Former IACMI intern and Purdue graduate student Jessica Lavorata is entering the third year of her Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering at Purdue University, an IACMI core partner. IACMI is proud to have prepared Jessica in developing a professional career in the composites industry.
Jessica is currently working under Dr. Jan-Anders Mansson, a Distinguished Professor of Materials and Chemical Engineering at Purdue and director of the Composites Manufacturing and Simulation Center (CMSC) at the Indiana Manufacturing Institute. The CMSC serves as the Design Modeling and Simulation Technology Area for IACMI.
“Dr. Mansson’s work focuses on novel cost-effective materials and manufacturing methods which is an appealing field to be working in right now, he is getting into high rate composite manufacturing, which is exactly what my work is underneath,” Jessica said. Her current research involves production of continuous cylindrical rods at high speed for use in the automotive industry.
Jessica first became an IACMI intern in 2017, at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in Golden, CO while pursuing a degree in the Composites Materials Engineering program at Winona State University. Although she knew she wanted to work with composites, Jessica wanted to magnify her background with polymer-based composite fabrication and experience the innovative capabilities of industry. NREL composites experts took the time to develop her confidence and skill with, by allowing her to fabricate wind turbine components on her own with an industry expert on hand.
Jessica is one of more than 100 science and engineering interns who has participated in the IACMI Internship Program. When asked why she wanted an internship within the composites field, Jessica replied, “I wanted to expand upon my composites background with professional training. IACMI led me to Purdue with its nation-wide connections while also giving me opportunity and skills to make a scientific contribution to the composite industry. I see the science eventually catching up to composites manufacturing needs, and IACMI allowed me to be a part of that.”
IACMI Workforce Director Joannie Harmon said, “IACMI is extremely proud of Jessica’s continued research to drive the sustainability and innovation of the composites industry. Hands-on experience is at the core of the IACMI internship program, and we are glad that she found a valuable experience to further her educational career through the IACMI internship program.”