John Kawola

Biography:
John Kawola is the President Ultimaker-North America, the leading open-source desktop 3D printer company.

Prior to Ultimaker, John was the CEO of Harvest Automation.  Harvest developed and deployed an autonomous mobile robotic platform that assists workers with difficult, repetitive material handling. Target markets include agriculture and warehouse e-commerce distribution.

Prior to Harvest, John served as CEO of 3D printing pioneer Z Corporation.  Z Corporation led the way in introducing fast, easy to use and full color 3D printing into a wide range of industries.   John and his team built a global distribution network and helped to create a market, where engineers and designers were making prototyping a regular part of their design process.  Z Corporation was acquired by 3D Systems in 2012.

Prior to Z Corporation, John held a range of technical roles at Albany International and General Electric.

John served as a Director at Spaceclaim, a 3D software company which was acquired by ANSYS in 2014.  John is the Chairman of laboratory automation company Labminds and an Advisor at Voxel8, a Harvard Wyss Institute spin-off with a focus 3D printing of fully integrated electronics.

John received a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Cornell University, MS in Mechanical Engineering from Rensselaer and an MBA from Union College.

Talk Abstract:
The Future of Enterprise 3D Printing is Desktop

The ability for individual enterprise employees to produce a small replacement part, create a prototype, or even create a usable product via a 3D printer directly at their desk has historically been viewed as a hopeful wish, yet unattainable due to cost and physical printing restrictions. However, the pace of improvement and change with desktop 3D printers has been much faster than historical technical growth in the industry. Already in 2017, we’re seeing sub-$5,000 machines displacing systems that cost tens of thousands of dollars. Technical capability—i.e. speed, reliability and advanced materials—will continue to improve and costs will decline, making desktop printers even more predominant across businesses and educational institutions in the coming years.

In this talk, John Kawola, President of Ultimaker North America, will discuss how 3D printing has revolutionized productivity and work flow for enterprise employees, and what the increased accessibility means for the future enterprise workplace.