Fabian Alefeld interviews certified prosthetist/orthotist and EastPoint Prosthetics VP Brent Wright about his career path into O&P, his shift from being anti-digital to adopting scanning and additive manufacturing, and the impact on patient care and global access. Wright describes traditional fabrication workflows (casting, plaster positives, vacuum forming thermoplastics for orthoses, and carbon fiber/resin layups for prostheses) as artistic but time-consuming, hazardous, and lacking records.
His digital journey accelerated after a Guatemala trip with Life Enabled highlighted the need to scale care; he focused on scanning, digital modification, and later powder-bed fusion, moving toward SLS with materials like PK5000 and TPU. He emphasizes pressure casting for prosthetic sockets, the value of digital records for insurance, and how AM can change socket “dynamics” to improve comfort and heal wounds.
The discussion also covers RADii’s data-driven fitting approach, Life Enabled’s mix of traditional and 3D-printed solutions (including pediatric feet), modular “kit” concepts for developing regions, and barriers to sensors/actuators in the US due to reimbursement.
02:33 Brent Origin Story
09:30 Why Go Digital
11:17 Scaling Global Access
17:32 Traditional O&P Workflow
20:02 Casting And Fabrication Steps
24:07 Digital Workflow And Scanning
33:22 Benefits Of Digital Records
36:36 Flexible Liner Heals Wound
40:47 RADii Data Meets Craft
46:06 Life Enabled Model
01:01:50 Democratizing via Manufacturing
01:08:01 Sensors vs Simplicity
