Renishaw executive Stewart Lane becomes MTA President – momentum for Additive Manufacturing

The UK’s Manufacturing Technologies Association (MTA) has appointed Stewart Lane, previously Head of EMEA Business Development at Renishaw, as its President. Lane has more than three decades of industry experience, including 25 years at the FTSE 250 company Renishaw. His career spans quality and management roles in France and Sweden, as well as senior responsibilities in development, sales, and corporate business development. Technically rooted in metrology, Lane helped build Renishaw’s businesses in measurement systems, encoder technology, and Additive Manufacturing (AM).

For the AM community, Lane’s network is significant: he chaired the industry association AMUK and the European AM Committee of CECIMO, and served on the board of the West of England Aerospace Forum. He has been active on the MTA board since 2016, including as chair of the Education Committee. He thus combines operational experience in machine tool metrology with strategic topics such as standardization, qualification, and workforce development—areas that are pivotal for industrializing additive processes, for example in process capability, traceability of measurement chains, and part approval.

Stewart said: “I am deeply honoured to accept the presidency of the MTA at what is a critical time for UK manufacturing. The sector faces both significant challenges and opportunities. I look forward to working with member companies, stakeholders, and government to ensure that advanced manufacturing continues to flourish in the UK.”

James Selka, Chief Executive of the MTA, commented: “Stewart brings to the role an exceptional breadth of experience across the technology spectrum. Having served on our Board since 2016, his understanding of both the technical and strategic dimensions of manufacturing, positions him well to guide the Association forward.”

With this appointment, the MTA is putting greater emphasis on topics such as automation, digital process chains, and AM scaling. For companies using powder bed–based metal processes and accompanying metrology, this could lead to clearer guidelines on qualification profiles, accelerated standardization processes, and closer links to research institutions.