UB Engineering Dean's Advisory Council

Russell L. Agrusa

B.S. '76. Founder, president and CEO of ICONICS, Inc. a leading international software development company specializing in PC based off-the-shelf Web-enabled visualization of factory automation and manufacturing systems. Their software projects span a wide area of manufacturing, automation and process control. Projects include complete data acquisition and monitoring of the Trans Russian pipeline; Security and Building Controls for the Pentagon; automotive factory automation for Ford, Delphi, Honda and American Axle; and monitoring of self-propelled airport people movers at the Madrid, Dallas Forth-Worth and London Heathrow airports. ICONICS has been a two time Inc 500 Winnerand has had double-digit growth for the last six straight years. Russ has over 25 years of experience in product marketing, leading and managing software development for the manufacturing and process control industries. He started his career at Westinghouse Electric Corporation. Russ earned a BS in Electrical Engineering from UB and has done graduate work in Computer Science at Boston University.

Ravinder Bansal

Chairman & Chief Executive Officer of AirSep Corporation.

Michael Cadigan

B.S. '79. Appointed Vice President of Operations, Technology Group, IBM in August 2003, responsible for overall operations planning, coordinating and plan integration for the group. Appointed Vice President of Manufacturing and Logistics, Integrated Supply Chain, in January 2003. This includes the internally manufactured and fulfilled operations as well as the outsourced manufacturing activity worldwide. Logistics support is also a worldwide activity in support of all IBM'S units. Prior to this appointment, Mike was Vice President of Technical and Business Operations for the Technology Division. Mike has spent the majority of his career in the Technology Group where he held a number of executive positions including General Manager of the Interconnect Business Unit, several site location executive positions, plant manager, and engineering positions. The majority of his assignments have been in manufacturing and supply chain operations. He joined IBM in 1979 as a quality engineer and holds several US Patents in the electronic packaging area.

Dennis Elsenbeck

M.Eng. '96. Is the vice president of business services for National Grid’s western division.  In this capacity, he is responsible for representing the region’s large commercial and industrial customers in terms of energy sales, reliability, and service, along with public affairs and community relations.  He was previously regional manager of the Mohawk Valley region, and has been with National Grid for nineteen years. Prior to joining National Grid, Dennis held positions with United Technologies Building Systems Group and Carrier Corporation. Dennis holds an associate’s degree from Mohawk Valley Community College, a baccalaureate degree from SUNY Institute of Technology in Utica, an M.B.A. from the University of Rochester, and a masters in engineering from the University of Buffalo.  He serves on the board of directors for the Buffalo Niagara Partnership, Buffalo Niagara Enterprise, and Amherst Chamber of Commerce, and sits on the Advisory Council of USA Niagara in Niagara Falls.

Ephrahim Garcia

B.S. '85, M.S. '88, Ph.D. '90. Associate Professor in the Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Comell University where he leads the Laboratory for Intelligent Machine Systems which exploits mecha- tronic systems and smart materials technology to create new types of machine and devices that respond to their environments. Previously, he was a program manager at the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and an Associate Professor at Vanderbilt University. He is the recipient of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers 2003 Adaptive Structures Prize for "Significant contributions to the sciences and technologies associated with adaptive structures and/or material systems. As a faculty fellow of the Central Intelligence Agency, He investigated the applica- tion of technology to intelligence gathering. Ephrahim was appointed a Presidential Faculty Fellow by President Clinton, named an Office of Naval Research Young Investigator, and held a NASA graduate student fellowship.

Lester A. Gerhardt

M.S. '64, Ph.D. ’69, is professor and associate dean of the school of engineering, and vice provost and dean of graduate education at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI). Since the early ‘90s, he has been associate dean of engineering; he was responsible for research and graduate programs in the school, now at a reported annual expenditure level above $40 million. He also served as founding director of the Center for Manufacturing Productivity and director of the Center for Industrial Innovation. Lester joined Rensselaer in 1970; he was promoted to full professor in 1974 and was selected as chairman of the newly merged electrical, computer, and systems engineering department in 1975, holding the position until 1986. The ECSE department growth and development during these years was nationally recognized in a National Academy of Science report, receiving the top rating in the most improved program category, as well as being rated in the top ten percent in other categories.  In 1986, Lester was appointed director of computer integrated manufacturing, which subsequently won the worldwide SME/CASA LEAD Award for Excellence in CIM.  Before going to RPI, Lester spent ten years with Bell Aerospace Corporation, where he was director of avionics research.  His graduate degrees are from UB in electrical engineering.

Ramji L. Gupta

M.S. '72, Ph.D. '74. Product Line Manager at Moog. After beginning his career as a Control Systems Engineer, Ramji progressed to become the Chief Engineer for Moog's Industrial Division. This was followed by positions of Engineering Manager in Moog's Space Products Division and most recently the Chief Engineer for Moog's Missile/Motion Systems Division. Currently, Ramji is responsible for Moog's Space Launch Vehicle and Missile Flight Controls, Electronics, and Commercial Systems Product Lines. He earned his B.S. (Hons.) in Mechanical Engineering in India and M.S. and Ph.D. at the University at Buffalo.

Gina B. Hammond

C.S. ‘73. Vice President of Computer Sciences Corporation

Douglas J. Hillman

B.S. ‘82, M.B.A. ’89. General manager for Kearfott Guidance and Navigation in Asheville, NC. KGN is an engineering/manufacturing firm specializing in motion feedback and control components and systems for aerospace and defense applications. Doug has almost 25 years of experience working in the business of developing and deploying new products and services for high technology companies. His background includes engineering work at Cooper Power Systems and almost 16 years working for Moog as an engineer, program manager, division manager (Germany), and product line manager.  Prior to his current position, he spent almost 5 years working for Bird Technologies, a manufacturer of high performance RF signal management and power measurement equipment. At Bird, Doug held several senior management positions, most recently as COO.  He earned a B.S. in electrical engineering and an M.B.A from the University at Buffalo.

Timothy J. Klein

B.S. '84. Co-Founder and CEO of ATTO Technology, a leader in high performance computer storage prod- ucts for digital video/audio, Imaging and back-up markets. From humble beginnings in the University at Buffalo Technology Incubator, ATTO has grown to be an Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) supplier of products to top tier companies including Quantum, NEC, Apple, Avid Technology, and Sun. Previously, Tim was employed in an engineering level capacity for Barrister Information Systems and prior to that at Motorola in Tempe, AZ.

Nirup Krishnamurthy

M.S. '87, Ph.D. '91. Worldwide Technology, Chief Technology Officer, Executive Vice President, Northern Trust Chicago.

Professional Experience

As Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer Nirup is responsible for leading Worldwide Technology (WWT) to ensure that it provides agile, cost-effective and highly available solutions to external and internal clients. In this role, Nirup and his organization are focused on leveraging technology to its competitive advantage, increasing productivity and gaining greater operational efficiency.

Prior to his current role, Nirup was previously Vice President and Chief Information Officer of UAL Corporation since 2003. He also served as Vice President of United's Information Services Division, and also led their joint global IT efforts with the Star Alliance. He served as Managing Director of Applications Development, with responsibility for all software development at the company, as well as Manager of Applications Development, where he was responsible for developing and executing automation strategies for United's Flight Operations, Onboard Service, and Cargo divisions. Mr. Krishnamurthy began his long and successful career in the finance division at United in 1990, developing key optimization models for airline scheduling, operations planning, and aircraft maintenance.

Year Started at Northern Trust

2005

Year Started in Industry

1995 (IT Industry)

2005 Financial Services Industry

Credentials & Affiliations

Ph.D. and M.S. in Industrial Engineering from
the University at at Buffalo.

Maria Lehman

P.E., B.S. '81, is a Vice President - Transportation Business Sector for Bergmann Associates, a regional architectural and engineering firm with 9 offices located throughout the eastern and mid-western United States. The firm was founded in 1980 and has grown to a staff of over 280 employees. During her career Maria has held several positions both in the public and private sectors, including the Corporate Director for Quality Assurance for URS Corporation, the largest engineering consulting firm in the US as well as the Commissioner of Public Works for Erie County. As commissioner, her area of responsibility was defined by a $100 million dollar a year capital program and a $37 million annual operations & maintenance budget. She is a registered professional engineer with over 26 years of multidisciplinary experience in highway and facility planning, environmental assessment, design, management, construction monitoring, and on-going operations and management of facilities. She is the recipient of many awards, including: the National American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) President's Medal 2004 for service to the profession and contribution to public policy, New York Governor's Award for Women - Excellence in Business 2002, American Consulting Engineers Council New York President's Award 2004, New York State Society of Professional Engineers 2004 Engineering Manager of the Year, 2003 State University of New York at Buffalo Engineering Alumna of the Year, APWA Western New York Public Works Leader of the Year, and Buffalo Business First - 1994 "40 under Forty." Maria has been elected a national board member and then vice president of ASCE. Currently Maria is an elected trustee of the Orchard Park Central School District. Maria is part of a proud UB tradition. Her husband Carl is a BSCiE '78, MSCiE '86; their son Jason is BSCE '04, Geoffrey is currently a senior in the Civil Engineering Department and son Ryan hopes to attend UB for Media Arts starting in 2008.

Steven L. Lerner, Ph.D

Senior vice president and chief technology officer of Praxair, Inc. Praxair manufactures and markets industrial gases and related equipment and provides advanced coating technology to customers worldwide. Before joining Praxair, Steve held various management positions in technology, production, and commercial development at the BOC Group and ARCO Oil & Gas Company. He is a member of the Board of Directors of the Industrial Research Institute and the advisory boards of the AlChE and the Institute of Materials Science. The recipient of a Guggenheim fellowship while a student at Princeton, Steve has authored several technical publications and 10 U.S. patents.

Thomas Lynch

B.S. '76, MBA '85, is the vice president of the Americas Operations for Bureau Veritas Consumer Products Services.  BVCPS, formerly ACTS Testing Labs in Amherst, NY, is a leading quality assurance provider for global consumer product and retail markets with expertise in testing, consulting, training, inspection, auditing, and social accountability. BVCPS offers its services through 60 offices and laboratories in 40 countries with 4,000 employees. Through the strategic use of quality assurance services, from design stage to distribution, BVCPS offer clients the ability to lower costs by effectively monitoring the outcomes and performance of products while assuring regulatory compliance. As a third-party laboratory, it is committed to developing strong partnerships with clients and to offering integrated account management to provide one-stop shopping for all client’s quality assurance needs.  Prior to joining BVCPS, Tom worked for Corning, Inc. in business management, plant management, and engineering; he also worked for Fisher Price Toys in various manufacturing and engineering positions. Tom serves on the Penn State Behrend Plastics Technology advisory board as well.  His undergraduate degree at UB is in chemical engineering.

Hormoz Mansouri

P.E., B.S.’79, is currently president and CEO of EI Team, an architectural & engineering firm, and NPTS, an engineering consulting company serving the nuclear and power industries. Hormoz incorporated NPTS in 1982, and by 1990, the firm’s total number of employees exceeded 400 professionals. In 1985, he was appointed to managing director of EPIC Inc. and by 1989, the firm’s total professional fees exceeded $75 million per annual. In 1997, Hormoz purchased EI Associates, an architectural and engineering services company with offices in NY, NJ & PA, from the Cipriano family. He attended UB for nuclear engineering in the 70’s and earned his Ph.D. in mechanical engineering from S.U. of Arizona.

Kitty Pilarz

B.S. ’80, is director of worldwide product safety for Mattel, Inc. She is chairman of Fisher-Price’s safety committee, chairman of ASTM F15 executive committee, vice chairman of Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association Certification Committee, and chairman of the ASTM subcommittee on non-full size cribs/play yards. She serves on numerous committees for ASTM, ANSI and UL responsible for safety standard development for children’s products. Kitty is a board member and past president of the International Consumer Product Health and Safety Organization (ICPHSO). She received her B.S. in mechanical engineering from UB.

John Pilitsis

Ph.D. '75

Lee Runk

B.S. '61. Retired President of Metaldyne's Forming Technologies Group, a manufacturer of steel forgings and powder metal products for the automotive industry with 25 worldwide manufacturing locations. Lee's career also includes the presidency of Harvard Industries and Acustar, both automotive parts suppliers. Prior to that he spent 26 years with Chrysler Corporation, including as vice president of Powertrain Operations and Components Operations. He holds an industrial engineering degree from the University at Buffalo and graduate degrees from Wayne State University and Purdue University.

John Stanfill

President of Northrop Grumman Amherst Systems

Scott D. Stevens

P.E., B.S. ’79, founder and president of Dimension Fabricators, Inc., a steel products manufacturing company based in Schenectady, NY.  Scott began his career as a facilities engineer with Martin Marietta, now Lockheed Martin in New Orleans. Following five years as a designer of a variety of industrial, transportation, and power generation projects, he established Dimension in 1984.  Dimension Fabricators has produced items for a wide variety of notable projects including the Lake Placid Luge Run, the Boston Central Artery, the RPI Experimental Media Center, and most of the sizable highway bridges throughout the northeastern US.  Scott is a licensed professional engineer with a concentration in structures and a member of the board of directors of the Concrete Reinforcing Steel Institute. His civil engineering baccalaureate is from the University at Buffalo.

Thomas Stewart

President & Chief Operating Officer of Graymar Industries, Inc.

John P. Stopher

B.S.'86, M.S. '88, Ph.D. '94., founder and President of 377 Omega, Inc., a consulting firm that serves government and industry clients in the intelligence community. 377 Omega specializes in foreign, military, and domestic intelligence programs, including intelligence policy, technical intelligence programs, capabilities, and their budgets and resources. Currently, John directly supports several intelligence agencies and elements within the Department of Defense. He participates on the NRO's Technical Advisory Group, and provides strategic and technical support to several senior leaders across the intelligence community. 377 Omega also provides support to industry clients for strategic planning, market analysis, business development, independent reviews, and technical engineering support primarily in technical intelligence programs. Prior to establishing 377 Omega, John was a Professional Staff Member with the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence from 1998 until 2007. His positions included Budget Director, Staff Director of the Technical and Tactical Subcommittee, and Program Monitor for the National Reconnaissance Office and the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. Before joining the Congress, John was a systems engineer for several companies, including Northrop Grumman TASC, Seicorp, and Eastman Kodak Company, always supporting national technical programs. John has a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from the University at Buffalo, where he studied advanced power systems for space applications.

Edward O. Watts

President of Watts Engineers & Architecture P.C.

Ann Wegrzyn

B.S. '85. Assistant Vice President of National Fuel Gas Distribution Corporation