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People

Administration

Jeongho Kim

JEONGHO KIM
Director

Bio

Dr. Jeongho Kim is a Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering. His area of expertise is in finite element methods, computational fracture mechanics, and composites damage modeling. Dr. Kim has led various research programs working with federal and state agencies and industry partners, including the National Institutes of Health, Pratt & Whitney, National Science Foundation, the Department of Homeland Security, the Air Force Research Laboratory, and the Connecticut Department of Transportation. Dr. Kim serves as an associate editor of Finite Element in Analysis and Design.
Jiong Tang

JIONG TANG
Associate Director

Bio

Dr. Jiong Tang is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering.  He has extensive research experience on computational structural dynamics, uncertainty propagation, design optimization, modeling and analysis of systems with multi-field couplings, motion and vibration controls, and structural health monitoring.  He has served as Associate Editor for several leading journals, such as ASME Journal of Vibration and Acoustics, ASME Journal of Dynamic Systems, Measurement, and Control, IEEE Transactions on Instrumentation and Measurement, and IEEE/ASME Transactions on Mechatronics.

Finite Element Technicians

Asim Gautam

ASIM GAUTAM
Finite Element Technician

Bio

Asim Gautam is a PhD student working as a finite element technician for the CMSC under the guidance of Dr. Jeongho Kim. His area of study is in Applied Mechanics and he has a vast experience in finite element analysis.  Asim has worked on heat treat finite element analysis for Steel 9310.

Qianyu Zhou

QUIANYU ZHOU
Finite Element Technician

Bio

Quianyu Zhou is a PhD candidate working for the CMSC under the guidance of Dr. Jiong Tang. His areas of research are computational intelligence, sensing and data analytics, computer vision and inspection, robotics.

Surendra Bhatta

SURENDRA BHATTA
Finite Element Technician

Bio

Surendra Bhatta is a PhD student working as a finite element technician for the DOE project and CMSC under the guidance of Dr. Jeongho Kim. 
Dong Xu

DONG XU
Finite Element Technician

Bio

Dong Xu is a PhD candidate working as a finite element technician for the CMSC under the guidance of Dr. Jiong Tang. 

Yang Zhang

YANG ZHNAG
Finite Element Technician

Bio

Yang Zhang is a PhD candidate working for the CMSC under the guidance of Dr. Jiong Tang. 

Advisory Board Members

Paul S. Lavoie

PAUL S. LAVOIE

Bio

Paul S. Lavoie is the Chief Manufacturing Officer for Connecticut.  Lavoie has extensive manufacturing industry experience including General Manager at Carey Manufacturing in Cromwell, and Vice President of Sales, Marketing, and Human Resources at ETTER Engineering Company in Bristol. He has also owned two businesses and served in senior-level positions at publicly traded and privately owned businesses. Lavoie serves as the Board Chair of the Central Connecticut Chambers of Commerce, Board Member for the Connecticut Technical Education & Career System, and an Advisory Board Member for UConn’s School of Engineering, in addition to serving on Senator Chris Murphy’s Aerospace and Advance Manufacturing Advisory Council. Paul is also Chairman of the Manufacturing Innovation Fund Advisory Board, established to support the continued advancement of Connecticut’s manufacturing sector. In 2022, Paul was named one of Greater Hartford’s Top 50 Power Players by Hartford Business Journal.
Jackie Garofano

JACKIE GAROFANO

Bio

Dr. Jacquelynn Garofano is the Chief Technology Officer at the Connecticut Center for Advanced Technology, Inc. Her area of expertise is in materials characterization leveraging combinatorial high throughput methodology focusing on materials informatics approaches, for advanced materials development, additive manufacturing and corrosion mitigation. Dr. Garofano is leading various programs working partner organizations; primarily federal agencies, national labs and consortiums, universities, global industrial corporations and subject matter experts. Currently, with the Air Force Research Laboratory, the Office of Naval Research, the Department of Energy with Pratt & Whitney, Electric Boat, and others. Dr. Garofano is a UCONN alumna, receiving her master’s and doctoral degrees in materials science and engineering (’09, ’11).
Barbara Fernandez

BARBARA FERNANDEZ

Bio

Barbara Fernandez is a skilled innovator with a proven track record in creating partnerships and achieving positive and powerful results. She is an experienced leader in workforce development, entrepreneurship, innovation centers of excellence, project/program management of state and federal grants and programs with extensive knowledge of community and economic development. Specialized expertise in creating public/private partnerships and high impact economic engagement.

Patrick Bruckner

Patrick Bruckner

PATRICK BRUCKNER

Bio

Patrick Brueckner is the Director of Engineering at Aero Gear, Inc. which specializes in the design and manufacturing of complex gear systems for the aerospace industry, serving both military and commercial sectors. Brueckner is a University of Connecticut graduate, earning his B.S. in Materials Science and Engineering. He has been working with CMSC since 2017, consulting on various modeling and simulation initiatives. He is an industry advisor for University of Connecticut students in the Materials and Mechanical Engineering Departments, and a member of the Project Daedalus advisory board.

Jason Sicotte

Jason Sicotte

JASON SICOTTE

Bio

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