Snyder, in Germany, announces 3D printing company’s first U.S. location in Michigan

Gov. Rick Snyder today announced that voxeljet, a leading provider of high-speed, large-format 3-D printers will locate its first U.S. facility in Canton, Mich., as he and his delegation completed their third day of his 2014 Europe mission.

STUTTGART, Germany – Gov. Rick Snyder today announced that voxeljet, a leading provider of high-speed, large-format 3-D printers will locate its first U.S. facility in Canton, Mich., as he and his delegation completed their third day of his 2014 Europe mission. 

“The decision by voxeljet to locate its first U.S. facility in Michigan is good news that underscores our state’s attractiveness to leading-edge, global companies,” Snyder said. “As the global center of automotive technology, research and development with a greatly improved business climate, Michigan is the smart business location to grow a technology business and create high-tech manufacturing jobs.” 

The company’s first U.S. service center is expected to come online in the third quarter of this year and will create 15 to 20 direct high-tech local manufacturing jobs during the first three years of the project. The service center will allow voxeljet to print on-demand parts, molds, cores and models for automotive and other industrial customers based on designs produced using 3-D computer-aided design, or CAD, software. 

“The decision to place voxeljet’s first U.S. service center in Michigan is based on the proximity of the site to potential customers in the Midwest region that form a significant part of the U.S. automobile industry and its supply chain,” said Dr. Ingo Ederer, voxeljet’s chief executive officer. “While voxeljet’s customers span a range of industries, the auto industry is currently the heaviest user of our 3-D printing technology. We have extensive experience serving the 3-D printing needs of European automakers and we look forward to serving manufacturers in the U.S.” 

Snyder and the Michigan delegation also met in Friedrichshafen with senior executives of ZF, a global leader of driveline and chassis technology. The company employs more than 1,350 employees in Michigan at its North American headquarters in Northville and production facilities in Marysville and Lapeer. It operates 121 production facilities worldwide with 73,600 employees in 26 countries. 

“Our discussions illustrate the importance of this mission and the many improvements we’ve made to Michigan’s business climate,” Snyder said. “The marketplace today is global and to stay competitive, we must be aggressive in reaching out to world-class companies and continue our push that creates more and better jobs for Michiganders.” 

The mission marks the first time Snyder and Nigel Francis, the state’s top auto adviser, have traveled together, to meet with European auto-industry leaders. 

Italian and German companies play an important role in the Michigan economy, notably:  

• There are 350 German companies in Michigan. Total Michigan-Germany foreign trade for 2013 was nearly $5.9 billion.
• There are 40 Italian companies. Total Michigan-Italy foreign trade for 2013 was $1.6 billion.
• 72,000 Michiganders are employed by German- and Italian-owned companies operating in the state. These companies represent a wide range of industries, but are heavily concentrated in advanced automotive manufacturing and research and development.
• This is the Snyder administration’s second mission to Italy and Germany, and the 10th investment mission overall. Other missions led by Snyder or Lt. Gov. Brian Calley have been to Japan, China, Korea, the Netherlands, Brazil, Mexico, Israel, and Canada.

About Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC)

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