Center for Advanced Manufacturing Innovation and Cyber Systems (CAMICS) College of Engineering and Computer Science

Director

Dr. James Li is the Professor at UTRGV. He received his doctoral degree in Industrial Engineering from Texas Technology University. Dr. Li has 20+ years of leadership and research experiences in the areas of advanced manufacturing and materials, focusing on laser material processing, additive manufacturing, process modelling and optimization, composite materials, sustainable manufacturing, and logistics. As the director of the consortium, Dr. Li supports research, innovation, and education programs at three consortium institutions to support talent needs in Defense Manufacturing.

Dr. Farid Ahmed is currently an Assistant Professor in the Department of Manufacturing and Industrial Engineering at The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. He received his PhD in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Victoria. His research interests include additive manufacturing processes and applications, convergent manufacturing, laser material processing, sensing technologies for monitoring applications in advanced manufacturing, and printed electronics.

Dr. Douglas Timmer

Dr. Douglas Timmer is currently a professor in Department of Manufacturing and Industrial Engineering at UTRGV. He received his Ph.D. degree from Industrial Engineering from Texas A&M in 1994. Some of his research areas are Education Research, Applied Statistics, Design of Experiments, Process Modeling, and Statistical Quality Control.

douglas.timmer@utrgv.edu

Dr. Peters is currently a tenure-track Assistant Professor at the University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley. I earned my Bachelor of Science in Manufacturing Engineering from the University of Texas-Pan American in May 2011. In August 2014, he graduated from the University of Texas-Pan American with two Masters of Science in Manufacturing Engineering with focuses in Systems Engineering and Engineering Management. Following graduation, he attended the Georgia Institute of Technology. While at Georgia Tech, he developed multiple frameworks that process information-rich, but spatially large data structures for monitoring the health of industrial assets from fields such as: automotive, gas turbine, and aviation. In December 2021, he graduated from the Georgia Institute of Technology with my Doctor of Philosophy in Industrial Engineering.

Dr. Javier A. Ortega is an Assistant Professor in the Mechanical Engineering Department at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV). He received his doctoral degree in Materials Engineering from UANL in 2013. His research interests include Cold Spray Additive Manufacturing (CSAM), Tribology, Lubrication, and Biomaterials. Dr. Ortega has been involved in different research projects that include tribological and corrosion studies of surface-engineered biomaterials intended for hip joint replacements and developing vegetable-oil-based lubricants modified with nanoparticles as lubricant additives.

javier.ortega@utrgv.edu  

Experienced Technology Development Engineer with a demonstrated history of working in the semiconductors industry. Skilled in nanomaterials, material characterization, micro-and nanofabrication, interfacial phenomena, water desalination, sensing, CAD. Strong operations professional with a Doctor of Philosophy - PhD focused in Mechanical Scinece and Engineering from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

ali.ashraf@utrgv.edu  

Dr. Yangyang Long is a Visiting Assistant Professor in the Department of Manufacturing and Industrial Engineering at The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. He finished his PhD in Mechanical Engineering from Leibniz University Hanover, and Master’s Degree in Manufacturing Engineering from The University of Texas-Pan American. His research interests include additive manufacturing, materials science, electronic packaging, ultrasonic joining and welding, piezo- and ultrasonic technologies, and sustainable manufacturing.

yangyang.long01@utrgv.edu

Dr. Lee is currently a research scientist at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. He received Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from Purdue University in 2022. His research interests are laser-based additive manufacturing and convergent manufacturing. Dr. Lee has been involved in research projects involving functional material development via novel manufacturing processes sponsored by federal agencies and industry.

jeongwoo.lee@utrgv.edu

Dr. AMM Nazmul Ahsan is currently an Assistant Professor in the Department of Manufacturing and Industrial Engineering at UTRGV. He received his Ph.D. degree in Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering from North Dakota State University in 2019. Before that he completed his master’s degree in Industrial Engineering and Management from the same university. His research interests include additive manufacturing process modeling, simulation, and optimization, machine learning enabled in-situ manufacturing process monitoring and control, new process development, and robotic manufacturing. He received the Outstanding Early-Career Faculty Award 2021 in the College of Engineering and Technology at Western Carolina University. He is a recipient of Chancellor's Gold Medal and Prime Minister’s Gold Medal Awards at the undergraduate level.

ammnazmul.ahsan@utrgv.edu