We have added a lunchtime speaker to the Lasers & Photonics Marketplace Seminar: John Dexheimer, president of LightWave Advisors. He has been gathering some unique data and insights on the rapid growth and changing opportunities associated with 3D printing and additive manufacturing. He has an investor’s perspective, but the implications of where the investments are flowing, how advanced materials are driving innovation, and the relationships among the players and technologies will be of great interest.
The full agenda and registration are available at: www.marketplaceseminar.com.
There are two panels at the Seminar this year, one focused on the industrial laser market, with system and end-user perspectives, and the other with executives from IPG Photonics, Newport Spectra-Physics, Nufern, and Rofin Sinar. There will also be speakers on biophotoncis, the laser market in China, and the oil and gas industry. Dr. Ursula Keller from ETH Zurich will give the keynote talk on the future of ultrafast lasers.
A few weeks ago, our colleague, Allen Nogee, the laser market analyst at Strategies Unlimited, posted a blog summing up 2014, and giving some idea of the in-depth presentation he will make at the Seminar. You can read it here: The 2014 Laser Market in Review
The good news is that total worldwide laser revenue grew 6.5% in 2014 to $9.2 billion, which is a quite strong gain overall, despite the fact that prices of many laser types continue to drop. You can also read much more market analysis in our January issue.