Dave Dornfeld: Leader in sustainable manufacturing

David Dornfeld, an expert in smart and sustainable manufacturing, was highly regarded by his students for his very approachable style. In addition to holding the Will C. Hall Family Professorship, he led Berkeley’s Laboratory for Manufacturing and Sustainability and the Sustainable Manufacturing Partnership.

Dornfeld also held several positions in the college’s administration, including department chair of the Mechanical Engineering Department and the first faculty director of the Jacobs Institute for Design Innovation, which opened in 2015. The Jacobs Institute offers education in hands-on, human-centered design and prototyping.

As department chair in mechanical engineering, which consistently ranks in the top three departments in the nation, he expanded the industrial advisory board and led Berkeley’s participation in the Advanced Manufacturing Partnership, a national effort bringing together industry, universities and the federal government to invest in emerging technologies that will create high-quality manufacturing jobs and enhance U.S. global competitiveness.

He was a member of the National Academy of Engineering and a fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), receiving ASME’s Ennor Award in 2010. He is also active as a fellow with the International Academy for Production Engineering . Other honors included the Fredrick W. Taylor Research Medal, the Takagi Prize and the Charles F. Carter Advancing Manufacturing Award. He received his Ph.D. in mechanical engineering from the University of Wisconsin–Madison in 1976 and joined the College of Engineering faculty in 1977.

Dornfeld died suddenly in 2016 at the age of 66.

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