The global professional services firm EY has picked Josef Průša as the Czech Republic’s Entrepreneur of the Year, setting the founder of Prusa Research on the path towards EY’s global entrepreneurship award.
“My company will only be as good as my people. So we’re probably pretty good. And we are moving on,” Průša said when accepting the award.
Průša dove into 3D printing in 2009 while studying economics at university. Rather than getting a job upon graduation in 2012, Průša borrowed 200,000 Koruna from his father to found Prusa Research. This was the classic startup operation with Průša boxing up printer parts in a basement.
Prusa Research’s first commercial product, the Prusa i3, shipped in 2015 and became a runaway success. The product line has since expanded to include multi-filament support, a mini-version of the i3, and a resin-based stereolithography printer. Every month, Prusa Research ships more than 10,000 3D printers from its headquarters in Prague to customers around the world.
Magdalena Souček, EY’s managing partner in the Czech Republic, praised Průša’s accomplishment as a young entrepreneur. “Thirty-one-year-old Průša, who won the national competition this year based on the jury’s decision, is historically the youngest representative of the Czech Republic…. Despite his youth, he is already a role model for others. I am convinced that his story will also interest the jury of the world finals.”
3D Printing PPE
Průša’s business success was not the sole factor behind his selection. EY also credited Průša for his role in combating the global COVID-19 pandemic. With European countries entering lockdown last year, hospitals in Czechia were running out of personal protective equipment (PPE). Průša and his team realized that their i3-based production line could help by printing protective face shields. Yet even then, Průša saw room for improvement.
In an interview with Radio Prague, Průša explained that “In the 3D community, various designs for respirators and so on had been circulating for some time. After analysing them, I determined they were inadequate, mainly because they gave a false sense of security.”
The Prusa Research team developed their own face shield design that meets the European standard for eye protection, EN 166:2001. Since March 2020, the company has produced more than a quarter of a million face shields. But their service did not stop at the Czechia border. Prusa Research released the design as an open-source project and provided resources to help people in other countries with the medical device certification process.
The Czech Red Cross awarded Průša with a gold medal for his role in supporting frontline healthcare workers and the Czech Parliament has proposed Průša as a recipient of his country’s Medal of Merit. Průša will represent the Czech Republic in EY’s World Entrepreneur of the Year program. Taking place virtually on June 10, 2021, the competition’s judges will consider entrepreneurs from fifty countries.
