New Degree Prepares Engineers for Utah’s Advanced Manufacturing Careers
Utah is home to more than 200 companies supporting the aerospace, biomedical, renewable energy, bioproducts, and defense industries. In response to the hot job market, the College of Engineering now offers a composite materials and structures master of science program.
Dr. Greg Anderson will lead the new composites program at USU. He is also serving as inaugural director of USU’s Center for the Design and Manufacturing of Advanced Materials.
The first-of-its-kind degree was developed with Weber State University and industry professionals. To accommodate more students, courses for the program will be offered at the Logan Campus and in Davis County. The result is a graduate degree designed for working engineers and current students.
Dr. Greg Anderson, a leader in the field of composite materials who recently retired from his role as a chief scientist at Northrop Grumman, will lead the program. He will also serve as inaugural director of USU’s new Center for the Design and Manufacturing of Advanced Materials.
“I can’t think of any other opportunity that would have enticed me to postpone retirement,” Anderson said. “I have always enjoyed mentoring young engineers.”
Anderson assists a student participating in the new composite materials and structures master’s program.
Anderson earned a Ph.D. from Virginia Tech. He began his career in 1990 and worked for Thiokol, Orbital ATK, and Northrop Grumman. At ATK he was the general manager of science and engineering operations in Huntsville, Alabama, where he and his team conducted material testing for the Marshall Space Flight Center and NASA.
At the end of the shuttle program, Anderson’s team pivoted to providing quality conformance testing to the ATK composite manufacturing group in Clearfield, Utah, which was beginning operations to supply components for Airbus and Boeing Aircraft. In 2013, Anderson returned to the Promontory, Utah site and worked as a chief engineer.
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Writer: Matt Jensen, matthew.jensen@usu.edu, 435-797-2775
Contact: Greg Anderson, gregory.anderson@usu.edu, 435-797-8246