Posted: July 12, 2023

Lehigh University and the Institute for Functional Materials and Devices (I-FMD) were honored to host Professor Surjya Pal from IIT Kharagpur for a seminar and visit on July 10, 2023. Prof. Pal is a professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at IIT Kharagpur, which is ranked as one of the most prestigious academic institutions in India. He is also the Founder Chairperson of the Centre of Excellence in Advanced Manufacturing Technology at IIT Karagpur. Dr. Pal is a widely recognized expert on manufacturing and has been awarded the prestigious Indian National Academy of Engineering (INAE) fellowship as well as having been featured in the list of top 2% researchers around the world published by Stanford University.

During his visit to Lehigh, Prof. Pal had the opportunity to discuss research with Lehigh’s faculty experts in welding, manufacturing, and materials science in a number of one-on-one visits with I-FMD faculty. During his seminar, Prof. Pal discussed the work being conducted in the Centre of Excellence in Advanced Manufacturing Technology, and specifically highlighted their advances in using Artificial Intelligence (AI) to address pressing needs for their industry partners. Prof. Pal and his colleagues are focused on pushing technologies through the proverbial “valley of death” often left unsupported by traditional academic and industrial research and he and his colleagues have developed a highly successful model for securing funding and carrying out research across a wide range of technology readiness levels (TRLs) to meet this need.

At both the end of his seminar, and throughout the day, Prof. Pal emphasized that there are many ways for he and his colleagues and staff at IIT Karagpur to work with I-FMD faculty whether in data collection and analysis, AI design and validation, or experimental manufacturing studies. I-FMD leadership is looking forward to building a strong connection with IIT Karagpur and the leadership team and faculty members here at Lehigh thank Prof. Pal for his visit to our institution.