Mechanical Engineering

Robert W. Pitz, professor of mechanical engineering, has been named a fellow of The Combustion Institute, an international educational and scientific society. He will attend the 38th International Symposium on Combustion in July 2020 in Adelaide, Australia, where he will be recognized along with 36 other fellow honorees from around… Read More

Rob Barrick (BE’74) has been named board chairman and senior principal of Smith Seckman Reid  Inc., an employee-owned engineering design and facility consulting firm with 12 offices nationwide. Rob Barrick His new post comes after serving 29 years as SSR’s president and CEO. The Nashville-based firm provides design and consulting… Read More

James J. Wert, George A. Sloan Professor of Metallurgy and Professor of Mechanical Engineering, Emeritus, died Feb. 4, 2019, in Nashville. James Wert Wert joined the Vanderbilt engineering faculty in 1961. He developed the Department of Materials Science and served at its chair. Later, he served as chair of the… Read More

Professor Yvonne Y. Clark at Tennessee State University. (Photo/Milton Young webpage) Yvonne Young Clark, 89, was the first woman to receive a bachelor of science degree in mechanical engineering from Howard University, the first woman to earn a master’s degree in engineering management from the Vanderbilt University School of Engineering, and… Read More

In a change of command ceremony in Port Hueneme, California, Capt. Christopher M. Kurgan (BE’90) became commanding officer for the Center for Seabees and Facilities Engineering and the Naval Civil Engineer Corps Officers School at Naval Base Ventura County. After assuming command in August 2018, Kurgan spoke of his plans… Read More

Reuss will lead electric and driverless vehicle efforts Mark Reuss (General Motors) Mark L. Reuss has been promoted to president of General Motors. Reuss will continue to lead the company’s ambitious plan to develop and bring to market electric and autonomous vehicles. He remains GM’s global product chief and… Read More

Lynn Braunschweig Lynn Braunschweig is a project manager at maxon motor Aerospace Unit. She earned a BE degree in mechanical engineering at Vanderbilt in 2004, a Master of Science degree in mechanical engineering and a MBA at Washington University in St. Louis. Braunschweig was interviewed by Paul Heney of Design… Read More

Event to promote organ donation, recognize engineering alum is open to university, medical center communities A talented young Vanderbilt mechanical engineer from Indiana had a job with the company he had interned with for three summers, an engagement ring for his girlfriend, and a promising life to lead until a… Read More

A biochemistry instructor curious about an enzyme discovered in the damaged neurons of people with multiple sclerosis made a leap toward a potential cure for countless neurodegenerative ills. Vanderbilt University’s Amrita Pathak, working with Bruce D. Carter, biochemistry professor and associate director of the Vanderbilt Brain… Read More

Jillian Bremner is steering beyond her academic focus this summer to explore her passions for scuba diving and ocean conservation, with the aim of eventually combining engineering with a marine career. A rising junior mechanical engineering major from Colorado, Bremner is spending eight weeks volunteering for Global Vision International… Read More