PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY
MS in Mechanical Engineering from Purdue university [2003] with a major in Heat transfer
4+ years experience in new product management for the capital goods manufacturing sector
Head of the presales engineering department (Technical marketing & strategy) for 4+ years
Initiated product expansion into the clean energy space; standardized selected product lines reducing COGS; introduced low cost models of selected products to penetrate price sensitive Asian markets
Hands-on engineer with manufacturing experience; skilled in managing turn-key projects
Knowledgeable and experienced in designing for high temperature environments (up to 1850C/ 3362F)
Demonstrable success in assessing feasibility, initiating and managing multiple new products
Authorized to work in the United States and available for immediate employment in the San Francisco Bay area
PERFORMANCE HIGHLIGHTS
Fluidtherm Technology (www.fluidtherm.com): Manufacturer of advanced automated reactors and furnaces for heat treatment and powder metallurgy. Boasts a leading Government (dsir.gov.in) accredited industrial R&D prototyping facility and recipient of the National award for technology development. Exporter of high quality plants to Europe, USA, Canada, Korea and China. Worldwide offices with headquarters and manufacturing facility in India.
New Product Engineer Nov 05 to Oct 09
1. This role was born from an organizational change I had proposed to make the functions of the presales engineering and marketing teams more effective.
2. I initiated work towards expanding the product line to enter into the clean energy market. The oil fired furnace market which includes steel plants and forgers was a large untapped market due to low technology and low profit margins. The fluctuation of furnace oil prices in 2007 was creating a requirement for an alternate fuel that could be used in existing furnaces with minimum rework. In a bid to tap this market I evaluated multiple commercially viable technologies in the industrial and academic research space. To meet the calorific value required for these operating temperatures, I proposed the development of a fluidized bed biomass gasifier sized to cater to SMEs. Initial prototypes were successful and a commercial scale prototype is currently underway.
3. Pushed to completion a project that was stagnant for over 4 years. This project was offered to me after they parted ways with the original incumbent on issues related to performance. The project was stalled due to design complexities in meeting intended functional targets. I designed a novel system that allowed random access of trays within the furnace hot zone, allowing components requiring different process parameters to be processed simultaneously in the same chamber. Under my management, the turn-key plant was built and commissioned at Fluidtherm in 2007 with funding from the Department of Scientific and Engineering Research. The product was proven successful after rigorous testing and running as a demonstration plant for over a year. It met all its functional requirements including improved energy efficiency, just in time manufacturing capability, and reducing parallel job completion times. It is now a part of Fluidtherms product portfolio.
4. Expanded the market by way of working with potential clients to develop their processes or products as a precursor to making a sale. Over a two year period (starting in 2005), I engaged a leading auto catalyst manufacturer and drove an inter-company R&D initiative with constant specification gathering and prototyping to develop a new type of process and equipment. An initiative that resulted in a large order for a first of its kind, high convection, twin chamber, drying and calcination plant. Power consumption constraints and process challenges caused by local exothermic reactions were addressed and custom turbomachinery and convection chambers were successfully designed.
5. I have worked on all aspects of new technology development including vendor development. I identified cost effective high alumina insulation options for continuous sintering furnaces that operates with 100% Hydrogen atmosphere at 1850C/ 3362F. This involved working with vendors to test and develop their products, an initiative that gave us a cost advantage allowing us to export our equipment to Germany to be re-branded and sold to the European market through an agreement with a leading German sintering furnace manufacturer.
6. I have supported new product development from concept design to rigorous feasibility analysis, preliminary engineering, DFM, prototyping and testing, budget and schedule control and communicating risks, costs and ROI to management. I reported variably to the three directors of the company (process aspect, control systems and marketing).
Head of Presales Engineering March 05 to Oct 09
1. Customer facing role, I was the first point of contact for product and technical communications including answering RFIs /RFQs, educating clients about ROI and discerning between low cost low tech alternatives and premium technology; I supervised a team of 3 engineers and oversaw the project cost estimation, quoting and refining the proposals till order.
2. Maintained relationships with clients, 49% of our business was from repeat clients.
3. Implemented a strategy to standardize selected product offerings based on cross dimensional analysis of disparate market requirements (process parameters, component attributes, and throughput), COGS, and market segmentation. This standardization has been in use since its implementation in 2006.
4. Engineered economy models of selected product offerings to penetrate a wider price sensitive market.
5. Led the automation of project cost estimation, which achieved 75% reduction of turnover time from RFQ to quotation. I actively participated in building the systems including designing and implementing VBA plug-ins for MS Excel.
6. Redesigned the ERP system to close the feed back loop for validating and improving the accuracy of the cost estimations and monitor the project as built cost.
7. The processes and people I put in place ensured continuing results even after I focused on other responsibilities within the organization.
Project Engineer and Software Skills June 2000 to June 01
1. Developed architectural schemas including P&I and GA drawings, I worked with a team of CAD engineers to execute detailed drawings and work instructions. I am familiar with 2D AutoCAD and SolidWorks.
2. Familiar with shop floor practices for sheet metal works.
3. Experienced with design principles for high temperature environments (up to 1850C/ 3362F).
4. Performed basic structural calculations and advanced heat transfer calculations. Experience with ANSYS CFX and Fluent; Comfortable with most Microsoft software and LaTeX. Advanced user of MS Excel; I introduced software assisted project scheduling to the company and am a self taught user of Open work bench and MS projects.
EDUCATION
MS Mechanical Engineering (Heat Transfer) ; Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN [Aug 01 -Dec 03]
Key Publication: "Chemical kinetic considerations for post flame synthesis of carbon nanotubes (CNT) in premixed flames using a support catalyst", Prarthana Gopinath and Jay Gore, Combustion and Flame, Vol 151, Issue 3, Nov 2007, pg-542-550
Research summary: I grew CNTs on supported nanocatalysts exposed to the post flame environment of a C2H4-air premixed flame of varying equivalence ratios and modeled the reaction kinetics using a modified FORTRAN code originally developed by Sandia labs, to correlate the chemical species concentrations and temperature to the CNT growth phenomena.
Demonstrated initiative: I was the first student to establish experimental study of CNTs in my department at a time when the field was new. I am very comfortable self-learning and applying new fields of engineering with minimal supervision.
Ability in a breadth of engineering disciplines: 50% of my course credits were from interdisciplinary areas, which included the study of BioMEMs, micro-fluidics, quantum phenomena, nanoscale energy transport etc.
Strong theoretical & empirical knowledge. I have experience with advanced scientific diagnostic equipment including the use of transmission electron, scanning electron and atomic force microscopes, FTIR and Raman spectroscopy, and gas chromatography. I am trained in an integrated circuit fabrication and testing laboratory.
BE (Mechanical); Guindy Engineering, Chennai, India [Aug 1996 to 2000]
I was an intercollegiate and national gold medalist for the rowing team.
PERSONAL INTERESTS Chapter project coordinator at the Engineers without Borders-San Francisco professional chapter; Sweep Rowing; Collecting original art; I am fluent in English, Hindi and Tamil, I am learning Spanish and German.
AVAILABILITY Authorized to work in the United States and available for immediate employment
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