Sintavia, LLC, a designer and additive manufacturer of advanced propulsion and thermodynamic systems, launched an advisory board comprised of leaders from within the Aerospace, Defense, & Space and Additive Manufacturing industries. The Sintavia advisory board, which will meet periodically throughout the year, will assist Sintavia’s ownership and leadership team in establishing company goals and growth strategies.
Brian Neff, Sintavia’s Founder and Chief Executive Officer commented by highlighting how “in many ways, Sintavia has always taken the lead in applying additive technologies across the Aerospace, Defense, & Space industry, particularly with respect to complex mechanical systems. In forming an Advisory Board comprised of outstanding leaders across all of these sectors, we look to accelerate that leadership position,” he added.
The new Sintavia advisory board includes professionals that can bring to the table unique and advanced knowledge about additive manufacturing, coming from companies that have been shaping this industry for decades and/or are defining its future. These include Siemens, Aerojet Rocketdyne, ExOne and several more.
Dr. Omar Fergani. Dr. Fergani is the acting head of the Industrial Digital Solutions segment at Atotech GmbH, an electronics and semiconductor OEM based in Berlin, Germany. Previously, Dr. Fergani was the Director of Strategic Business for additive manufacturing at Siemens AG. Additionally, he is a part-time professor at the Berlin Institute of Technology, and is an acting board member of 1000 Kelvin GmbH, a Deep Tech software company focused on introducing artificial intelligence-based path and process generation solutions to improve additive manufacturing yields. Dr. Fergani holds a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering and a double M.S. in manufacturing and materials from the Georgia Institute of Technology and the Norwegian University of Science and Technology.
Amy Gowder. Ms. Gowder, currently the Chief Operating Officer of Aerojet Rocketdyne, has been a recognized leader within the U.S. defense industry for nearly 20 years. In her current role at Aerojet Rocketdyne, she is responsible for the Engineering, Operations, Manufacturing, Supply Chain, Quality & Mission Assurance, EH&S, and Information Technology organizations, as well as oversight of the company’s 11 operating sites in nine states. From 2005 to 2020, Ms. Gowder held numerous leadership roles within Lockheed Martin, including Vice President and General Manager of the Training and Logistics Solutions line of business within Rotary and Mission Systems, and General Manager of Lockheed Martin’s Commercial Engine Solutions business. Ms. Gowder has a B.S. in Bioengineering from Arizona State University and an M.B.A. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Teri Hamlin. Ms. Hamlin, the Head of Mass Transit for North America at Siemens AG, has built her career bringing digitalization, automation, and electrification to projects around the world. In prior roles at Siemens, she was the Senior Vice President of Growth and Strategy for Siemens Government Technologies; the Vice President & General Manager of Siemens’ eAircraft business unit (sold to Rolls-Royce in 2019); Vice President, Large Integrated Energy; Vice President, Energy; and the Vice President of Partnerships and Alliances. A retired Colonel in the United States Air Force, Ms. Hamlin holds a B.S. in Human Factors Engineering from the United States Air Force Academy and an M.S. in Aerospace Management from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.
John Hartner. Mr. Hartner has been a recognized leader of industrial technology companies for 30 years, most recently as Chief Executive Officer of The ExOne Company, a leading manufacturer of binder jet industrial printers, at which he led several major growth initiatives and oversaw its successful acquisition by Desktop Metal in November 2021. Previously, Mr. Hartner was the Chief Operating Officer of EnvisionTEC, a healthcare printing leader, and was the President and CEO of Dover Printing & Identification. Prior leadership experience also included senior positions at FMC Technologies and Rockwell International. Mr. Hartner has a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Villanova University as well as an M.B.A. from the University of Chicago, and he serves on the board of the National Association of Manufacturers.
Jeff Thornburg. Mr. Thornburg, a globally recognized new space engineer and entrepreneur, is the Founder and CEO of Interstellar Technologies, an engineering and technology development company focused on launch vehicles and propulsion systems. Previously, Mr. Thornburg has held leadership positions across the space economy for over 20 years, including Senior Vice President of Engineering at Agility Robotics; Director of Hardware at Project Kuiper; Vice President of Propulsion Engineering at Stratolaunch; Acting Vice President/Senior Director of Propulsion Engineering at SpaceX; Lead J-2X Turbomachinery Engineer at NASA; and Chief Engineer, Liquid Engine Branch, at the Air Force Research Laboratory. Mr. Thornburg holds a B.S. in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Missouri-Rolla, and an M.S. in Aeronautical Engineering from the Air Force Institute of Technology.
“Over the past 20 years, I have worked with each of these professionals in one capacity or another and am truly honored to have the benefit of their collective wisdom as part of our Advisory Board in the years to come. I am looking forward to working with Omar, Amy, Teri, John, and Jeff more closely as we continue our journey,” Mr. Neff concluded.
