owns the world’s earliest granted patents on Continuous Fiber 3D Printing (CF3D®), a revolutionary, automated manufacturing process that utilizes high-performance continuous fibers (e.g., carbon fiber, glass fiber, optical fibers) with “snap curing” thermoset resins to produce light-weight, high-performance composite parts on-demand. Historically, composites have been limited to high-end products, including military applications, where the advantages of high-performance, low-weight materials outweigh costly conventional manufacturing processes. CF3D® is re-shaping composites manufacturing at exponentially reduced costs and lead times while providing users with a much greater degree of design freedom. The company has an extraordinary opportunity to change how industrial businesses and the Department of Defense innovate and manufacture throughout the entire product life cycle, from design and prototyping to serial production and sustainment. Continuous Composites’ novel approach to 3D printing has garnered interest from many industry leaders, national laboratories, and government agencies resulting in strategic partnerships and multi-million dollar equity investments. Continuous Composites’ CF3D® technology is directly aligned with The United States of America’s National Defense Strategy, which has led to significant engagement from the Air Force Research Laboratory.

Since its founding, Continuous Composites has been rapidly hiring numerous engineers and business professionals, attracting talent from across the country to Coeur d’Alene. Last September, Alvarado and Swallow announced the remodel and opening of a 7,500 square foot manufacturing demonstration facility on their campus in downtown Coeur d’Alene. This historic building is now being used for advanced research, development, and commercialization of CF3D®. The expansion will provide high-paying, in-demand jobs of the future to the Coeur d’Alene community.

Continuous Composites is an outstanding example of a small, trailblazing Idaho business that is leading the way in technological innovation. Congratulations to Tyler, John, Ken, and the whole Continuous Composites team for your outstanding achievements. You make our great state proud, and I look forward to your continued growth and success.