Title: Principal Engineer
Company: Aerojet Rocketdyne
Location: Northridge, California, United States
Rodney G. Uyekawa, Principal Engineer at Aerojet Rocketdyne, has been recognized by Marquis Who’s Who Top Engineers for dedication, achievements, and leadership in structures and dynamics.
With 35 years of experience to his credit, Mr. Uyekawa has excelled as the principal engineer at Aerojet Rocketdyne since 1988. In this position, he began working on the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)’s space shuttle main rocket engine, as the company’s propulsion systems have been at the heart of virtually every major U.S. space and missile program since the dawn of the space age. Having proved their enormous value and insight in this sector, Aerojet Rocketdyne was pursued and acquired by L3Harris earlier this year and has engineered developments in the propulsion and power systems for a range of systems, including spacecraft rockets, space vehicles, and missile and weapon systems. Currently, Mr. Uyekawa manages a team of analysts working on various programs. Previously, he was active with Boeing in the laser and eletro-optics division, making critical contributions to their standard missile program.
Before embarking on his professional path, Mr. Uyekawa pursued an education at California Polytechnic University, earning a bachelor’s degree before continuing on to complete a Master of Mechanical Engineering in 1998. His areas of training and expertise are diverse and comprehensive in the space exploration and weapons systems sectors. Notably, Mr. Uyekawa remains knowledgeable in aerospace, aerodynamics, propulsion, engineering management, stress analysis, systems engineering, composites, finite element analysis, spacecraft, root cause analysis, earned value management, space systems, mechanical engineering, FEMAP, and geometric dimensioning and tolerancing.
Through diligent effort, Mr. Uyekawa’s extensive career has provided him with the chance to work with the premier engineers and technicians in rocket science and space exploration. He cites his most notable achievement as leading his team’s contributions to the SLS rocket launch in January, as well as his work on the liquid-fuel cryogenic RS25 rocket engines.
Mr. Uyekawa attributes his success to the continuous learning process to which he commits on every project. He identifies engineering as a phenomenal career environment for him, featuring work that fascinates his mind and keeps him active and engaged. Mr. Uyekawa is a proud father of three sons, and his hobbies include repairing automobiles and mountain biking. He has begun exploring a timetable for retirement, but plans to continue working on a part-time basis in order to mentor and transfer his knowledge to younger generations.
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