Written by HappyValley Industry and Featured in their October 2024 CATALYST

When meeting other area entrepreneurs and startup founders, Juan Mario Gomez, CEO of Xact Metal, says one of the first things he asks them is, “Have you talked to Ben Franklin yet?”

Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Central and Northern Pennsylvania has played a significant role in Xact Metal’s expansive growth over the last eight years. During its initial forming days, the company, which specializes in affordable metal 3D printing, participated in the Ben Franklin TechCelerator program. Since then, it has benefited from several rounds of Ben Franklin funding—from its initial start-up, during the COVID-19 pandemic, and through its expansion.

“Ben Franklin helped us with the initial funding where we needed start-up capital and has been our partner since then, even through difficult times. If Ben Franklin had not stepped in during Covid, together with the Chamber of Business & Industry of Centre County (CBICC) and College Township, we would have been in trouble,” Gomez explained. “We had just added a lot of people. We were estimating growth and suddenly the orders disappeared. They were able to help us through that and they were able to help us grow and position ourselves in a way that we would be able to attract further options for capital.”

However, Ben Franklin offers so much more than funding. Gomez noted that the team’s business mentoring and advising and ability to make connections and open doors have also been important for Xact’s growth. “That has helped just as much or more than the funding, in a sense,” said Gomez, “because Ben Franklin is able to bring its experience and provide a sounding board to a young company.” In many ways, too, he added, being a Ben Franklin-supported company is almost like a stamp of approval. The distinction carries a lot of weight, and it’s a bit of a “merit badge.”

He summed up, “Ben Franklin is the best friend you’re going to find when you’re a young company — and the friendliest money you’ll find.”

Todd Erdley, Central Region director and portfolio manager at Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Central and Northern Pennsylvania, praised Gomez and Xact Metal’s work, saying, “Juan Mario Gomez is a seasoned business leader with a distinguished career at GE. This background, combined with early-stage technology brought forth from Penn State in 3D metal printing, has been foundational to the outstanding growth of Xact Metal. Having a seasoned leader like Juan Mario was a catalyst to Ben Franklin Technology Partners wanting to support his vision and the company growth. Ben Franklin Technology Partners take great pride in what Juan Mario and the Xact Metal team have done to impact the 3D metal printing industry and we look forward to ongoing success.”