Fraunhofer Direct Digital Manufacturing Conference DDMC
Dr. Vlasea received her PhD degree in Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering from the UWaterloo in 2014 in the area of additive manufacturing (AM) with a focus on the development a hybrid binder jetting AM (BJAM) mechatronic system for production of metal and ceramic components. She then continued her post-doctoral studies in 2014 collaboration with University of Toronto, Mt. Sinai Hospital and UWaterloo in designing and manufacturing functionally graded ceramic implants for in-vivo trials. In 2015, Dr. Vlasea continued her work on advanced AM mechatronic systems through the design of an open platform laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) test bed for process monitoring and controls at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), Gaithersburg, US. Dr. Vlasea joined the Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering Department at UWaterloo as an Assistant Professor in Sept 2015 and is the Co-Director of the Multi-Scale Additive Manufacturing Lab. Her research goals are to bridge the technological gaps necessary to improve AM part quality, process repeatability and reliability. Her research targets three important challenges of metal AM technology adoption, with a focus on BJAM and LPBF. Such challenges include (1) high costs associated with the limited material options, as well as the significant process parameter optimization costs, (2) high rate of part failure due to empirical approaches to process optimization and inadequate process control and (3) innovation gaps in sensor and data analytics for AM. Dr. Vlasea collaborates closely with industry partners such as RioTinto, Burloak Technologies, Xiris Automation, Advanced Test and Automation, Wabtec, Borrum Energy Solutions, AP&C, MIBA, TBGA. In recognition of her scholarly work, student mentorship, and industry outreach, she was recognised as the SME 20 Most Influential Academics in 2021 and as the SME Outstanding Young Manufacturing Engineer in 2020.