Ken Wetzel

Chief Operating Officer

SMI Chief Operating Officer with expertise in federal funding, manufacturing, and technology commercialization

Profile

Ken Wetzel, Chief Operating Officer, oversees firm operations and coordinates SMI’s multidisciplinary team of government affairs professionals, policy experts, technical specialists, and senior advisors. He works with technology companies, universities, research institutions, and industry associations to secure federal funding, advance technologies critical to national security and industrial competitiveness, and strengthen America’s industrial and technology leadership.

Ken advises organizations developing innovations in advanced materials and manufacturing, the defense industrial base, aerospace and space, energy innovation, life sciences, and emerging technologies. He leads multidisciplinary teams of government affairs professionals, policy experts, technical specialists, and senior advisors that help clients identify federal funding opportunities, develop government affairs strategies, navigate complex federal programs, and build the strategic partnerships needed to accelerate technology development, commercialization, and growth.

Prior to joining SMI, Ken served in the Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary of War for Manufacturing & Industrial Base Policy, where he helped shape technology investment priorities and establish public-private partnerships through the Defense Production Act Title III program. He also advised senior Department of War leadership on industrial capabilities and supply chain resiliency and was a member of the team that established the pilot Manufacturing USA Institute. Earlier in his career, Ken worked as a civilian project engineer at Picatinny Arsenal, specializing in materials and manufacturing technology development for Army weapon systems.

Education & Credentials

Ken holds a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from Villanova University and an M.Eng. in Chemical Engineering from the Stevens Institute of Technology.

Ken serves as Executive Director of the U.S. Advanced Ceramics Association (USACA) and contributes to the Department of War as a panelist on the Joint Defense Manufacturing Technology Panel’s Metals Sub-panel.