GE Ventures Hosts Advanced Manufacturing Summit, Featuring Input from Optomec CEO

Global corporation GE decided to share their wealth with worthy startups when they created GE Ventures, their capital investment firm built to assist young companies in the fields of software, healthcare, energy and advanced manufacturing. Over the past year, GE Ventures has contributed funding to a number of companies we’re quite familiar with, including Carbon, Desktop Metal, Local Motors and Optomec.

3D printing is only one part of GE Ventures’ Advanced Manufacturing & Enterprise category, but it’s a big part. Advanced Manufacturing & Enterprise includes several sub-categories such as Integrated Design, Advanced Fabrication, Brilliant Factory, Supply Chain and Logistics, Robotics Services and Automation and Enterprise Software Solutions for HR, Marketing and Commercial Operations.

The entire category will be the focus of an Advanced Manufacturing Summit to be held tomorrow, December 7, from 2-7 PM in Washington, D.C. Industry experts, entrepreneurs and government officials will come together to discuss the future of manufacturing and the impact that innovative and disruptive technologies will have on it. Featured speakers will include Congressman Tim Ryan, who will present on the topic of “Manufacturing caucus success and what to expect next,” and entrepreneur Steve Case. An additional keynote speech, entitled “How digital technology is transforming business units,” will be given by Greg Morris, Strategy Growth Leader for GE Additive. Opening and closing remarks will be delivered by Karen Kerr, Senior Managing Director, Advanced Manufacturing, GE Ventures.

3D printer manufacturer Optomec will have a strong presence at the summit, with President and CEO Dave Ramahi participating in a panel discussion entitled “New perspectives on policy and government funding to drive innovation and entrepreneurship.” Fellow panelists include Caralynn Nowinski Collens, M.D., Chief Executive Officer of UI Labs, and Ralph Resnick, Founding Director of America Makes, the National Additive Manufacturing Innovation Institute.

Moderated by Steve Taub, Senior Director of Advanced Manufacturing for GE Ventures, the panel will discuss key ways of maintaining America’s leadership in disruptive technology such as additive manufacturing. Ramahi will also discuss Optomec’s Aerosol Jet and LENS 3D printing technology, and the impact they have made on the design, manufacturing and maintenance of products.

Ramahi will have a lot of examples to pull from, as just in the last few months Optomec has introduced a new line of hybrid CNC machines/3D printers, developed technology for 3D printing electronics at the micron scale, and much more. If any company is a prime example of the wide variety of forms advanced manufacturing can take – and applications to which it lends itself – it’s Optomec.

The Advanced Manufacturing Summit will conclude with a cocktail reception and a showcase of several of GE Ventures’ Advanced Manufacturing & Enterprise portfolio companies. The event will take place at Union Market, 1309 5th St NE, Washington D.C.  For more information or to register, check out the event page here. Discuss in the GE Ventures forum at 3DPB.com.