Five U of T Engineers Honoured by the Engineering Institute of Canada

Professors Paul Chow (ECE), Andrew Goldenberg (MIE), Chul Park (MIE), Shamim Sheikh (CivE) and Yu Sun (MIE) have been recognized by the Engineering Institute of Canada (EIC) for their outstanding engineering achievements. Andrew Goldenberg received the Sir John Kennedy Medal, the EIC’s highest honour. Chul Park was awarded the K.Y. Lo Medal for significant engineering contributions at the international level. Professors Chow, Sheikh and Sun have been named EIC Fellows for their exceptional contributions to engineering in Canada.

Professor Chow, the Dusan and Anne Miklas Chair in Engineering Design, has made several key contributions to computer architecture as a researcher, educator and industry leader. He has performed groundbreaking research on field programmable gate array (FPGA) architectures and their applications in fields from biomedicine to finance. He has also developed and taught innovative courses on integrated chip design, resulting in student-designed chips that have significantly furthered research in the field. Professor Chow serves on the Board of CMC Microsystems and was a leader in the formulation of their most recent strategic plan.

In addition to being a world class researcher, Professor Goldenberg is a successful entrepreneur who has brought his research into the market place to the benefit of all Canadians. Professor Goldenberg’s research has resulted in 42 patents. In 1982 he founded Engineering Services Inc. (ESI), which develops robotics-based modular automation, mobile robots, customized robotic systems, and intelligent mechatronics systems. With clients in 19 countries, ESI has consolidated Canada’s presence in the field of robotics technology. Professor Goldenberg also co-founded Virtek Engineering Science Inc. and Anviv Mechatronics Inc. He was elected a Fellow of EIC in 2010.

A world leader in the field of plastic foaming, Professor Park holds the Canada Research Chair in Microcellular Plastics and is Founder and Director of the Microcellular Plastics Manufacturing Laboratory and the Centre for Industrial Application of Microcellular Plastics. Professor Park’s microcellular research has produced pivotal breakthroughs that have reshaped plastics engineering and had a major impact across a number of industries. His research has generated 20 patents, and hundreds of companies throughout the world have licensed his microcellular systems. He is a Fellow of EIC and received the EIC Julian C. Smith Medal in 2010.

Professor Sheikh’s engineering achievements include the development of new materials, procedures for the design of concrete structures under extreme loads, innovative techniques for the life extension of structures and the application of his research in the development of sustainable infrastructure. Professor Sheikh has a distinguished record of service and leadership on technical committees for professional societies in Canada and the U.S. He also serves as a consultant to the United Nations, oil companies such as Petro-Canada and Shell, and engineering companies around the world.

Professor Sun is the Canada Research Chair in Micro and Nano Engineering Systems. His research focuses on the manipulation and characterization of single cells, biomolecules and nanomaterials using microelectrical mechanical systems (MEMS). Professor Sun has invented automated processes for biological cell manipulation that are revolutionizing how genetic studies, cancer research, and clinical cell surgery and diagnostics are conducted. His research has resulted in 16 patents. Many of the technologies he has developed are widely used in academia, industry and medicine. Professor Sun is in great demand as an invited speaker and serves on the editorial boards of several top-tier international journals.

“We are grateful and proud that the Engineering Institute of Canada has recognized five of our faculty members for their exemplary contributions to engineering in Canada and internationally,” said Cristina Amon, Dean, Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering. “The recognition of so many U of T engineers is both an honour and a testament to the excellence of our Faculty.”

Professor Jean Zu (MIE Chair), President of the EIC, will preside over the EIC’s Annual Awards Banquet in Montreal on May 28, 2013.