PROVIDENCE, R.I., Aug. 29 /PRNewswire/ -- Nabil M. Lawandy, Ph.D., Chief
Executive Officer and Chief Technology Officer of Spectra Systems, announced
today the appointment of Robert S. Afzal, Ph.D. as Vice President of Research
and Development.
In regard to this appointment, Dr. Lawandy stated, "The Company's
aggressive growth plans will require the highest caliber individuals to help
create new products. We are fortunately in the position to bring on board
proven technology leaders such as Rob to help us further develop the new
product concepts that will drive our continued growth in the next few years
and beyond. Rob brings to Spectra over ten years of basic science and project
management experience, having managed multi-million dollar budgets and teams
of scientists at the Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC). He has been able to
deliver high reliability photonic products on time and under projected costs."
Dr. Afzal stated, "I am enthusiastic about this opportunity to join
Spectra at this exciting time. I am confident I can add tremendous value by
efficiently and thoughtfully managing product research and development that
supports the Company's immediate and long-term growth plans. I have observed
from the sidelines as Spectra achieved milestone after milestone over the past
few years. I look forward to helping it accomplish continued commercial
success by directing the development of customer-centric product concepts."
Dr. Afzal has worked since 1992 at NASA's GSFC facility in Greenbelt,
Maryland, first as lead engineer, then as chief scientist and in the past four
years as senior level manager. He led the engineering team that developed the
laser transmitter for the Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA-II) flown on the
Mars Global Surveyor. Most recently, he founded the Space Lidar Technology
Center with NASA and the University of Maryland and as its director was
responsible for the development and delivery of the key laser systems for the
GeoScience Laser Altimeter System (GLAS) used on the ICESat mission.
Dr. Afzal's other experience includes research and development of optical
systems at the Candela Laser Corporation and the Naval Research Laboratory.
He has received research fellowships from the National Research Council and
NASA and has numerous publications on the subjects of lasers and optical
systems. His awards include the NASA-Goddard Group Achievement (MOLA) and
GSFC Inventor of the Year (1998). He received a Ph.D. in physics from Brown
University in 1989 and a B.S. in Physics, with Honors, from Trinity College in
1984.
Spectra Systems Corporation, headquartered in Providence, RI is a market
driven company that is changing the way businesses mark, sense, track and
authenticate their products from production line to point of purchase. Its
cross-platform technologies, based on advanced materials and proprietary
hardware and software systems, offer an integrated approach that provides
customers with complete solutions.
SOURCE Spectra Systems Corporation
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Related links:
http://www.spectra-science.com
CONTACT:
Thomas R. Pizzuti of Spectra Systems Corp.,
+1-401-274-4700, tpizzuti@spectrasystemscorp.com
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