These keynotes provide you with a preview of the facinating insights and expertise that will shape this year's conference experience.
Keep checking back as we add the most recent confirmed keynote speakers to this page
Many changes in US higher education were well underway in the early decades of the 21st century, and most were accelerated in 2020 by the Covid-19 pandemic. Disruptive moves toward competency-based assessment, low-cost (or no-cost) credentials, highly accessible online classes, and faster attainment of job-ready skills emerged and have grown rapidly in our post-Covid high-tech economy. Institutions of higher ed in the US are scrambling to keep up – in some cases, to catch up – with the changes and remain competitive. At the same time, steady advances in software, computer hardware, and cloud computing that have driven strong adoption of modeling and simulation in R&D practices among so many industry stakeholders have also made computational tools of engineering simulation increasingly accessible to consumers of online education. However, many companies cite a lack of workers adequately skilled in the effective application of computational tools and a commensurate lack of trust in modeling and simulation outcomes as barriers to aggressive reliance on simulation in new product development or applied research. The focus of this talk is to examine the responsibility and opportunity for higher ed to bridge this gap by delivering advanced engineering skills with accessible training that meets customers where they are. I assert that this goal can only be achieved with an open mind to new ideas in higher ed, a willingness to seek partnership with industry and standards organizations (e.g., NAFEMS, ASME, ISO), and an obsessive commitment to best practices in verification, validation, and uncertainty quantification. Accredited STEM degrees from institutions of higher ed will remain relevant for decades to come, but curricula should adapt more quickly to the marketplace and should be better positioned as onramps to industry-specific professional certifications.
Prof. Petrella earned his PhD in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Pittsburgh in 2000 with a focus on human knee biomechanics. He then transitioned to manage the computational biomechanics research group at DePuy Orthopaedics within the Johnson & Johnson family of companies. His group at DePuy provided design verification support for all product lines, which comprised artificial joint implants for most joints in the body as well as some trauma products. In 2006 he accepted a faculty position at the Colorado School of Mines to start a research program in spine biomechanics, and he also launched an engineering consulting practice to remain engaged with contemporary applications of modeling and simulation in practical R&D settings. He has worked with the US FDA and ASME on verification & validation initiatives related to computational modeling & simulation for medical devices. In 2019 he launched the FEA Professional graduate program, which was designed to offer a graduate engineering degree in structural and thermomechanical modeling and simulation. FEA Pro is currently the only NAFEMS approved graduate engineering program in the US focusing on applied FEA skills.
Alice will take us on a journey thought the past thirty years on how data has driven product development and where this journey will take us, as product developers, in the Industry 4.0 and 5.0 era, where data, automation, AI and Generative AI are shaping will continue shaping the reliance on simulation for product development. We will explore the socio-technological eco-systems for decision making for advancing the use of analysis and simulation and the physiology of trust in virtual vs physical test, as products moves more and more into the automation and autonomy space.
Alice Popescu-Gatlan is a Global Manager of Crop Harvesting Solutions Product Verification and Validation at John Deere, a leading manufacturer of industrial machinery and equipment. She has been working for John Deere since 1994, and has held various positions in the company's technology and innovation centers. She is responsible for overseeing the testing and quality assurance of John Deere's harvesting solutions systems, which include combines, headers, balers, and forage harvesters. Alice Popescu-Gatlan has a master's degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Transilvania in Romania, and an MBA from Northwestern University in the United States. She is also an expert in digital engineering and manufacturing, and has participated in several public-private partnerships to support small manufacturers and create jobs. She has spoken at congressional luncheons and other events to promote the use of simulation in engineering. Alice Popescu-Gatlan is a passionate and innovative leader, who strives to deliver the best products and services to John Deere's customers and stakeholders. She is also a mentor and a role model for many engineers and managers in the company and the industry.
Digital engineering in aerospace applications represents a paradigm shift from traditional development methodologies, fostering a synergy between various engineering disciplines through a continuous and integrated digital thread. By utilizing authoritative data sources and models, digital engineering ensures that systems are designed, tested, and validated with a high fidelity that carries through the entire lifecycle from conceptual design to disposal.
The development of a Small Unmanned Air System (sUAS) following Digital Engineering principles and Physics Based simulation will be presented. The core of digital engineering lies in the creation of physics-based modeling methods and virtual environments that simulate real- world systems. These environments serve as immersive platforms where engineers and stakeholders can interact with the systems in a user-centric manner, allowing for real-time engagement and decision-making. The utility of these virtual environments is magnified by full immersive VR capabilities, making them indistinguishable from operating real systems. Such realism is paramount in applications like virtual flight-testing, where pilot consoles, sensor/payload configurations, and operations can be digitally replicated to assess designs and operational strategies without the risks and costs associated with physical prototypes.
Digital Engineering's robust frameworks facilitate the development of robust designs, also enhancing the traceability of both experimental and computational data, which is crucial from the conceptual design phase to certification by analysis. The approach enables tracking of customer- specific requirements and adherence to stringent certification standards. The ASoT (Authoritative Sources of Truth) databases are central to this approach, enabling engineers to efficiently reuse traceable datasets, which accelerates development and enhances the reliability of future aerospace applications.
Dr. Olivares is the Director for the Advanced Virtual Engineering and Testing Laboratories at the National Institute for Aviation Research at Wichita State University.
He has over 30 years of experience in the research and application of Virtual Engineering methods in the aerospace and automotive industries. For the last nineteen years, Dr. Olivares has been the principal investigator in over four hundred research projects funded by various Government Agencies [FAA, NASA, ONR, Air Force, Army, NSF, and FTA] and industry partners worldwide. The focus of the research has been in the development and validation of Digital Engineering methods from conceptual design to certification by analysis for aerospace applications.
Dr. Olivares holds a BS and MS degrees in Aerospace Engineering and a Ph.D. In Mechanical Engineering from Wichita State University.
Sporting equipment ranging from golf, baseball, tennis, padel and even basketball has a highly competitive market space. Like most consumer products, sporting equipment has evolved over the years and incremental gains in performance are relatively difficult to achieve but are a huge differentiator in the industry. The introduction of simulation and optimization techniques in this industry provides a unique opportunity to drive performance gains across different sporting applications. A brief overview is provided on quantifying performance metrics such as coefficient of restitution, sound, and feel through simulation techniques. We further discuss methodologies for optimizing designs based on these performance attributes for various sport equipment such as golf clubs, baseball bats and padel paddles.
Ninad Trifale, is an innovation manager at Wilson Sporting Goods Co. working across multiple sporting goods categories. His team leverages simulation and optimization technologies to drive next- generation product design in the world of sports. He holds a Ph.D. degree in Mechanical Engineering from Purdue University.
Professional baseball provides an extremely unique environment for product design. Baseball players at the highest-level demand that their equipment display characteristics that have been designed around their specific requirements. This customization trend has caused a major shift in the way bat manufacturers view their products. The Louisville Slugger Brand was purchased by Wilson Sporting Goods from Hillerich & Bradsby Co. in 2014. The Hillerich & Bradsby Co. remains the OEM of all wooden Louisville Slugger baseball and softball bats for Wilson.
Matt is the wood bat factory lead engineer for the Hillerich & Bradsby Co. Since 2014, Matt has also held the position of Product Development Liaison between Wilson Sporting Goods and Hillerich & Bradsby Co. He is a two-time graduate of the J.B. Speed School of Engineering at the University of Louisville with both a Bachelors and Masters degree in Industrial Engineering. His 25 year career with Hillerich & Bradsby has provided him with the rare opportunity to watch the sport of baseball evolve into a businesss that relies heavily on scientific study, collecting data, testing, and the use of software to craft baseball bats into a tool that a player can use to be more successful.
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