Date of interview: May 29, 2009
Location: Bethlehem Central High School
Delmar, NY
Interviewer: Sam Stern
Transcription by  Sam Stern
Transcription: Draft
Reflective Essays:

Becky Lewis

Yufan Lin

Jared Mayron

Sam Stern

Ruosi Zhou

William Radigan
Technical Bio

Dudley Observatory
Developed techniques for preparing clean slides for ‘Sesame’ balloon experiment.  The experiment was a micrometeorite collector deployed on a balloon in the upper atmosphere. Micrometeorites fell on the exposed slides for collection.  Since the particles were microscopic and the slides had to be sticky, clean preparation was a challenge.
Developed and prepared the experimental surfaces for the S-149 micrometeorite detector on Skylab.  The detector was designed to record the impact of high velocity micrometeorites.  There were four detection surfaces.

• Highly polished copper and stainless steel plates made to record impacts detectable by Scanning Electron Microscopy. The expected craters were in the range .1 to 1 micron.
• Highly polished copper and stainless steel plates made to record impacts detectable by optical microscopy. The expected craters were in the range  1 to 100 micron.  In both cases, the challenge was to eliminate even microscopic imperfections in the metal as these might be seen as false craters or mask the existence of the real craters.
• Ultrathin, layered gold films to record micrometeorite impacts and give evidence of their fragility as they broke through successive layers.  As with the solid surfaces, there were two sets, one for optical microscopy and one for scanning microscopy.

Worked with SUNYA professors on a number of undergraduate research projects. Many of the projects used Dudley electron microscopes.  A partial publication list is below.

• Electrical resistivity changes in spreading liquid films
• Ghiradella, Helen; Radigan, William; Frisch, H. L.
• Journal of Colloid and Interface Science (1975), 51(3), 522-6 CODEN: JCISA5; ISSN: 0021-9797.

• Ghiradella, H., and W. Radigan (1974) Collembolan cuticle: wax layer and anti-wetting properties. J. Insect Physiol., 20: 301-306.

• Ghiradella H, Radigan W 1976 Development of butterfly scales: II. Struts, lattices and surface tension J. Morphol 150 279–298.
• S.C. Kim, D. Klempner, K.C. Frisch, H.L. Frisch and W. Radigan, "Polyurethane Interpenetrating Networks, I: Synthesis and Morphology of Polyurethane-Poly(methyl methacrylate) IPNs," Macromolecules, 9, (2), 258 (1976).
• Radigan W., Ghiradella H., Frisch H. L., Schonhorn H., Kwei T. K.
  Kinetics of spreading of glass on fernico metal.
  Journal of colloid and interface science pp:241-248

Princeton University

From 1976 to 1981 I was the manager of the electron microscopy and thin films laboratory for Princeton University School of Engineering.  As an additional duty I was assigned to teach the laboratory portion of the Schools microprocessor course. This course taught the students how to embed microcomputers in mechanical devices to enhance performance and add features. For a demo platform, we had a very large model train set. The students would make speed controllers, bar code readers, bridge openers, or any kind of model railroad device – each with its own microprocessor and associated electronics.  The course is still taught today using the same concepts and techniques. See http://www.princeton.edu/~mae412/

Princeton Research Instruments
Developed and managed production and marketing for a stepping motor controller designed for use in ultra-high vacuum.  

Compugrade
Research manager responsible for developing a system to automatically grade rare coins.  Rare coins are graded on their condition which is basically a measure of the coins’ defects – scratches, gouges etc.  Interestingly a lot of the experience acquired at Dudley went into this since the imaging problem – detecting small defects in highly polished metal is basically the same.   The analysis is an additional challenge because what seems important or negligible to a human grader is not at all obvious to a computer.

Resume

Career Objective

To use my extensive experience in business process analysis, information technology and IT management to secure a position developing creative business process automation solutions that reduce costs, and increase efficiency and profit.

Skills

Management, IT Management, Project Management, Business Process Analysis. Excellent writing and presentation skills.  IT skills in Oracle, SQL, PL/SQL, Lotus Notes, C++,  Business Objects, Crystal Reports (Certified),  Java, and VB .NET.  Special knowledge of  the “Industrial and Financial Systems (IFS)” ERP software package.

Career History

General Dynamics
Resident Consultant
Phoenix, Arizona
2005 – 2007

• Chief developer for migration software from a legacy system to an Oracle based ERP system
• Developed Oracle migration packages
• Primary responsibility for testing migration software.
• Primary responsibility for detailed, extensive design and test documentation
• Project executed in November-December 2007 on-schedule and with no migration issues.

National Semiconductor Corporation

Portland, Maine
Senior Software Engineer
1999 – 2005

• Project manager for installing and upgrading the business software for a semiconductor factory.  The software, from Industrial and Financial Systems is a 600 user Oracle based ERP system that manages equipment maintenance, inventory, and purchasing.
• Team leader for a group that developed GUI ‘front end’ for an Oracle based inventory management system. The system eliminated 99% of keyboard entry and enabled real-time inventory tracking.  Estimated cost savings - $200,000 per year.
• Primary developer for ERP reports, both Business Objects and SQL.
• Primary developer for a Lotus Notes purchasing requisition system. Integrated this system with the corporate central purchasing software. This system reduced the transit time of requisitions from two weeks to two days.  Estimated savings - $200,000 per year.
• Primary Lotus Notes developer for the site.  Completed dozens of Lotus Notes applications, large and small
• Developed the Business Objects universe for the ERP system.

Southern Holdings

New Orleans, LA
Information Systems Manager
1992-1999

• Managed the Information Systems department (9 employees)
• Project manager for  the installation of an enterprise-wide purchasing, inventory, and financial system.  The system is installed on a wide area network in multiple states and is used by 300 employees.
• Primary Lotus Notes developer.

Compugrade Inc.
New Orleans, LA
Research Manager
1989 – 1992
Led a research team that developed an artificial vision system for the quality grading of rare coins.  Awarded two patents for the system.

Princeton Research Instruments.
Princeton, NJ
Product Manager
1985 – 1989
Product manager for a series of motor controllers optimized for high vacuum applications.  Responsible for design, manufacture, sales and marketing.

Clancy Paul Inc

Princeton, NJ
Co-founder and Executive Vice President
1980 – 1985
Co-founder and sales and service manager for a chain of retail computer stores.  In five years, the chain went from startup to a company of 100 employees with annual sales of $15 million.

Princeton University

Princeton NJ
Laboratory Manager
1976 - 1980
Managed the electron microscopy laboratory for the School of Engineering.  Also responsible for experiment design and laboratory course development and instruction.

Education

State University of  New York at Albany  
BS – Biology 1973