Tom Wyatt, Phd Email & Phone Number

Menlo Park, CA, US

Austin, Texas, US

• Solved major material system challenge facing team; idea proposed within first couple months at Tesla effectively replaced an inferior EPS part with a lower cost yet higher performing material system; led from concept.
• New and existing polymer material characterization to optimize for best performance at lowest cost; leading new and secondary source material qualifications to reduce supply chain risk; partnering with field.
• Prototyping next generation products and manufacturing technologies; leveraging in depth experience with polymer/composite/textile formulation and manufacturing to arrive at unique solutions; routinely presenting.

Washington, IA, US

• R&D/Engineering team leader; SME for polymers, extrusion/molding, and product testing/certifications
• Leading development of new polymer formulation for entire product line to reduce cost & improve performance; establishing robust quality control system from the ground up and creating in-house product testing.

Cincinnati, OH, US

• Project Creator and Leader: step change SiC CMC manufacturing cost reduction leveraging exisiting production equipment, senior leadership labelled “disruptive technology”; started from an idea – expanded through.
• Project Creator and Leader: Composite processing yield improvement with projected savings of $5 MM annually, business invested ~$1 MM for high priority development following successful pilot scale trials in 2019.
• Polymer Plant Process Leader: Designed and implemented process/equipment improvements for new polymer and ceramic fiber PSM manufacturing plant; drafted SOPs for new processes; created new material specifications.
• Collaboration with Japanese JV with onsite visits to oversee root cause (RCCA) investigations & qualification of new process equipment
• Multiple ‘Impact Awards’ from partners in supply chain and manufacturing; primary inventor for official GE trade secret technologies, patent application

Wichita, Kansas, US

• New product development, process improvement, and project management.
• Project Leader 'DTAB': Nylon 6,6 process improvement with cross-functional team; developed from idea to full production capability of ~1 million lb/day; Director of R&D described new process as “most innovative idea.
• Five new Nylon 6,6 fiber products developed in conjunction with team, pilot scale through full commercialization; close collaboration with marketing & manufacturing
• Design for Manufacturing, RCCA, SPC, and equipment/process improvements for enhanced process control

Atlanta, Georgia, US

• Primary Investigator: Celanese UHMWPE processing project, designed/built gel-fiber spinning system; DOE process optimization, successfully manufactured high strength fibers from prototype UHMWPE resins, project renewed.
• Developed melt-spinning style process for manufacturing cost-effective, high-strength UHMWPE fibers; fully characterized the new material system using capillary & parallel plate rheology, XRD, DSC, TGA, DMA, FTIR.
• Lead Instructor: Injection molding lab course with hands-on Sumitomo injection molder operation; 3D mold/part design using SolidWorks plus MoldFlow FEA
• Lead Instructor: Textile chemistry laboratory course; textile dyeing (vat, cationic, anionic, disperse), textile bleaching and leveling, gel electrophoresis of dyes, spectrophotometric determination of dyes

Atlanta, Georgia, US

Research with MS student: catalytic pyrolysis of wood; designed and tested a modified twin-screw extruder pyrolysis reactor

Atlanta, Georgia, US

Research with PhD student on melt compounding and injection molding of nylon composites

Doctor Of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Polymer Textile And Fiber Engineering

Bachelor'S Degree, Polymer Textile & Fiber Engineering