Research
Five areas of funded research at UML, spanning tooling, process control, sustainability, defense, and medical devices.
Precision mold & tooling engineering
My lab designs and validates the tooling that makes precision molding possible — from cooling systems for slender injection cores to reconfigurable cavity systems and mold surface engineering. Funded by private industry partners.
Intelligent process control & instrumentation
I develop sensor-driven, pressure-controlled molding systems that adapt in real time to variation in material and process conditions — including an NSF-funded project on intelligent control systems and process studies with private industry partners.
Sustainable & circular polymer processing
Funded through NIST and two Department of Energy REMADE Institute awards, this work develops processing methods and material recovery strategies that make recycled and secondary-feedstock plastics viable for injection molding at scale.
Advanced composites for defense & aerospace
Supported by a five-phase US Army research program and a NASA-funded project, my lab manufactures sapphire/polycarbonate layered composites for transparent armor and hybrid structural components for next-generation spacesuits.
Bringing manufacturing innovation to industry
This area translates advances from my core research — in tooling, process control, and materials — into new industrial applications. Current examples include precision-molded medical devices, building on my sabbatical work in industry, and ruggedized polymer-based electronics packaging, supported by Draper.