Kevin Rankl
Speaker at WEST: Kevin Rankl, VP Tech Support, SolidCAM
Speaker at WEST: Kevin Rankl, VP Tech Support, SolidCAM
Speaker at WEST: Errol Burrell, National Product Manager, Matsuura USA
Speaker at WEST: Paolo Ciampa, Commercial Manager, Kintek S.p.A
Speaker at WEST: Camryn Banuelos, Sales Representative, Kintek/ All Industrial Services CNC
WEST Session: Attendees can expect to hear an in depth description of the machine equipment that Kintek specially makes for turning and milling machines. They will understand that Kintek/ All Industrial Services CNC can perform service and installation as well. We want to help people realize that Kintek is there to simplify your needs, helping you from the very beginning of the problem until we solve it.
Speaker at WEST: Nat Frampton, Co-Founder, LECS Energy, LLC
Speaker at WEST: Sean Ramirez, CEO, Tera Engineering
WEST Session: Brought to you by SME
Speaker at WEST: Brian Liles, Vice President, R&D, Cost Segregation &179D, CSSI-Specialty Tax Services
WEST Session: The R&D Tax Credit is a powerful federal incentive that rewards manufacturers for innovation in product design, process improvements, and new technologies. It directly reduces tax liability or payroll tax, freeing up cash to reinvest in equipment, workforce, and growth. Manufacturers often face challenges such as rising production costs, global competition, supply chain constraints, and the need to modernize with automation, robotics, and sustainable practices. The R&D Tax Credit helps offset these pressures by turning day-to-day problem-solving—like improving tooling, enhancing production efficiency, or developing prototypes—into measurable tax savings. To qualify, activities must pass the IRS “Four-Part Test”: seeking to resolve technical uncertainty, relying on science/engineering, involving experimentation, and aiming to improve a product or process. Eligible expenses include wages, materials consumed in development, and contractor costs. Two paths provide benefits: the Standard Credit , which reduces income taxes, and the Payroll Credit , which offsets up to $500,000 annually in employer payroll taxes—especially valuable for manufacturers reinvesting in growth. The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (2025) restored immediate expensing of domestic R&D costs, eliminating the burdensome 5-year amortization. It also allows companies that capitalized expenses since 2022 to retroactively accelerate deductions. Strategies for manufacturers include building stronger documentation systems, aligning R&D tracking with engineering workflows, and leveraging tax planning to maximize credits year after year. Together, these updates give manufacturers powerful tools to manage costs, stay competitive, and invest confidently in new technologies.