Cusic Digital

Re-engineering E-commerce for
Advanced Manufacturing.

How we rescued a premier 3D printing manufacturer from an overgrown, sluggish WooCommerce template by building a custom, lightning-fast Next.js architecture.

Next.jsTypeScriptPostgreSQLStripe & Shippo
Advanced manufacturing and 3D printing

Performance Yield

300%

Faster Page Loads

System Bloat

0%

Plugin Reliance

Infrastructure

100%

Stack Ownership

The Barren Soil: An Overgrown System

Great Lakes Additive is a premier 3D printing and manufacturing company based in Traverse City, MI. Their physical operations were precise and state-of-the-art, but their digital infrastructure was stifling their growth.

They came to Cusic Digital relying on a traditional WordPress site bloated with third-party plugins. When they launched their e-commerce store via WooCommerce, the cracks began to show immediately. The site was sluggish, database queries timed out, and managing their complex inventory through a rigid, template-based platform was nearly impossible.

The New Custom Architecture

Next.js UIReact / Tailwind
API
Node.js + ExpressCustom Business Logic
PostgreSQLSecure Database
Stripe & ShippoThird-Party APIs

The Solution: Deep Roots & Custom Engineering

We pruned away the bloat and started from the soil up. Cusic Digital architected a fully custom, decoupled e-commerce platform.

  • The Front-End: We utilized Next.js and TypeScript to create a lightning-fast, highly responsive user interface that showcases their 3D printing services flawlessly.
  • The Back-End: We built a robust, secure infrastructure using Node.js and a custom PostgreSQL database, ensuring data integrity and rapid load times regardless of traffic.
  • The Integrations: We seamlessly integrated Stripe for frictionless, secure payments and Shippo for automated, reliable order fulfillment.

The Yield

Great Lakes Additive now completely owns their digital stack. They are no longer renting space in a slow, plugin-dependent ecosystem. The new platform performs beautifully, handles transactions securely, and scales effortlessly alongside their manufacturing output.

True to our partnership model, Cusic Digital remains by their side, providing sustained maintenance and optimization to ensure their digital presence remains a powerful, durable asset.

“Eamon at Cusic Digital is highly intelligent with a creative side which makes him a very valuable asset to our company. We intend to utilize his expertise... for as long as he is available. All around great person to have on our team. Reliable, expeditious and courteous are but a few of his positive traits.”

Brandon Williams

Brandon Williams

Great Lakes Additive LLC

Are you outgrowing your current setup?

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