CARNEGIE MELLON DEPARTMENT OF MECHANICA L E NGINEERING


Mellon ‘can do’ attitude, and a little luck, students from MechE have a limitless ability to excel and succeed. Waszczak’s thesis, called “A Synthesis Procedure for Mechanically


Fastened Joints in Advanced Composite Materials,” formed the basis for a number of journal articles and positioned him as a next-genera- tion aviation engineer.


A Move Toward Sunshine—and Success Based on his successful research, Waszczak was actively recruited by General Dynamics when he finished his Ph.D. in 1973. “They brought me out to San Diego for a job interview on a Friday, and invited me to stay for the weekend,” remembers Waszczak. “That was a fantastic strategy, because I was instantly hooked by the beauty of the coastal city and the great weather. Coming from the Pittsburgh of the early 1970s, it was quite a change!” Waszczak grew to love the San Diego area, and his job at General


Dynamics, so much that he would remain there for the next 20 years. During that time, he worked on a number of milestone projects including superconducting magnets for fusion energy, structural components for the space shuttle, and the groundbreaking Tomahawk cruise missile that debuted during Desert Storm. In 1979, Waszczak was selected to participate in the President’s Executive Exchange Program and served for a year as Special Assistant to the Assistant Secretary of Policy and International Affairs in the Department of Transportation in Washington, D.C. When GM Hughes acquired the Convair Division of General Dynamics in 1992, Waszczak moved with the company to Tucson, Arizona, where he resides today. His positions at Hughes—which was, in turn, acquired by Raytheon Company in 1997—have focused on technology development, product line expansions, materials pro- curement, and the successful development and deployment of the Army’s first GPS-guided artillery round, the Excalibur, in 2007.


Creating a Fertile Ground for Small Businesses John Waszczak’s current position at Raytheon seems to have brought him back full circle to his Pittsburgh roots. A small company, Mesta Machine, supported his family and provided his scholarship to Carnegie Mellon—and todayWaszczak is helping to support many small businesses as Director of Advanced Technology and SBIR/STTR at Raytheon Missile Systems. In this capacity, Waszczak works closely with a huge network of smaller companies across the U.S. that deliver critical capabilities to Raytheon’s leading-edge missile projects. Waszczak works to create a “win-win” situation with these small


businesses by helping them obtain funding from the Department of Defense’s Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs. These small busi- nesses offer the specialized technologies and expertise that Raytheon needs to continue its track record of innovation and support its


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development of products that meet the needs of military customers. “It’s very rewarding to help my company leverage the best


available technologies across the U.S., while nurturing small business growth, university research, and high-tech job creation,” says Waszczak. “I’ve seen some of our suppliers grow by leaps and bounds as Raytheon capitalizes on their expertise, and that’s an incredibly sat- isfying experience for me.” A frequent speaker on SBIR at government and industry events,


and the recipient of many corporate awards, Waszczak is also a recog- nized expert on applying aerospace and defense technology to the development of solar energy. He serves on a Congressional Solar Energy Advisory Council charged with promoting this viable renew- able energy resource for the United States.


Nurturing Tomorrow’s Engineers Waszczak is quick to credit his illustrious career to his beginnings in the Department of Mechanical Engineering, and his fateful meeting with General Dynamics, and he believes that every student in the Department is similarly equipped for success. “With hard work, dedication, the traditional Carnegie Mellon ‘can do’ attitude, and a little luck, students from MechE have a limitless ability to excel and succeed,” he says. “I can’t imagine a better place to start an engineer- ing career.” As a Carnegie Mellon Admission Council (CMAC) alumni


volunteer, Waszczak interviews and advises many prospective students. Waszczak often counsels young engineers that they should focus on their verbal and written skills, in addition to their technology and engineering subject matter. “You can have a great idea for an engi- neering innovation, but if you can’t communicate that idea, it’s not going to go anywhere,” he notes. “It’s amazing how much of a modern engineer’s job is focused on communication.” Waszczak also advises students to maintain a healthy balance


between professional demands and personal happiness, a balance he has tried to maintain during his entire career. In fact, while at Carnegie Mellon, Waszczak not only found a lifelong vocation, but also his wife of 40 years. Brigid was a student at Carlow University (then called Mount Mercy College) and helped to support his doc- toral work as a junior high school teacher in Plum Boro. Later, Brigid and the couple’s four children—Joanne, Carole, John, and Tom— followed Waszczak and his career, even spending a few years in London when he served as Deputy Managing Director of Hughes U.K. Today, the Waszczak family has happily grown to include granddaughter Hannah (8) and grandson Liam (5). Says Waszczak, “As much as I love being an engineer—and still


believe it is the greatest job in the world—I am equally happy to be a husband, father, and now ‘G dad’.” •


C ARNEGIE M ECH I 11


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