Ben Aguilar

Chief Analyst: performed all relevant calculations to ensure the design would function as desired 
Fabrication & Assembly Assistant: assisted in completion of machining and assembly

Ben is originally from Mandeville, Louisiana but now lives in Fairfield, California. A member of Columbia's inaugural class of Egleston Scholars, Ben is pursuing a major in Mechanical Engineering, expecting to graduate in May 2014. While at Columbia, he researched low bandwidth external cavity diode lasers in Professor Chee Wei Wong’s Optical Nanostructures Laboratory. During the summer of 2012, Ben was an intern at Peppertree Engineering, Inc., a California firm that developed optical solutions for a variety of clients, from the medical industry to the tech industry. He also helped design and direct a water distribution project for the village of Obodan, Ghana through Engineers without Borders, which was successfully implemented in 2013. This past summer, he was in Beijing working as a product development intern for LP Amina, an energy and environmental firm that seeks to create more sustainable and efficient processes for the energy industry. After graduation, Ben will be joining Accenture as a Systems Integration Consulting Analyst in New York City.

Halvard Lange

Chief Analyst: performed all relevant calculations to ensure the design would function as desired
Fabrication & Assembly Assistant: assisted in completion of machining and assembly

Originally from Oslo, Norway, Halvard crossed the pond six years ago to pursue a B.A. in Physics at Augustana College, Sioux Falls, SD, where he ran track and cross-country at the national collegiate level, like a true Beast. He entered the Columbia University combined-plan program in the fall of 2012, and is currently pursuing his B.S. and M.S. in Mechanical Engineering. Halvard will be graduating in May 2014 as salutatorian of the Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science. He has led the Uganda program of Engineers Without Borders at Columbia, focusing on the implementation of several multi-functional platforms in local communities of Uganda.  After interning with Aker Solutions, a world leading oil-service company, Halvard was inspired to pursue a career in the energy sector, and is interning with LevelSolar, a solar startup, in New York City this summer. Working with the Beasts has allowed Hal to both explore and develop his analytical, design, and manufacturing skills. He has thoroughly enjoyed working on the project with the other Beasts, and although he is sad to see the project coming to an end, he knows the Beasts will stay in touch wherever they go after this. 

Eric Laukkanen

Lead Designer: finalized the design of the project, working with analysts to ensure a workable product
Fabrication & Assembly Lead: oversaw and coordinated fabrication and assembly of the project, delegating tasks to other project team members

Eric grew up west of Portland, Oregon, in the small town of Forest Grove. He completed a B.S. in Physics from the University of Puget Sound in 2012, before moving to New York to complete a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering at Columbia University. While at the University of Puget Sound he researched novel methods of tuning of harmonic aluminum beams. At Columbia University he has worked in the Optical Nanostructures Laboratory and the Mechanical Engineering Machine Shop. Eric also interned with Permasteelisa Group, a global leader in architectural envelope technology, where he specialized in 3D modeling. In 2013 Eric led a small group of students to Uganda for 4 weeks to implement multi-function platforms as part of an ongoing project with Engineers Without Borders, sponsored by National Geographic and the Department of Energy. This summer Eric will be working on open-source machinery with Open Source Ecology before finding a "real job." 

Charlie MacKenzie-Smith

Lead Designer: finalized the design of the project, working with analysts to ensure a workable product
Fabrication & Assembly Supervisor: assisted lead and guided other team members with machining and assembly tasks

Originally from Minneapolis, Minnesota, Charlie has spent the last four years pursuing his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering at Columbia. This past summer, he completed an REU internship in the Manufacturing Research Lab at Columbia. Throughout this internship he designed and fabricated custom fixtures for testing laminate composites, leading him to pursue a career in mechanical design. Working with the Beasts has allowed him to refine his CAD and machining skills. He is sad to see that his time with the Beasts is coming to an end but will be staying in NYC to work as a Product Engineer at Jarvik Heart, Inc.

Regina Zmuidzinas

Project Manager: organized project team meetings, submitted weekly progress reports, facilitated team communication, created presentations, wrote final report, managed schedule, managed budget, found and order all materials and parts
Fabrication & Assembly Assistant: assisted in completion of machining and assembly

Originally from Pasadena, California, Regina has thoroughly enjoyed her last four years pursuing her B.S. in Mechanical Engineering at Columbia. After interning at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory the summer after her freshman year, Regina was inspired to pursue a career in engineering project management. Regina also had the opportunity to work with Professor Julia Greer's group during the summer of 2012 at Caltech doing research on mechanical properties of materials on the nano scale. During the summer of 2013, she worked as a Product Lifecycle Management consulting intern at Gerber Technology. Regina tested out her project management skills during the ten months of work it took to build this senior design project and has learned much along the way. She couldn't have asked for a better team and will make sure to stay in touch with all the Beasts when she moves to Washington D.C. this fall to begin the next chapter of her life as a consultant at Accenture Federal Services.