The CDI Lab is pleased to welcome Andrew Fletcher as our newest PhD student as of Fall 2021.  Andrew joins us from the University of California at San Diego, where he completed his bachelor’s degree in aerospace engineering.  During his undergraduate studies, Andrew gained valuable experience in multidisciplinary design optimization under the guidance of UCSD professor John Hwang.  During this time, he also gained research experience through the development of an original software tool for automated geometry generation for aircraft design.  While at Illinois Andrew plans to continue pursuing his passion for design optimization, as his PhD research will investigate topology optimization of structures subject to dynamic loading.