Proto Labs Leaders Named Ernst & Young Entrepreneurs of the Year®

MAPLE PLAIN, Minn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--In recognition of their entrepreneurial success, Larry Lukis and Brad Cleveland of Proto Labs, Inc. (NYSE:PRLB), the world’s fastest provider of custom CNC machined and injection molded parts, have received an Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year® award. This prestigious award celebrates the Upper Midwest’s most innovative business leaders in Minnesota, Wisconsin, North Dakota and South Dakota.

“At Proto Labs, our success has been the result of innovative hard work by our colleagues across the world, and we are honored to accept this recognition on behalf of such an amazing team.”

"We are excited to be selected as an Entrepreneur of the Year^®,” said Brad Cleveland, President and CEO of Proto Labs. “At Proto Labs, our success has been the result of innovative hard work by our colleagues across the world, and we are honored to accept this recognition on behalf of such an amazing team.”

The Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Upper Midwest Program recognizes success in entrepreneurship as well as the ingenuity and hard work behind a leading enterprise. Award winners are selected by a panel of independent judges and are evaluated on demonstrated excellence in innovation, financial performance and commitment to their business community.

Proto Labs and other award winners were formally recognized last night at the regional awards gala at the Marriott City Center in Minneapolis. Proto Labs will now be eligible for consideration in the Ernst & Young National Entrepreneur of the Year Program. National award winners will be announced at the annual awards gala in Palm Springs, California on November 17, 2012.

About Proto Labs

Proto Labs is a leading online and technology-enabled manufacturer of low-volume CNC machined and injection molded custom parts. Proto Labs provides “Real Parts, Really Fast” to product developers worldwide. Proto Labs offers two quick-turn services in North America, Europe and Japan: Firstcut (www.firstcut.com) CNC machining and Protomold (www.protomold.com) injection molding, both capable of providing parts in as fast as one business day. Product developers who use Proto Labs for prototypes and short-run production can upload a 3D CAD file at any one of Proto Labs online sites, get an interactive quotation and place an order for Proto Labs services directly online. For more information, visit: www.protolabs.com.