EIR Spotlight: Michael Folster

Hi, my name is Mike Folster and I've recently joined the program as an Expert-in-Residence (EIR) in November. My background has a deep manufacturing foundation, spending over 25 years in the Automotive Industry working in global assignments for Tier 1 companies. The last 10 years I've been fortunate to engage in game changing Industry 4.0 technologies, specifically robotics and machine vision. During that time we were active members of Automation Alley and then Centrepolis Accelerator - I've learned how to get value from those relationships and glad to share those examples. I've also learned how hard it is to bring new technology to market - even when the business case seems obvious. In summary, it takes years to build trust and exacting efforts to have the perfect solutions, as an EIR - I hope to help new Tech Companies prepare for that journey.