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Provided by ASME Logo The American Society of Mechanical Engineers

ASME MED WIAM 2021 Panelist

Jian Cao

Jian Cao, Northwestern University – Associate VP for Research, Director, NIMSI, Cardiss Collins Professor

Professor Cao (MIT'95, MIT'92, SJTU'89) is the Cardiss Collins Professor and the Director of Northwestern Initiative for Manufacturing Science and Innovation at Northwestern University and an Associate Vice President for Research (AVPR) at Northwestern University.

Professor Cao specializes in innovative manufacturing processes and systems, particularly dieless double-sided incremental forming process and laser processes. Her work has made fundamental contributions to the characterization of material behavior of metals and woven composites. She views manufacturing as an integration platform and has integrated analytical and numerical simulation methods, control and sensors, and design methodologies to advance manufacturing processes. Current research has direct impacts on energy-efficient manufacturing, surface engineering, and distributed manufacturing. Prof. Cao has published over 300 technical articles, including over 220 journal articles, 10 book chapters, and 15 patents. She has given over 150 invited talks and published op-ed articles. She has advised 45 doctoral students, among which 31% are women.

Cao is the Editor–in–Chief of Journal of Materials Processing Technology and the founding Technical Editor of ASME Journal of Micro– and Nano-Manufacturing. Professor Cao is an elected Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), ASME, SME, and of the International Academy for Production Engineering (CIRP). Her major awards include the ASME Milton C. Shaw Manufacturing Research Medal (2020), SME Gold Medal (2020), DoD Vannevar Bush Faculty Fellowship (2019), Charles Russ Richards Memorial Award from ASME and Pi Tau Sigma (2017), SME Frederick W. Taylor Research Medal (2016), ASME Blackall Machine Tool and Gage Award (2012, 2018), ASME Young Investigator Award (2006) from Applied Mechanics Division, ISFA Young Investigator Award, and the NSF CAREER Award. She served as President of the SME North America Manufacturing Research Institute, and Chair of ASME Manufacturing Engineering Division. Prof. Cao is a Board member of mHUB, Chicago's first innovation center focused on physical product development and manufacturing.