Dr. Min earned his Ph.D. at UC Berkeley with manufacturing major and industrial engineering & operations research minor. His Ph.D. work focused on very practical industrial problems like burr minimization from various machining processes and the outcome of his research was tested and implemented at the automotive and aerospace industry. After his Ph.D., he went to Japan as a special assistant professor at Keio University where he expanded his industrial connection to many Japanese industries; automotive, machine tool, tool makers, oil refinery, etc. with his environmental machining research.
He returned to the US for a venture opportunity that was to fabricate a customized knee surgery assistive device. He was working as a manufacturing director where he developed a traceable manufacturing system for high mix low volume medical device production. He left the company for another challenge, ultra-precision nano-machining technology that he considered as emerging and enabling technology. He joined DTL Corporation (Mori Seiki’s US R&D) where his team developed an ultra-precision 5-axis nano machine and machining technology.
He conducted many private consulting projects on various subjects on manufacturing from technical process level consulting to global manufacturing strategy and manufacturing policy-making. With strong passion toward manufacturing and growing attention to US manufacturing, he started working for Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory to assist its manufacturing strategy as a consultant and joined as a staff scientist. At LBNL, he was working to establish the advanced manufacturing center integrating existing manufacturing excellence and developing new manufacturing technology with an emphasis on ultra-precision machining technology.
From a long history of his manufacturing experience at several countries (US, Japan, Germany, and Korea), he learned that one of key contributors of economic success of one country is keeping manufacturing excellence in the country while maintaining healthy manufacturing ecosystem and proper level of social respect toward manufacturing. He is working to contribute his knowledge and experience to revival of US manufacturing and keeping it sustainable.