Gabriel Boutin

Profile

Industrial designer with 20+ years of product development experience specializing in additive manufacturing for protective equipment. Founder/co-founder of KUPOL, KOLLIDE/K3D, and nonplanar.xyz. Named inventor on multiple international patent families. Led development of 3D-printed helmet technology now ranked #1 by Virginia Tech and #2 in NFL position-specific testing.

Key Achievements

Won $788,545 USD in NFL grants (HeadHealthTECH 2020 + Helmet Challenge 2021) — only 3D-printed technology to complete the program
Developed K3D liner technology achieving #1 Virginia Tech ratings (Varsity & Youth) and #2 NFL 2025 rankings (QB & OL)
4 out of 11 five-star varsity helmets in Virginia Tech's 2025 ratings feature K3D technology
Achieved 0.78 HPS in NFL testing (target: 0.70), 13% improvement over top NFL helmets at the time
Created one of the world's first fully 3D-printed cycling helmets, recognized by HP and Sculpteo as breakthrough in helmet design
Won inaugural Simulation Driven Design Award at Formnext 2019 (Purmundus Challenge) for KUPOL R1-0 motorcycle helmet

Professional Experience

Co-Founder · Montreal, Canada

Led 3D printing strategy and parametric design workflows for football helmet liners
Developed lattice architectures tuned for specific impact zones and player positions
Designed 95 unique mesh pads optimized for different impact profiles across helmet
K3D liner technology now in all 32 NFL locker rooms and ~100 NCAA programs
Contributed as inventor to patent families on cushion pads and bladder systems

Founder & President · Montreal, Canada

Created one of the first fully 3D-printed bike helmets using HP Multi Jet Fusion
Developed KOLLIDE Safety System with 3-layer impact absorption architecture
Partnered with HP and Sculpteo to validate production-scale MJF workflows
Ran successful Kickstarter campaign, gained early traction with cyclist community
Incubated nonplanar.xyz as internal R&D project, later spun off as e-commerce platform

Founder · E-commerce Platform

Built platform for non-planar FDM printing tools (elongated nozzles, G-code workflows)
Created educational content, tutorials, and documentation for maker community
Featured in 3Dnatives interview as pioneer in non-planar 3D printing techniques

Founder & Industrial Design Consultant · Quebec, Canada

Provided industrial design and CAD services for sports equipment and consumer products
Developed expertise in complex surface modeling (NURBS, Class-A surfaces)
Early adopter of AM for rapid prototyping and functional testing

Media & Press

Regularly featured in industry and mainstream media as a reference in 3D-printed protective gear and non-planar additive manufacturing: MIT News (NFL Helmet Challenge coverage), Global News (Canadian TV), 3DPrint.com, New Atlas, TCT Magazine, 3Dnatives, Sculpteo Blog, Fabbaloo, Business Wire, and ANSYS Blog.

Patents (Lead Inventor)

3D-Printed Helmet Shock Layer

WO2018072017 · CA/US

Shock-Absorbing Assembly

WO2020006637 · CA/US

Cushion Pads & Systems

WO2023279210 · CA/EP/US

Bladder for Cushion Pads

WO2023235984 · EP

Awards & Recognition

2025 Virginia Tech #1 Varsity & Youth

2025 NFL #2 QB & OL Position Rankings

2021 NFL Helmet Challenge Grant ($550K)

2020 HeadHealthTECH IV Grant ($238K)

2019 Purmundus Simulation Design Award

2022 NY Product Design Award

2018 HP Featured Case Study

2019 Formnext Exhibition Finalist

Technical Skills

Rhino 3D Grasshopper FDM SLS MJF SolidWorks CATIA Non-Planar G-code Lattice Design Impact Simulation Parametric Design PA12/TPU Materials Product Strategy DFM/DFA Prototyping Unity 3D

Education

Diploma in Industrial Design Techniques

Cegep de Sainte-Foy, Quebec · 2000–2003

Languages: French (Native), English (Fluent)

Location: Montreal, Canada (open to remote)