Materialise appoints Brigitte de Vet-Veithen as CEO
October 26, 2023
Materialise NV, headquartered in Leuven, Belgium, has announced that Brigitte de Vet-Veithen will become its Chief Executive Officer as of January 1, 2024. The company’s Board of Directors stated that de Vet-Veithen will succeed Fried Vancraen, who co-founded Materialise in 1990 and has served as the company’s CEO for thirty-three years. Vancraen will continue to represent Materialise as the new Chairman of the Board of Directors.
“We founded Materialise with a mission to create a better and healthier world,” stated Vancraen. “Thirty-three years later, the company has reached an ideal point to bring in new leadership to take us into the future. This transition represents an evolution of leadership, not a departure. I am proud of what we have accomplished through our efforts to improve and save patient lives and to advance the industrial production process with innovative 3D printing solutions. Brigitte has the perfect combination of internal and external experience and has demonstrated a deep commitment to Materialise’s mission and its people. I cannot think of a better person than Brigitte to lead Materialise and to help shape our industry going forward.”
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Brigitte de Vet-Veithen has over thirty years of experience across multiple industries and joined Materialise in 2016. She is currently Executive Vice President of Materialise Medical, which develops software and Additive Manufacturing solutions that help improve patient outcomes. Under her leadership, the medical segment grew to become the company’s fastest-growing and most profitable business segment.
“It will be an honour to lead Materialise, a company that helped create and continues to shape the 3D printing industry,” added de Vet-Veithen. “As we take this step, I celebrate our roots as 3D printing pioneers, but I am even more excited about our role as pioneers of tomorrow’s possibilities. As 3D printing establishes itself as an essential tool in the production toolbox, Materialise is ideally positioned to capitalise on the tremendous opportunities ahead and to continue driving the growth of our industry.”
Before joining Materialise, de Vet-Veithen held various senior management roles at Johnson & Johnson. She was a consultant in the technology industry and led several companies through growth and transformation, including in her role as CEO of Acertys Group. She holds a Master of Business Administration with a Major in Engineering from HEC Liege and an MBA from INSEAD.
As of January 1, 2024, Vancraen will continue to provide strategic direction to Materialise and will represent the company as non-executive Chairman of the Board of Directors. In this new role, he will succeed Peter Leys, who has been the Executive Chairman of the Board for ten years and will continue as a member of the Board. Further, as of January 1, 2024, co-founder Hilde Ingelaere will step back from her role as Executive Vice President and will focus on her activities as a Board member. Materialise’s Executive Committee will continue its strategic and operational role under the new presidency of Mrs. de Vet-Veithen.
