Vol. 19, No. 16

Jan. 13, 2000

Dean Announces appointments
for composites research center

Effective Jan. 1, John W. "Jack" Gillespie, formerly technical director, has been named director of the Center for Composite Materials (CCM), according to Adras Z. Szeri, interim dean of engineering. Gillespie will be supported and assisted by Suresh G. Advani, mechanical engineering, as associate director, and Giuseppe R. Palmese, CCM, as assistant director. Former CCM executive director Karl V. Steiner has accepted a position as associate director of the Delaware Biotechnology Institute. (See related story of this page.) Gillespie holds a Ph.D. in mechanical engineering from UD; Advani earned his doctoral degree in the same field at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; and Palmese completed his doctorate in chemical engineering at UD. "We will continue to capitalize on the interdisciplinary expertise and capabilities available to us through the affiliated departments in the college," Gillespie said. "Our new leadership reflects that interdisciplinary approach, with four out of the five engineering disciplines at UD represented by the dean and the center’s directors. We also will continue to foster interactions with other departments and colleges on campus to conduct basic and applied research, transition science and technology for commercialization, and educate the next generation of scientists and engineers. "Suresh, Giuseppe, and I look forward to working with our industrial, government and academic partners as we take the center into the 21st century and meet the challenges of the new millennium," Gillespie added. Recently, the Composites Manufacturing Association of the Society of Manufacturing Engineers selected Gillespie as recipient of the prestigious J.H. "Jud" Hall Composites Manufacturing Award, awarded annually to an individual who has contributed to the composites profession through leadership, patents or educational activities. --Diane Kukich