Wilfried Vancraen

Wilfried Vancraen founded Materialise in Leuven in 1990, when 3D printing was a nascent technology with almost no commercial applications. He built the company from a research-stage operation into a NASDAQ-listed global leader in 3D printing software and services over more than three decades.

His early conviction that additive manufacturing would become industrially viable placed him years ahead of the market. Materialise developed the software infrastructure that made industrial 3D printing practical, and then built service bureaus that helped manufacturers adopt the technology.

As founder of Materialise, Wilfried established the company's foundational vision and remains one of the defining voices in global 3D printing. Under his leadership, Materialise grew to 2,000+ employees and listed on NASDAQ.