MMAE Seminar - Michael Mikula - Ford Motor Company: Journey to Digital Operations

Description 

Armour College of Engineering's Mechanical, Materials, and Aerospace Engineering Department will welcome Michael Mikula, Chief Engineer, Advanced Manufacturing for Ford Motor Company, on Wednesday, October 23, to present his lecture: Ford Motor Company: Journey to Digital Operations.

Abstract

Ford Motor Company is leveraging its Advanced Manufacturing Organization to accelerate the transformation of its manufacturing operations from a series of connected pieces of equipment across operations to a completely digital and integrated system of processes that are tied to the connected vehicles that are produced and to the product development tools that are used to conceive the products through the creation of an enterprise Digital Twin.

Biography

Michael Mikula completed a bachelor's of science degree in Metallurgical Engineering in 1991 and a master's of science in Metallurgical Engineering in 1993 form Illinois Tech under the guidance of Drs. John Kallend and Philip Nash.

He began his professional career at Ford Motor Company in 1994 as a Tooling and Process Engineer in the Casting Division of PowerTrain Operations. Mr. Mikula was selected to accelerate career/experience though Ford Motor Company’s Manufacturing Leadership Program and spent 3 years moving through Product Development, Business Planning, Finance, and Operations. Over the next 20 years, Mr. Mikula worked in multiple leadership positions for major Ford’s projects, including Duratec 35 engine program, EcoBoost architecture, Hybrid Transmission, and PowerTrain. In August of 2018, he was appointed to the position of Chief Engineer, Advanced Manufacturing for Ford Motor Company with responsibilities spanning both vehicle and powertrain production operations. In his current role, Mr. Mikula is leading Ford Motor Company’s Industry 4.0 initiatives ensuring global competitiveness of all Ford’s operations and engineering methods.