Additive Manufacturing Users Group Expands Leadership Team

The Additive Manufacturing Users Group (AMUG) has expanded its management team, appointing four loyal supporters to director and officer positions. The expansion was triggered by year-over-year growth in the group’s annual conference and projected future growth.

Gary Rabinovitz, manager of the Additive Manufacturing Lab at Reebok International Ltd., and a past president of AMUG, was appointed as board chairman. Rabinovitz supervised the development of the organization’s 2015 conference agenda, which boasted nearly 200 presentations, and led the users group during its transition from a technology focus to an industry-wide organization, according to AMUG executives. Mark Barfoot, president and former chairman, will retain a director position on the board.

“We are coming off of a very successful AMUG conference, thanks in part to the tireless efforts of the board and officers. To grow AMUG while maintaining the characteristics that makes it unique, namely being an educational and informative association that emphasizes collaboration and networking, the users group’s leadership needs more additive manufacturing professionals that are passionate about the its success,” Barfoot said in prepared remarks.

The AMUG Board also created four deputy vice president positions, which will be filled by appointment.  Paul Bates, lead additive manufacturing development engineer at UL, and Derek Ellis, senior applications engineer for Computer Aided Technology Inc., recently were appointed to fill two of the deputy vice president positions. Both men will assist the elected vice presidents, Steve Deak and Dana Foster, in developing sponsorships, promoting the user group and overseeing the AMUGexpo.

Paul Bates has volunteered his services to assist AMUG over the past five years. Derek Ellis, a past AMUG vice president and advisor, will focus his efforts on new AMUG members and first-time conference attendees.

The AMUG board also reappointed Mark Abshire, an application engineer at Computer Aided Technology Inc., as an advisor to the organization. Abshire, a past AMUG vice president, has served as an advisor for the past two years; his primary responsibility will continue to be overseeing registration for the annual AMUG Conference.

“With the men and women that we now have as directors and officers, AMUG has a leadership team that I look forward to leading,” Barfoot concluded.

AMUG educates and advances the uses and applications of additive manufacturing technologies. AMUG members include those with any commercial additive manufacturing/3-D printing technologies from companies such as Stratasys, Somos, Concept Laser, SLM Solutions, EOS, ExOne, Renishaw, HP and Prodways. \