The Additive Manufacturing industry is a male-dominated industry, with 85.5% of professionals being male, according to the recently released 2019 Additive Manufacturing Salary Survey by Alexander Daniels Global. The report shows that females represent 13% of the AM professionals, and 1.5% prefer not to say. However seemingly low, the percentage of women in the AM industry has risen by 2% point since 2018, according to the report.
The amount of women in AM is likely to go up, and Alexander Daniels Global attributes this rise to a number of reasons;
Firstly, the AM industry is doing a joint effort to actively try and attract women into it with AM companies putting increasing focus on diversity and inclusion when hiring.
Secondly, additive manufacturing being a new and developing technology is likely attracting young female engineers; it is technology that span multiple verticals, disciplines and applications, making it possible for everyone to find a place within the industry.
Thirdly, but perhaps most importantly, inspirational women are key. In a male dominated industry like additive manufacturing, inspiring individuals and organisations are vital instruments to attracting more women into the industry. The concept of women helping other women is growing with more and more initiatives being set up, such as Women in 3D Printing, #3Dtalk and the Women in AM Summit, among other.
The Salary Survey highlights some of the inspirational women in the AM industry:
Stefanie Brickwede – Head of AM at Deutsche Bahn & Managing Director at Mobility Goes Additive
Kim Smith – VP / General Manager at Boeing Fabrication
Valeria Tirelli – CEO of Aidro
Michelle Bockman – GM and Global Head of 3D Printing and Digital Manufacturing at HP
Nora Touré – Founder of Women in 3D Printing and VP of Ivaldi Group
Roxanne Warren – Director Customer Operations at Link3D
Marie Langer – CEO of EOS
Each of the women mentioned above are inspiration to other women; either through their impressive career and prevalence in the market, or through the steps they are taking to demonstrate how powerful women can be when they join forces. Professional support, inspiration and a sense of community, as these and more women provide, is crucial to making the additive manufacturing industry more balanced.
The 2019 Additive Manufacturing Salary Survey can be freely downloaded here.