DR. CHAD SINCLAIR

The Master of Engineering Leadership (MEL) in Advanced Materials Manufacturing program offers students a unique learning environment thanks to the experience and breadth of the program’s instructors and the combination of courses in both engineering and business.

Our faculty members are technical experts in their fields who have long-standing research partnerships with key players in the automotive and aerospace industries. Anoush Poursartip, Warren Poole, Daan Maijer, Steve Cockcroft and I collaborate extensively with companies in the automotive and aviation sector, including giants in the field of manufacturing (such as GM, Ford, Boeing and Airbus) as well as enterprises and local start-ups.

Members of our team also have entrepreneurial and executive leadership experience. What this means for our students is that they have a year-long opportunity to learn from technical experts who also have first-hand experience in technology commercialization and application.

About 60 percent of the courses in our program are technical in nature, covering the full range of materials manufacturing technology, from deformation-based processing of metals to polymer composites manufacturing. We’ve integrated process simulations into all of our technical classes so that students can acquire, refresh or deepen their skills in this area. The technology is continually evolving and our faculty members are at the forefront in developing process simulation software and methodology.

Understanding the broader impact of manufacturing is an important theme of our program. Through two case studies classes, for example, students conduct a complete life-cycle assessment of the materials manufacturing process—from resource extraction through to end-of-life – looking at the cost, performance and environmental impacts of materials substitution. One of the case studies has traditionally been led by an industry professional (formerly a chief engineer with Ford), and sees students exploring the impact of materials selection and substitution in automotive body parts.

I joined UBC in 2002 after conducting post-doctoral research in stainless steel manufacturing at INP Grenoble in France. My area of specialty is process simulation and optimization, with a focus on metallic materials and their application in the automotive and aerospace industries. I’ve also recently collaborated with other faculty members from the Advanced Materials Manufacturing program on developing new technology for 3D printing and additive manufacturing.

Students come to our program with a range of professional experience. Some have worked in manufacturing and are wanting to shift to a different industry within this field. Others are coming to manufacturing for the first time. But whatever their background and experience, our students know that the MEL in Advanced Materials Manufacturing offers a unique opportunity to significantly deepen their technical skills while acquiring the business and leadership knowledge they need to accelerate their careers.