Leading Women in Manufacturing Inducted to WiMEF’s Hall of Fame

Seeking to recognize women making outstanding contributions to the manufacturing industry, the Women in Manufacturing Education Foundation (WiMEF) inducted 13 women leaders to its 2022 class of Women in Manufacturing (WiM) Hall of Fame. Among the inductees are several whose work is directly aligned with advances in additive manufacturing technologies, especially since many of the companies they lead are leveraging 3D printing.

This is the third year that WiMEF celebrates new inductees, adding 13 more names to an already stellar group of inspirational leaders, which includes 2020 selectee Sonita Lontoh, senior vice president (SVP) and global head of marketing for HP’s 3D Print and Digital Manufacturing business, and 2021 inductee Janet Duffey, VP of Supply Chain Management at Lockheed Martin.

In 2022, WiMEF chose Dorene Billingsley, retired director of operations at polymer resin manufacturer AdvanSix; Michelle Bockman, president of Stanley X, the innovation division of Stanley Black & Decker; Lynn Bottone, VP of Biotech Operations at Pfizer; Louise Connell, supplier diversity manager at BMW; Leah Curry, president of Toyota Indiana; Lori Goucher, SVP of Technology and Investments at BASF; Elizabeth Griffith, director of Global Program Management for automotive interior manufacturer HFI; Tracey Horton, VP of Global Manufacturing at Corning; Denise Johnson, president of Caterpillar’s Resource Industries; Ann Kelleher, executive VP and general manager of Technology Development at Intel; Luann Rickert, internal audit VP at John Deere; Michelle Taylor, director of Advanced Quality Planning at Trane Technologies, and Pei Wang, VP and general manager of BorgWarner Asia.

Getting to Know 2022’s Hall of Fame

We have covered many of these companies in the past, so we know that a majority of the women have experience with 3D printing. For example, before being appointed as president at Stanley X, Bockman held multiple executive positions in service, supply chain, sales, and product development at GE Healthcare and Industrial Solutions, as well as scaling a startup business at GE Digital. She also served as HP’s GM and global head of Automotive, 3D Printing, and Digital Manufacturing.

At HP, Bockman oversaw three critical areas in its 3D printing operations: market and applications development, HP Open Platform for materials, and Digital Services. Also, during her time at San Francisco-based 3DPrinterOS – a cloud-additive manufacturing management software specialist – she took over as CEO as part of the company’s strategy to grow in the enterprise customer space. A mechanical engineer, Bockman is undoubtedly an industry leader, and in 2019 she was named by Alexander Daniels Global’s Additive Manufacturing Salary Survey as one of the “most inspiring women” in the AM industry.

Other women on the list, like Kelleher, Connell, and Wang, work for companies that rely on 3D printing innovations to advance their operations. For example, at Intel, researchers recently developed an open-source 3D printed smart robot that can be built for under $50. At BMW, engineers behind the IDAM: the Industrialization and Digitalization of Additive Manufacturing consortium created fully automated production lines for 3D printed car parts and have purchased several additive manufacturing machines, the most recent being a wire arc metal 3D printer from MX3D. While BorgWarner announced in 2021 the expansion of 3D printed prototypes in its Brazilian facility to streamline processes and optimize production lines. Other BorgWarner facilities worldwide had already introduced 3D printing for short batch runs.

The group will be officially welcomed to the Hall of Fame with a ceremony and gala on October 12, 2022, as part of Wim’s twelfth annual summit in Atlanta, Georgia. The event will welcome more than 150 attendees to celebrate these progressive women in manufacturing.

Celebrating the moment, WiM and WiMEF President and Founder Allison Grealis said, “The 13 esteemed honorees who comprise our third class of inductees have made renowned, lasting contributions to our industry. In addition, their commitment to supporting and mentoring women in manufacturing has paved pathways for countless other women to thrive in this industry. We are thrilled to recognize them in this special way.”

As in the past two years, the inductees were nominated by their colleagues and industry peers and selected by a judging panel of WiMEF board members as well as staff. They were chosen based on their lifetime contributions to the advancement of women in manufacturing. With this new addition, the WiMEF has welcomed 37 spearheading women to its Hall of Fame.