As the additive manufacturing industry continues its rapid global evolution, one theme has risen to the top of strategic conversations: the importance of strengthening domestic production to support national competitiveness and supply chain resilience. At the Additive Manufacturing Strategies 2026 conference in New York City, Sam O’Leary, CEO of Nikon SLM Solutions, will bring a seasoned and uniquely global perspective to this discussion as a panelist on the CEO Roundtable.

Under O’Leary’s leadership, Nikon SLM Solutions has expanded its position as a leader in industrial metal additive manufacturing while deliberately deepening its roots in the United States. These decisions were not symbolic, they were strategic. By establishing Long Beach, California as its U.S. headquarters, building engineering operations in the heart of Southern California’s “Space Beach,” and manufacturing its NXG line in South Carolina, the company has placed technology, talent, and production closer to customers operating in the world’s most demanding industrial and defense environments.

Today, Nikon SLM Solutions’ alignment with Made in America priorities strongly resonates with federal initiatives such as the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which emphasizes onshore manufacturing and secure supply chains. Importantly, this commitment extends beyond where machines are assembled. Nikon SLM Solutions takes a system-level approach to compliance, ensuring that its total additive manufacturing solutions, including critical machine subsystems such as lasers and optics, as well as integrated third-party software for data preparation and production workflows, are selected and deployed with that in mind. For defense and aerospace customers, this holistic approach reduces integration risk and enables confident deployment within regulated environments.

Metal additive manufacturing is uniquely positioned to deliver on these goals. By enabling complex designs, reducing part counts, and accelerating delivery timelines, Nikon SLM Solutions technology is shifting long lead-time production into more agile, localized processes. But realizing this promise at scale requires more than innovation; it requires a commitment to domestic infrastructure, workforce development, and policy alignment that encourages investment right here at home.

O’Leary often speaks about this intersection of technology and national competitiveness as a defining moment for the industry. “Investing in U.S. manufacturing is not just good business, it’s a strategic imperative,” he says. “When advanced manufacturing is anchored in America, we create jobs, secure critical supply chains, and unleash the ingenuity of our workforce to solve the toughest engineering challenges.”

This philosophy is reflected in Nikon SLM Solutions’ approach to its product portfolio and customer partnerships. Its laser powder bed fusion systems have long been recognized for productivity, precision, and reliability at industrial scale, capabilities that are critical for sectors such as defense, aerospace, energy, and transportation. Beyond hardware, the company’s integrated suite of software and services supports adoption in mission-critical environments where performance and traceability are non-negotiable.

Moreover, Nikon SLM Solutions is fueling U.S. additive manufacturing adoption by engaging with domestic industry alliances and research consortia that cement the role of AM in future-focused supply chains. By aligning its technology roadmap with national strategic priorities, O’Leary has positioned the company at the nexus of innovation and industrial policy.

At AMS 2026, O’Leary’s contribution to the CEO Roundtable will underscore the industry’s role in shaping a robust American manufacturing ecosystem, one that can deliver high-value parts reliably, responsibly, and with strategic purpose. His insights promise to spark dialogue about how technology leaders, policymakers, and customers can work together to make Made in America more than a slogan, a reality for the additive manufacturing era.

Sam O’Leary is the CEO of Nikon SLM Solutions and is a 3D printing industry expert with over 15 years of technology development and industrialization experience bringing to market world leading, game changing technology. Over the last 20 years he has held multiple technology and operational leadership roles in the UK, Switzerland and Germany. 

Sam will be speaking at Additive Manufacturing Strategies (AMS) 2026 on the CEO Roundtable. The session is part of the broader AMS 2026 conference, which runs from February 24–26 and brings together industry leaders, policymakers, and innovators from across the global AM ecosystem. Learn more and register at AMS 2026.