Reuben F. Burch V
Associate Vice President for Research, ORED
Executive Director, Athlete Engineering Institute Mississippi State University
Presenting in Track 7: Biomedical & Biotechnology Engineering
Presentation Title: Building an Interdisciplinary, Human-driven Research Center
Abstract: Dr. Reuben Burch, Associate Vice President of Research at Mississippi State University, will be sharing the story of how he and his team built the Athlete Engineering Institute. Based on guidance from strength coaches at the collegiate and professional level of sports and founded on human factors principles, Athlete Engineering is now aiding workforce preservation in advanced manufacturing across Mississippi. Attendees of this discussion will learn how the Athlete Engineering Institute supports the predictive and preventative maintenance of the human machine, the industrial athlete.
Biography: Reuben F. Burch V, Ph.D. is the Associate Vice President for Research in the Office of Research and Economic Development at Mississippi State University. He is the Executive Director and founder of the Athlete Engineering Institute which headquarters the statewide workforce training program, AiM UP: Advancements in Manufacturing Upskilling Program. Burch continues to serve as an associate professor in the Industrial & Systems Engineering department, holds the Jack Hatcher Endowed Chair for Engineering Entrepreneurship, and is a civic leader to the U.S. Air Force and Space Force. Since moving to academia, he has been awarded $35M in funding, published over 100 journal articles, and been awarded nearly 50 patents. Prior to his start as a professor in the Fall of 2016, Dr. Burch spent 14 years working for and with global Fortune 500 companies in research and development areas such as virtual reality design, weapons systems and training, satellite systems and geospatial data, high-value financial software systems, logistics technology and management, autonomous vehicle design, wearables, and human performance.