Mark Senti, a technology visionary and trendsetter of the permanent magnet industry passed away suddenly on January 11, 2025. Mark was CEO and co-founder of Advanced Magnet Lab (AML) headquartered in Melbourne, Florida, and was an integral part of the science, technology and business community in Central Florida on the Space Coast in Brevard County, Florida for over 30 years.
Mark was a co-inventor of several patented innovations including some of AML’s more recent permanent magnet related technology innovations. He began his technology career with Cray Research, Inc. as an engineer developing a wide array of projects for hardware design to various manufacturing processes, earning the Cray Research Leadership and Innovation Award (1990) and the Outstanding Young Manufacturing Engineer Award from the Society of Manufacturing Engineers (1992).
He took a jump into the business world in 1992 when relocating to Brevard County to co-Found GSMA Systems, Inc., an international provider of robotics and factory automation systems in Palm Bay, Florida. GSMA was sold in 2004. In 2007, Mark and several others reorganized AML in pursuit of commercial market opportunities with magnetics. He received the Congressional Special Recognition Lifetime Achievement in Technology Award in 2015 and was named the 2017 Business Leaders of the Year for Technology by Space Coast Business Magazine.
Over his 30-year career, one of Mark’s most privileged opportunities was to work alongside his son Wade Senti with the recent turnaround and push of AML into a leading company in the permanent magnet industry. Together they built strategic partnerships, extensive customer opportunities, and assembled a team with world-class capabilities for producing permanent magnets in a way never seen before. This legacy will continue with the team at AML moving into commercial markets. Wade is now CEO of the company.
While Mark was known locally as a business leader with a thirst for technology and innovation, his roots were in the mountains of Colorado and the fields of Wisconsin. He grew up with the best of both worlds, including many years of skiing in Loveland, Colorado, homebuilding (with his father), and farming in Buffalo County, Wisconsin.
Those that knew Mark best know that he was a man of great spirit and persistence for life and goals. He made it known that he had a strong and loving family and was always willing to extend a hand to those in need. His spirit will remain bright with those that he has impacted. He is survived by Diane Senti, former wife of 30 years and mother of his four children, who are Wade Senti of Malabar, FL, Lindsay (Jeffery) Seiple of Orlando, FL, Skylar Senti of Malabar, FL, and Keaton Senti of Malabar, FL; also by a grandchild, two sisters and other relatives. For more info about AML, see www.amlsm.com.
