Digital Manufacturing & Design

Ken English received his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from the University at Buffalo in 2001, with his research focusing on using information technology and visualization to design and optimize complex, multidisciplinary system. Along with his research, Ken has worked in industry implementing digital solutions for sales and operations support in the food industry, plant layout in the chemical products industry, and with small companies looking to improve business performance. As a research site co-director of the NSF Center for eDesign (www.centerforedesign.org), Ken is working with several universities and over 35 corporate and governmental partners to combine industry needs with academic resources to bridge the gap between research and implementation. In 2002, Ken co-developed a course, “Information Technology in Engineering Design” The first of its kind in the country, the course focused on introducing engineering students to how information technology would transform their workplace. In 2012, working with colleagues at the University at Buffalo, was an instructor in the Knowledge-Driven New Product Development (KD-NPD) program. Ken’s view of learning is that the most successful learners are those that pursue learning as a continuous activity. This requires a philosophy that learning is not a finite act, limited to a classroom and a syllabus, but an ongoing process. He approaches teaching as an endeavor to encourage and exercise the curiosity of a student’s mind and develop enthusiasm for a subject. As a result, a core belief in is that he should be viewed as a coach. Rather than indoctrinate students with a set of facts and figures, students develop the skills and basic knowledge that will enable them to continue learning outside the classroom.