Justin Lau Email & Phone Number

Hong Kong

Chicago, Illinois, United States

• Redesigned core design engineering curriculum in partnership with a Northwestern professor, using design thinking principles to enhance student engagement and understanding of product design concepts • Developed AI-driven tools, iteratively testing and refining them to facilitate student learning and application of key principles • Mentored students through critical stages of product design and development, providing structured guidance in problem finding, prototyping, and DFM to drive practical skill development

Evanston, Illinois, United States

• Studied laminating machine assembly line, identifying bottlenecks and pain-points• Gathered primary data through interviews with management and assembly line staff, observation, and participation• Documented findings using journey/value-stream maps and Bills of Materials to characterize current operations, facilitated communication between leadership and assembly line workers and presented findings to consultant

Evanston, Illinois, United States

• Led team of 7 engineering students to design and deliver a backup battery system enabling 8 hours of continued grill operation without temperature fluctuation, exceeding metric of 90% power loss detection and operation success rate • Conducted meetings to define project goals and metrics; designed 5 critically functional sub-systems• Performed thermal, electronics, and ingress protection testing and FMEA analysis, validating that functional prototype met or exceeded 17 specified metrics and recommended plans for implementation and patent application

Evanston, Illinois, United States

• Taught new students basic shop practices and principles, led mill and lathe training• Provided fabrication and prototyping guidance, design advice, and troubleshooting while fostering a collaborative, creative, and welcoming shop environment

Evanston, Illinois, United States

• Designed reusable, cleanable plastic packaging for clinical trials of diabetes management kits, optimized for sanitization in hospital settings• Tested different plastics, considering chemical durability, manufacturability, and fatigue• Iterated upon and evaluated living hinge designs and profiles • Fabricated vacuum-formed plastic inserts and silicone skin molds • Documented design rationale, decisions, and progress for future development

Hong Kong Sar

• Led the mechanical design, engineering, prototyping, and testing of a patent-pending personal healthcare product, empowering physically and mentally disadvantaged users to enjoy a more independent showering experience • Closely collaborated with industrial designers, interpreting renders and translating designs into functional prototypes, utilizing compliant and snap-fit mechanisms to minimize moving parts for a streamlined assembly whilst optimizing design for mass-manufacturing processes• Rapidly prototyped iterations through 3D printing and SOLIDWORKS design and simulation to assess physical form, function, user experience, water tightness, and assembly• Coordinated with Shenzhen factory to manufacture high-fidelity functional prototypes for user testing with 100% positive feedback and user satisfaction and demonstration at Gerontech and Innovation Expo cum Summit

Northwestern University

• Designed Anti-Roll Bar (ARB) on SOLIDWORKS, analyzing stress and stiffness using FEA on both SOLIDWORKS and ANSYS to match new stiffness targets as a result of eliminating front ARB to significantly reduce weight • Manufactured ARB and its tabs out of titanium, steel, and acetal resin plastic using lathe and mill

Greater Chicago Area

• Designed and built a supportive device that eliminates upper body pain from subluxation for patients with limited mobility that require gait rehabilitation • Incorporated insights and advice from close collaboration with physical therapists and the patients themselves via a human-centric design process, with multiple rounds of user observation, testing, and feedback• Led team in ideation, constructing prototypes and final design, and writing and editing the final report for our client (Dr. Kate Enzler, Legs + Walking Lab, Shirley Ryan Ability Labs)

• Collaborated with team to design a self-cleaning cutlery case to incentivize usage of reusable cutlery instead of single-use plastic by mitigating many problems stopping users from using reusable cutlery• Research lead, particularly focusing on market, competition, and patent research• One of 10 teams out of 25 to advance to Phase 2 (cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic)

• Voted in and elected by students to represent the student body when negotiating decisions and revising school policies with school’s Senior Management Team• Introduced mentorship programs and wellbeing initiatives focusing on mental health• Member of the Steering Committee, responsible for developing the Strategic Plan to overhaul school culture and make German Swiss International School a better learning environment

• Goalkeeper and Captain for Hong Kong National Under 18 Hockey Team• Led team at the Men’s Youth Olympic Games Qualifiers in Bangkok, Thailand

• Assigned to produce a detailed research report comparing cloud service providers from the perspective of small- and medium-sized businesses• Presented findings and provided insights to Senior Vice President of Cisco Greater China and team, regarding their pending decision to initiate a venture into this field given the state of the existing competition

Bachelor Of Science - Bs, Dual Degree In Mechanical Engineering, Manufacturing And Design Engineering

Activities and Societies: Northwestern Club Field Hockey, Chicago Field Hockey Club, Northwestern FSAE, Hong Kong Students'.

Education record

Activities and Societies: Head of Student Council, Founder of Innovation Club, Prefect and House Captain, Captain of Field Hockey.