Momentum - The Magazine for Virginia Tech Mechanical Engineering Vol. 4 No. 1 Spring 2019 | Page 11

11
Entrepreneur Hall of Fame in
2017.
Rakesh Kapania
Kapania was nominated for
his significant contributions
to teaching and research in
computational structural
mechanics, aeroelasticity,
optimal design of unitized
structures, multi-disciplinary
design optimization, and
composite structures. As a
scholar-manager, Kapania
has led two large programs
toward the design of civilian
and military future aerospace
vehicles. He is part of a team
selected by NASA to perform
research on performance
adaptive aeroelastic wings,
and by the U.S. Navy on a
program to bring machine
learning to the analysis of
submarine structures. His
path-breaking work on
curvilinearly stiffened panels
and aeroelastic optimization
of wings using curvilinear
spar and ribs has spawned
similar research world-wide.
Kapania is a Fellow of the
Royal Aeronautical Society
(2016), and a recipient of the
Platinum Jubilee Award from
the Indian Institute of Science
(2017). He has been with
Virginia Tech since 1985
and the Mitchell Professor of
Aerospace and Ocean Engi-
neering since 2008. A former
president of the EFO, he has
won Dean’s Awards for Re-
search Excellence in 2000 and
2010. He holds a Ph.D. from
the School of Aeronautics and
Astronautics at
Purdue Uni-
versity (1985).
He has been
a member of
AIAA since
1982 and was
elected an As-
sociate Fellow
in 1991.
Robert
Canfield
Canfield,
Technical
Director of the
VT Airworthi-
ness Center, is
world-renown
for his work
to develop a
methodology
for automated
structural
design and
optimization, recognized
as the gold standard in the
field. Users of software that
incorporate this methodology
include NASA, DoD, uni-
versities, Boeing, Northrop
Grumman, Lockheed
Martin and international
corporations. The design
methodology is also featured
in a widely cited textbook on
Reliability-Based Structural
Design that he co-authored.
His leadership as Chair of
the AIAA Multidisciplinary
Design Optimization (MDO)
Technical Committee led to
the growth of its premier
MDO Conference. From
1984-2008 Canfield served in
the U.S. Air Force, retiring
as a lieutenant colonel with
tours at the Air Force Office
of Scientific Research and the
Air Force Institute of Tech-
nology. In 2009 he joined
Virginia Tech, and during his
tenure has been the Assistant
Head for Academic Affairs
and an interim Department
Head. Canfield is a Hokie
alum, earning his Ph.D. in
Engineering Mechanics in
1992. He also holds an MS in
Aeronautics and Astronautics
from Stanford University, and
a BS in Mechanical Engineer-
ing from Duke University.
Canfield has been an AIAA
member since 1985 and was
elected an Associate Fellow in
2000.
Ng in 2014 receiv-
ing the William
Wine Excellence
in Teaching
Award from uni-
versity president
Timothy Sands.
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