VulcanForms Appoints Kevin Kassekert as CEO and Jay Martin as President to Drive Next Phase of Growth
Kassekert and Martin bring deep experience in high-growth industries to drive digital production with Fortune 500 customers
DEVENS, Mass., Sept. 19, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- VulcanForms, an MIT-born company that builds and operates advanced digital manufacturing infrastructure, today announced that Kevin Kassekert has been appointed Chief Executive Officer. Additionally, Jay Martin has joined VulcanForms as President. In joining the VulcanForms team, Kassekert and Martin will lead the company's efforts to deliver solutions for customers across critically important industries, and continue to scale its technology and operations.
Since its founding in 2015, VulcanForms has built advanced technology and digital workflows tailored for production of advanced metal components that drive pace-setting products, such as orthopedic implants, jet engines, supercomputers, and consumer devices. The cornerstone of VulcanForms production system is a proprietary laser additive manufacturing technology, which offers a breakthrough combination of quality, efficiency, and speed. VulcanForms integrates additive manufacturing with heat treatment, surface processing, precision machining, and metrology, delivering a full-stack solution for its customers. The automated production system is driven by advanced software capabilities and AI-based methods that enable predictive simulation and data-driven process control.
The VulcanForms team, first led by Co-Founder Martin Feldmann, developed the company's core technology that now underpins an integrated manufacturing solution. With its offering now embedded into select customers' workflows, VulcanForms is transitioning from pilot-scale manufacturing to high volume production. The company's strategic shift in leadership comes at a time when the U.S. and the world recognize the urgent need for industrial technologies that integrate digital and physical approaches to manufacturing, and both Kassekert and Jay Martin are well-versed in deploying complex technologies into entrenched industries.
Kevin Kassekert: A Seasoned Leader of Fast-Growing Organizations
Kassekert brings over 25 years of people-centric and seasoned leadership experience in high-tech, high-volume manufacturing environments. With a passion for sustainability and disruptive technology, Kassekert has devoted his career to growing organizations with a focus on leaving the world a better place.
Kassekert joins VulcanForms following over four years as Chief Operating Officer of Redwood Materials. As COO, Kassekert played a pivotal role in growing the company from a young startup to a world leader in Li-Ion battery recycling, refining, and battery materials manufacturing. Redwood Materials has localized the global battery supply and established the world's first fully circular domestic supply chain for Li-Ion battery materials to meet the growing Li-Ion battery manufacturing demand.
Prior to Redwood Materials, Kassekert spent seven plus years at Tesla Inc., where he led Global Infrastructure Development (Superchargers, Factories), People (HR, Recruiting, Total Rewards), and Places (Real Estate, Construction, Facility Operations). Some notable achievements include completion of the nation's first U.S. cross-country Supercharger network and the design, construction, and operational ramp of the world's first — and at the time largest — Li-Ion battery Gigafactory in Nevada, U.S. This team then went on to lead the engineering, procurement, and construction of additional Gigafactories and manufacturing facilities located in Shanghai, Berlin, and Austin, TX. Prior to Tesla, Kevin spent 13 years in the semiconductor industry at Cypress Semiconductor and Silicon Valley Technology Center (SVTC) in leadership roles ranging from production operations to process engineering and product commercialization. Kevin holds a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering and a master's degree in business administration and global management.
"I have always been deeply interested in disruptive technology and scaling manufacturing and I am thrilled to join and lead the extremely talented team at VulcanForms," said Kassekert. "I'm eager to build upon the solid foundation laid by Martin Feldmann, whose leadership and dedication were pivotal in shaping the company's vision and product development. The potential of VulcanForms' technology is immense and will redefine manufacturing not only in the U.S., but also on a global scale."
Jay Martin: Expert in Emerging Medical Technologies and Scaling Operations
Joining the company as President, Jay Martin brings a wealth of experience in developing and scaling advanced technologies within the medical device industry. As President of Globus Medical, he oversaw all aspects of imaging, navigation, and robotic product development and commercialization, driving the fastest launch in medical robotics' history and building a 250-person organization from the ground up. His team was instrumental in driving Globus Medical from $450M to over $2B. Jay Martin's ability to create strong cultures and lead high-performing teams will be critical to VulcanForms' continued growth and innovation.
"I am thrilled to join VulcanForms and have the opportunity to drive impact at such a pivotal time for the company," said Jay Martin. "My passion for building strong teams and driving commercial success aligns with the trajectory of VulcanForms, and I look forward to supporting the advancement of innovation that is critical to the future of manufacturing in the U.S. and across the globe."
In his new role, Jay Martin will focus on scaling operations, leading go-to-market strategies, and accelerating the commercialization of VulcanForms' manufacturing solutions. He will oversee all aspects of commercialization, sales, and marketing as the company's breakthrough capabilities drive product innovation across its key customer verticals.
"Kevin and Jay bring incredible experience and their leadership will drive us to scale VulcanForms' innovative production system hand-in-hand with the product roadmaps of our customers," said John Hart, Co-Founder and Board Member of VulcanForms, and Department Head of Mechanical Engineering at MIT. "Our team and customers will benefit greatly from their understanding of the market and regulatory landscapes, and from their passion for advanced technology and organizational development."
Since revealing its capabilities in 2022, VulcanForms has continued to deploy its technology and end-to-end operations at the flagship VulcanOne™ facility in Devens, MA, and its second facility in Newburyport, MA. This integrated approach enables VulcanForms to deliver engineered components and assemblies, through a digital-first process chain tailored to each customer's needs.
Along with scaling VulcanForms technology and operations, Kassekert, Martin, and the team will be particularly focused on growing key customer engagements within the medical, aerospace/defense, consumer technology markets, and exploring new areas. The company has developed deep relationships and agreements with Fortune 500 companies across these markets.
To learn more about VulcanForms, visit www.vulcanforms.com.
About VulcanForms™:
VulcanForms builds and operates advanced digital manufacturing infrastructure for engineered metal components that drive pace-setting products — including orthopedic implants, aerospace and defense systems and consumer devices. Since it was born out of MIT in 2015, VulcanForms has developed the world's most advanced and industrially scalable metal additive manufacturing technology and has deployed an integrated digital-first production system. Through its production system and its expertise in each industry domain, it delivers product solutions for its customers, at scale. VulcanForms' manufacturing facilities are located in Devens, MA, and Newburyport, MA.
For more information, visit www.vulcanforms.com/.
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SOURCE VulcanForms
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