Commonwealth Center for Advanced Manufacturing Appoints New President and CEO

The Commonwealth Center for Advanced Manufacturing board of directors, chaired by University of Virginia School of Engineering Dean Craig H. Benson, Ph.D., has appointed John Milton-Benoit as CCAM's new President and Chief Executive Officer effective August 20, 2020. “John has a rich portfolio of leadership in operations and research and innovation at United Technologies Research Center (UTRC), United Technologies Corporation's (UTC) central research organization,” said CCAM board of directors vice chair and Virginia Commonwealth University College of Engineering Dean Barbara D. Boyan, Ph.D., who chaired the executive search committee. As Senior Director / Program Leader for the Advanced Manufacturing & Service Technologies Program Office, Milton-Benoit was responsible for UTRC's strategic technology development in additive manufacturing, robotics, autonomous manufacturing, human-machine interface, data analytics, machine learning and cyber physical security, as well as expanding UTRC's manufacturing and service impact on UTC business units. In this role, Milton-Benoit established UTC's $75M Additive Manufacturing Center of Excellence, where he served as the Founding Director. Milton-Benoit additionally served as Acting Program Leader for the United Technologies Aerospace Systems Program Office for the year leading up to UTC's acquisition of Rockwell Collins. In 2010, he was the Founding General Manager of UTC's European hub for research, starting up United Technologies Research Centre Ireland. Working with the Irish government and universities, he started a national sustainable energy testbed as part of the strategy to develop a European energy and security innovation ecosystem. He then expanded the research application scope of this innovation hub, setting strategic direction for a Cyber Physical Systems Center of Excellence for aerospace systems. Milton-Benoit holds more than two dozen U.S. patents and has contributed to several publications, including peer-reviewed journals. “I am passionate about CCAM's mission to solve advanced manufacturing challenges and grow a manufacturing workforce through innovation and collaboration among industry, academia and government,” Milton-Benoit said. “I am excited for the opportunity to lead this organization.” Milton-Benoit succeeds William T. Powers as president and chief executive officer; Powers retires in August. Powers was appointed in 2016 and served on the CCAM board since CCAM's inception in 2011. “Will joined CCAM as President and CEO at a critical time,” Benson said. “Under his leadership, the organization more than doubled its research spend and increased the membership, ensuring CCAM's resiliency for years to come. The board thanks him for his leadership and accomplishments, and we look forward to working with John to continue CCAM's growth.”