Brigham Thomas

Brigham Thomas, a ceramic engineer at ORNL, was manager of the Optics MODIL Program in 1992-93 and of the Oak Ridge Centers for Manufacturing Technology in 1993-94. Recently, she served as liaison between the Department of Energy and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST); in this capacity, she facilitated relationships and collaborations between NIST and DOE staff and laboratory researchers. She is now participating in program development within ORNL's Engineering Technology Division.

A native of High Point, North Carolina, she earned a B.S. degree in ceramic engineering from Clemson University in 1984. She then went to Texas to develop materials with special electromagnetic properties for the Materials and Processes Group of the General Dynamics-Fort Worth Division. She also participated in a joint program between General Dynamics and McDonnell Douglas for developing the next-generation Navy attack plane. She then joined the Advanced Composites Group at Pratt & Whitney in West Palm Beach, Florida. Working in an Air Force-sponsored R&D program there, she helped develop fiber-reinforced ceramic composites for engines.

In 1990 she joined ORNL's Engineering Technology Division as Optics MODIL project manager. She managed subcontracts to evaluate industry's ability to cost-effectively manufacture precision optics. In 1991-1992 she served as technical assistant to the ORNL associate director for Engineering and Manufacturing Technologies, which included robotics, instrumentation and controls, engineering technology, and guest and user interaction.

In 1985 she was a charter member of the Fort Worth section of the Society of Women Engineers. She is currently serving on the Executive Committee of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers-Management Division.

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