Expert Details
Filtration Membrane Processes and Equipment, Converting and Process Equipment Design and Startup
ID: 724084
Massachusetts, USA
Expert has ten years of experience in the manufacture and use of microporous and ultrafiltration membranes. He has successfully applied these membranes in semiconductor process gas filtration, aqueous filtration, and solvent filtration.
TECHNICAL SKILLS
General: Windows, Microsoft Office Suite, TrackWise
Mechanical Design: SolidWorks, AutoCAD, Design Flow Solutions
Process Controls: Delta V, RSView, RSLogix, SCADA, PLC
Chemical Engineering: heat transfer, mass transfer, fluid dynamics, sanitary equipment design, NFF, TFF
Advanced knowledge of mixing, web handling and precision coating equipment such as knife box, squeeze coating, slot die, dual slot die
He has overseen implementation of complex controls systems. The most complicated of these involved 14 programmable logic controllers and 7 man-machine interface terminals, all networked over traditional and fiber optic EtherNet. In addition, he has developed the controls schemes for hundreds of loops. Examples include pH measurements of diluted non-aqeous stream and precise (+/- 0.1 °F) dewpoint control of a heated air stream. He has experience with Allen Bradley and Siemens PLCs, Rockwell Automation HMI products (RSView, RSView SE, RSLinx), Opto 22 Factory Floor, and National Instruments LabView.
He has implemented online process monitoring of chemical composition using FTIR, refractive index, and density measurements. He has also implemented visual inspection with CCD cameras, as well as web thickness monitoring with lasers. This is in addition to years of experience with temperature, flow, and pressure measuring elements and transmitters.
He has implemented automation of previously manual operations in order to 1) reduce errors, 2) increase changeover efficiency and 3) improve quality. In one system he automated, over 50 different valve had to be manually set, along with changing 10 different PID setpoints, at any given changeover. By installing a recipe driven system, changeover mistakes were eliminated, and quality improved dramatically.
He provided hands on engineering consulting to troubleshoot problems with a distillation system. In addition to the onsite work, he interfaced with a 3rd party modelling company to minimize the number and impact of necessary experiments on the ongoing manufacturing operation.
Education
| Year | Degree | Subject | Institution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Year: 1994 | Degree: Masters | Subject: Chemical Engineering | Institution: University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana |
| Year: 1991 | Degree: Bachelors | Subject: Chemical Engineering | Institution: Georgia Institute of Technology |
Work History
| Years | Employer | Title | Department |
|---|---|---|---|
| Years: 2007 to Present | Employer: Undisclosed | Title: President | Department: |
Responsibilities:He is responsible for providing engineer consulting in the areas of membrane processes, including web handling, coating, formation, extraction, and drying. He also provides consulting services for equipment specification development, design review, and systems commissioning. |
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| Years | Employer | Title | Department |
| Years: 1996 to 2007 | Employer: Millipore | Title: Final position: Senior Project Engineer | Department: |
Responsibilities:He designed and built lab equipment for new high volume filter integrity test method. He further developed test method with improved detection capability while reducing test cycle time and cost. He then managed $450K project to design and build FTIR test system (patent pending) based on the above work.He designed, engineered, procured and installed $500K upgrade to chemical mixing and delivery system to address safety and quality concerns. He designed, engineered, procured and installed $400K of capital equipment over 4 month period to add polymer cross linking to a batch membrane surface modification process. |
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| Years | Employer | Title | Department |
| Years: 1996 to 1996 | Employer: ADHESIVE TECHNOLOGIES | Title: Project/Process Engineer | Department: |
Responsibilities:He was responsible for the selection, installation, and maintenance of utilities and process equipment used in manufacturing of hot melt adhesivesProvided 24 hr troubleshooting support for extruders, blenders, and all utility equipment |
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| Years | Employer | Title | Department |
| Years: 1995 to 1996 | Employer: ANALOG DEVICES | Title: Process Engineer | Department: |
Responsibilities:He designed and performed experiments to improve in-process and final product quality. He supported the day-to-day operations of the diffusion and ion implant work centers. |
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| Years | Employer | Title | Department |
| Years: 1994 to 1995 | Employer: MOTOROLA SEMICONDUCTOR PRODUCTS SECTOR | Title: Process/Project Engineer | Department: |
Responsibilities:He designed and performed experiments to improve in-process and final product quality.He was trained in Motorola Six Sigma, Design of Experiments, and Design for Manufacturability methods. |
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Career Accomplishments
| Associations / Societies |
|---|
| American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE); Alpha Chi Sigma Professional Chemistry Fraternity |
| Licenses / Certifications |
|---|
| Registered Professional Engineer (Chemical), State of Massachusetts |
Additional Experience
| Vendor Selection |
|---|
| He has a long history of finding solutions to technically challenging problems. Sometimes the solutions require the use of new technologies, which require finding appropriate manufacturers and vendors, as well as installation contractors. He has identified and worked with top level suppliers of custom web handling, fluid delivery, chemical mixing and heat transfer equipment. He has also identified and worked with companies which specialize in finite element and equation of state modeling of transport and separations processes. |
| Other Relevant Experience |
|---|
| General: Windows, Microsoft Office, Microsoft Project, Microsoft Visio ERP: Oracle 11i, Business Objects Mechanical Design: SolidWorks 2005, AutoCAD 2005, Pro-E Wildfire 2.0 Statistics: Minitab Process Controls: RSView, RSLogix, RSSQL, RSLinx, SCADA, PLC, Opto 22 Factory Floor Chemical Engineering: heat transfer, mass transfer, fluid dynamics, sanitary equipment design, NFF, TFF Advanced knowledge of mixing, web handling and precision coating equipment such as knife box, squeeze coating, slot die, dual slot die |
Language Skills
| Language | Proficiency |
|---|---|
| French | He studied French for 4 years in high school and 2 years in college. His French does not get much use, and is therefore somewhat rusty. |
Fields of Expertise
aqueous filtration, filtration, liquid-solid filtration, membrane filtration, microfiltration, particle filtration, ultrafiltration, chemical process control, manufacturing control, chemical process monitoring, manufacturing automation, process piping, chemical feeder pump, pharmaceutical filtration, heat flux, automation technology, point-of-use filtration, thermal gradient, automation control, industrial process piping, air filtration, thermal resistance, nanofiltration, booster pump, heat transfer instrumentation, chemical separation, pump, process-engineering filtration, automated machine design, positive-displacement pump, thermal conductivity, pneumatic valve, pipe, heat transfer, heat exchanger, heat convection, heat conduction, factory automation, control valve, centrifugal pump, bellows pump, aerosol filtration