Critical Facts• Introduction and Growth: Santa Cruz Bicycles (SCB) is a company started in 1993 by former professional skateboarder Rob Roskopp who teamed up with fellow skateboarders Mike Marquez and Rich Novak. The company has evolved from manufacturing "merely advanced" full suspension bikes in 1993 to today's "cutting edge" performance bikes, known for their unique Virtual Pivot Point (VPP) system. (Santa Cruz Bicycles, 2014) A company that had $6 million in sales in the 1990s increased its sales by more than 40 percent annually. (Duvall, 2007)• Traveling with the new suspension system, VPP: After acquiring the patent for their VPP from Outland Bikes in 1999 (Roskopp, 2001), the first prototype of the frame designed by the VPP suspension system after 3 months of design work and 4 months of custom manufacturing by external machine shops. The initial test results were devastating and Joe Graney, the head of engineering, said in one of his interviews: “It only took one ride to realize the thing sucked. Here we were seven months later, with a lot of money in the hole, without a bike to bring to market." This failure exposed the weakest link in the company's research and development process. ( Duvall, 2007) • First prototype, revelatory: Santa Cruz Bicycles quickly realized that, to capitalize on its patented VPP technology and ultimately grow its business, it needed to find a way to transform board designs to draw prototypes faster Although the company used AutoCAD software to create new designs, it took too long for the working prototype to be machined by suppliers. prototypes, the designs had to be redeveloped, which had a catastrophic effect on the company's finances (Duvall, 2007)... middle of paper ......the. ) Retrieved from http://www.bikeradar.com/: http://www.bikeradar.com/news/article/interview-rob-roskopp-owner-of-santa-cruz-bicycles- -28844/Vélos Santa Cruz . (2008). BLUR LT 2008 release. Retrieved from santacruz-pl.com: http://santacruz-pl.com/attachments/article/71/Old%20BLT2%20Press%20Release.pdfSanta Cruz Bicycles. (2014). Santa Cruz Bikes. Retrieved from www.santacruzbicycles.com: http://www.santacruzbicycles.com/en/us/companyShepherd, K. (February 15, 2013). PTC Creo helps Santa Cruz Bicycles increase revenue in a declining economy. Retrieved from creo.ptc.com: http://creo.ptc.com/2013/02/15/ptc-creo-helps-santa-cruz-bicycles-grow-revenues-in-a-down-economy/Stackpole, B. (November 3, 2006). Smooth transition to PLM. Retrieved from www.managingautomation.com: http://www.managingautomation.com/maonline/magazine/read/view/Smooth_Ride_to_PLM_3571735