The Additive Manufacturing Users Group (AMUG) presented its prestigious DINO (Distinguished INnovator Operator) Award for additive manufacturing expertise and service to ten deserving individuals. These new DINOs received their awards at the 35th annual AMUG Conference during a ceremony that commemorated the 25th anniversary of the DINO Award.

AMUG representatives presented the DINO Awards in recognition of tenure in the additive manufacturing industry, years of service, contributions to the industry, and active support of the users group.

“This award recognizes not only experience but also character and passion. Following a lengthy nomination and review process, the committee selected ten deserving individuals from over 1,800 attendees of the AMUG Conference,” said Gary Rabinovitz, DINO Selection Committee Chair and Director at Large.

The newly named DINOs are:

• Tim Bell, MELD Manufacturing Corporation
• Bogdan Filipkowski, Custom Prototypes Inc.
• Rob Hassold, Cimquest, Inc.
• Danny Levy, Influit Energy
• Matthew Mitchell, Yazaki North America
• Heather Natal, GoEngineer
• Roger Nielsen, In’Tech Industries
• Dave Rittmeyer, Mathews International
• Colton Rooney, EMI Corp.
• Alex Roschli, Oak Ridge National Laboratory

The new DINOs’ efforts have played varied roles in making the AMUG Conference a positive experience for those seeking insights, information, and connections. Over many years, they have supported AMUG by being team members on the AMUG Board and AMUG committees (Bell, Levy, Mitchell, Natal, Rooney, and Roschli), by supporting education through scholarships (Hassold and Nielson), and by demonstrating how to achieve results through additive manufacturing (Filipkowski and Rittmeyer).

Receiving a DINO is not the endgame for those that demonstrate the passion and dedication that the DINO Selection Committee seeks. Instead, it is a momentous milestone in years-long support of the community.

“This was the 25th anniversary of the DINO Award, and we had representation at AMUG 2023 for DINO classes back to 1998, with 40 percent of all DINOs attending the conference,” said Rabinovitz.

Rabinovitz also noted that many DINOs in attendance continue to be active in the AMUG community through volunteer roles on the board and committees.

AMUG’s guiding principle is “For Users. By Users.” The newly named DINOs and all that came before them put this philosophy into action.

Over its 35-year history, AMUG has awarded only 187 DINOs. Nominations for 2024 DINO candidates will be accepted beginning October 1, 2023.

AMUG
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