Effective November 3, 2025, Dr. Bartles will serve as CEO of NCDMM, following the unexpected passing of Gary Fleegle, NCDMM CEO.
After serving on the board of the National Center for Defense Manufacturing and Machining (NCDMM) from 2010 to 2019, Dr. Bartles was appointed President and CEO in 2019. In 2020, he established the parent holding company Manufacturing Technology Deployment Group (MTDG), where he currently serves as President and CEO.
Previously, Dr. Bartles served as the CEO of the National Tooling and Machining Association and was the founding Executive Director of the John Olson Advanced Manufacturing Center at the University of New Hampshire. Dr. Bartles was also the founding Executive Director of the Digital Manufacturing and Design Innovation Institute (DMDII) in Chicago, IL and the Chief Manufacturing Officer at UI LABS. Prior to his work with DMDII and UI LABS, Dr. Bartles spent 31 years at General Dynamics Corporation, where he designed and commissioned manufacturing facilities in Egypt, Turkey, and managed multiple manufacturing plants in the U.S. He also worked as an Industrial Engineer on the A-10 program at Fairchild Republic Company where he began his career.
In the past Dr. Bartles served as President of the North American Manufacturing Research Institute (2016-2017), President of the Society of Manufacturing Engineers (2016), and was the founding Chairman of the Smart Manufacturing Leadership Coalition. Dr. Bartles earned a Ph.D. in Technology Management with a concentration in Manufacturing Systems from Indiana State University.
Dr. Bartles currently serves on the Boards of the National Small Business Association, the National Institute of Metalworking Skills, the MTConnect Institute Board of Trustees, the Manufacturing Leadership Council’s Board of Governors, and the Industry Advisory Board of the College of Industrial and Systems Engineering at George Mason University. Dr. Bartles also serves as the Chairman of the Florida State Engineering Technology Industry Advisory Board which represents 23 Community Colleges in the State of Florida who offer Engineering Technology Programs and also serves as the Chair of the Engineering Technology Advisory Committee @ St. Petersburg College in St. Petersburg, FL.
