Randolph (Randy) E. Kirchain, MIT Research Staff

Randolph Kirchain, Ph.D., is one of two MIT research staff developing the IPSR cost emulator. He is currently a Principal Research Scientist in the Engineering Systems Division of MIT. He was previously an Assistant Professor (2002-2008) and then Associate Professor (2008-2010) of Materials Science and Engineering in MIT’s Engineering Systems Division of MIT. 
 
Among his several areas of focus, Dr. Kirchain has worked on process-based modeling and, specifically, cost modeling for photonics manufacturing.  
 
He is a founding member of the The Minerals, Metals and Materials Society’s (TMS’s) committee for Materials and Society and the ad-hoc committee on Sustainable Materials. He developed analytical tools to evaluate the economic and environmental performance of materials, process and architectural options for products, materials production and materials systems. He has also had frequent interactions with industry on evaluating the economic and sustainability performance of materials technologies and identifying technological and operational strategies to improve that performance.
 
Dr. Kirchain received an S.B. in Materials Science & Engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology and his Ph.D., also in Materials Science & Engineering, from MIT.  He did post-doc work at MIT and was a Research Associate.
 
Developer, IPSR Cost Emulator
MIT