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Invitation for applications to the International Additive Manufacturing Award
The International Additive Manufacturing Award (IAMA) will be given annually to recognize definitive
and meritorious innovation in additive manufacturing. Innovators (individuals and teams) from all
over the world are invited to apply. The inaugural award ceremony will take place March 2015 in the
United States at The MFG Meeting in Orlando, Florida. The deadline to submit applications is
December 31, 2014.
Prize
The IAMA winner will receive a $20,000 cash prize plus an $80,000 media package to promote
development of the winning innovation.
Applying for the Additive Manufacturing Award 2015
Applications for the IAMA must include the following:
1. The registration form – download from www.additive-award.com
2. A short biography for each applicant/members on the applicant team
3. Abstract of no more than 10 lines
4. Written documentation of the presented work, no more than 10 pages in length (you must use
the layout described below)
Layout of Written Submission
The documentation for the IAMA must be in English, 10 pages maximum, and should cover:
1. State of the art (situation analysis)
2. Description of the candidate innovation including photos, if applicable;
3. Depiction of the problem and solution solved by the innovation;
4. Advantages or further developments with respect to the state of the art
5. Potential or advantages for industrial applications
The submission should address each of the judging criteria described below and be submitted in
PDF format by December 31, 2014.
E-Mail Submissions to: [email protected]
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Selection of the Award Winner
The award winner is selected by a two stage process. In the first stage, IAMA partners will review
submissions to determine compliance to proposal requirements and select the TOP 20 submissions.
In the second stage, an international jury of experts (below) will judge the TOP 20 submissions on
the judging criteria and select an award winner.
Associations

Tim Shinbara, AMT − The Association For Manufacturing Technology

Dr. Wilfried Schäfer, German Machine Tool Builders’ Association (VDW)
Media

Ken Fouhy, VDI Verlag GmbH

Pete Zelinski, Gardner Business Media Inc.
Academia

Dr. David Bourell, University of Texas – Austin

Prof. Reinhart Poprawe, Fraunhofer Institute for Laser Technology, Aachen
Users

Dr. Jens Ertel, BMW AG

Greg Morris, GE Aviation

Capt. Gerald Grant, Walter Reed Bethesda
Legal

John Hornick, Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garret & Dunner
The 2015 IAMA winner will be announced at a ceremony at The MFG Meeting held March 4 - 7,
2015 at the Orlando World Center Marriott Resort, Orlando, Florida, USA. The winner or a
designated representative must be present to accept the award. The winner will be reimbursed the
costs of traveling to the award ceremony.
Judging Criteria for All Submissions – (Also See Selection Procedures Below)
The judges will apply the following criteria to each submission:


Technological innovativeness (45% of the scoring), specifically:
o
progress of knowledge with respect to the state of the art (20%)
o
technological quality and creativity (15%)
o
distinguishing characteristics compared with previous solutions (10%)
Benefits for industry, the environment, and society (20%), specifically:
o
technological benefits in applications (10%)
o
environmental compatibility and properties of social relevance (10%)

Cost-effectiveness (20%)

Form of the presentation (5%)
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
Reality test in an industrial application (5%)

Implementation or implementability (5%).
All submissions should describe the technological core of the innovation and how additive
manufacturing is used. The applicant should also describe the entire process stream, including data
generation; the systems and processes; and the materials, automation, and any in-process
instrumentation, controls, or analysis.
Submissions are not restricted to technical products, technologies, and processes, but may also
maybe based on methods or services.
Conditions of participation
By submitting an application, you agree to the following conditions of participation:

The applicant(s) declare that they are the sole owners of all intellectual property rights of the
submitted work, that they exempt the IAMA sponsors and jurists from all third-party claims, and
waive all claims of confidentiality with respect to submissions. The submissions will be saved
and used only for the purposes specified below (see the section on Privacy).

Submissions will not be returned to participants.

The judges’ decision is final.
Privacy
By submitting application material, you agree to the sponsors’ and judges’ storage and
communication of your personal details and all other submitted information. This includes the
following:

Materials will be examined and assessed by host personnel, event staff, the jurors, and external
experts.

The names of the applicants, the titles of their applications, and their abstracts may be
published.

The applicants and proposed participants are entered on the awards’ distribution lists for
notifications, event instructions, and personal addresses relating to the activities in connection
with the IAMA.

The submitted details of nominees and award winners are forwarded to authorized service
providers for the purpose of media relations and outreach.

The documentation sections of applications may be forwarded to interested third parties
(innovation must be publishable).
2016 IAMA Award
The 2016 IAMA application period will open in the fall 2015 and close December 31, 2015.
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Selection Procedures
The IAMA selection process promotes a high level of objectivity in the assessment of products and
processes submitted for the IAMA.
In the first stage of the selection process, IAMA partners will review submissions to determine
compliance to proposal requirements and select the TOP 20 submissions.
In the second stage of the selection process, a jury of experts will judge the TOP 20 submissions to
the awards assessment criteria.
The following specific assessment criteria are intended to ensure greatest precision, reproducibility,
and objectivity for the assessment of products and processes. The selection procedure is based on
the following criteria:






Technological innovation (“technology driver”)
Benefits for industry, environment, and society
Cost effectiveness (“market driver”)
Form of depiction/presentation
Reality test in an industrial application
Implementation/implementability
Each of the assessment criterion is fulfilled is scored in points using a weighted scoring model (next
page) because the criteria have varying significance for the evaluation of products and processes.
For instance, technological innovation is weighted more strongly than the form of depiction.
The judges will discuss and evaluate internally the technical value of the products and processes,
including function, operating principle, design, safety, ergonomics, production, assembly, use,
servicing, and environmental compatibility.
The evaluations are compiled in tables. Distinguishing features are highlighted in the documentation
when they are especially significant.
The TOP 20 submissions that meet the award requirements in the first stage selection process, as
selected by the partners, are the IAMA finalists. The finalists are then sorted by the date the
application was received and presented to the jury without evaluation or applicants name for final
consideration. The jury can then maintain their objectivity in the selection process.
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AM AWARD 2015 selection procedure
IAMA Assessment Criteria and Weighted Scoring Model
Assessment criterion
Weighting
Up to X points
45%
45
Progress of knowledge with respect to the state of the art
20%
20
Technological quality and creativity
15%
15
Distinguishing characteristic compared with previous solutions
10%
10
20%
20
Technological benefits in applications
10%
10
Environmental compatibility and properties of social relevance
10%
10
Cost-effectiveness
20%
20
Economic benefits for end-consumers and end-users
10%
10
Demand situation / sales markets
10%
10
Form of depiction / presentation
5%
5
Reality test in an industrial application
5%
5
Implementation / implementability
5%
5
Technological innovation
Benefits for industry, environment, and society