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Nick Adler is Vice President of Value Streams for Wabash, an innovation leader of connected solutions for the transportation, logistics, and distribution industries. In this role, he is responsible for a $2.5B+ operating plan and increasing value for customers throughout all Wabash business segments. Nick has a varied and extensive experience in the automotive and commercial transportation industries leading a wide range of business functions including IT, Supply Chain, Procurement, Strategy, Program Management and Enterprise Lean. Nick is a proud Chemical Engineering graduate from Purdue and has served on the Management Advisory Board for DCMME since October 2022.
Stephan Biller is the Harold T. Amrine Distinguished Professor in the School of Industrial Engineering and the Mitchell E. Daniels, Jr School of Business at Purdue University. Additionally, he serves as the Director of the Dauch Center for the Management of Manufacturing Enterprises and the Global Supply Chain Management Initiative at the Daniels School of Business. His expertise includes Smart Manufacturing, Digital Twin, Industry 4.0, and Supply Chain Management. He is passionate about how AI in the broadest sense and IoT can facilitate the Digital Transformation of large and especially small and medium manufacturing enterprises at scale. Previously, he served as Founder and CEO of Advanced Manufacturing International, Vice President of Product Management for AI Applications & Watson IoT at IBM, Chief Manufacturing Scientist & Manufacturing Technology Director at General Electric, and Tech Fellow & Global Group Manager for Manufacturing Systems at General Motors. He is an IEEE Fellow and an elected member of the National Academy of Engineering.
Steven Dunlop is the Managing Director for the Dauch Center for Manufacturing and the Global Supply Chain center in the Mitchell E. Daniels, Jr. School of Business at Purdue University. He has been at Purdue for more than 20 years and was previously in the private sector in a variety of positions, including supply chain finance and production scheduling. While at Purdue his experience has included the management of large grants, leading the online evaluation effort for the university, and the development of new technology for a variety of small to large companies. He has had the opportunity to teach project management, adult education training, and how to develop online courses for the private sector. The Dauch Center currently has more than 35 company projects in process, primarily in manufacturing and supply chain areas.
Danny Ernstes has been a thirty -year member of the United Auto Workers Union (UAW). He has modeled his life and work around the UAW adage, “That there is no greater calling than to serve your fellow man. There is no greater contribution than to help the weak. There is no greater satisfaction than to have done it well.”
Danny has served the UAW in various capacities and is currently employed by the International Union Region 2B as the Indiana CAP Coordinator. Before his employment with the UAW, he worked for Navistar International as a Journeyman Millwright/Machine Repair.
Cindy Farrer has extensive global leadership experience in manufacturing and supply chain, spanning a variety of roles – across companies including Allegion, Ingersoll Rand, Delphi Automotive Systems and General Motors. In October 2023, she joined the Purdue MEP (Manufacturing Extension Program) working with small-mid size manufacturers in Indiana to help maximize operations and business success. Prior to joining the Purdue MEP, Cindy most recently served as Senior Vice President of Global Operations and Integrated Supply Chain for Allegion, overseeing Allegion’s 30+ global manufacturing operations and supply chain, with plants and suppliers based across the Americas, Europe and Asia. This included strategies and processes to advance supply chain design and resiliency, footprint, lean and factory automation, ESG, organizational development, and health and safety. Purdue honored Cindy by inducting her into the Purdue Cooperative Education Hall of Fame in 2014 and as Outstanding Industrial Engineer in 2020., Addtionally, Cindy was honored by The Manufacturing Institute as an inaugural STEP Ahead Award winner in 2013.
Dr. Nathan W. Hartman is the Dauch Family Professor of Advanced Manufacturing in the School of Engineering Technology at Purdue University, Director of the Digital Enterprise Center, and Director of the Indiana Manufacturing Competitiveness Center (IN-MaC) at West Lafayette. Professor Hartman’s research areas focus on the digital transformation of the manufacturing enterprise; tools and methods for model-based definition creation and use; and data interoperability and standards. He has been awarded over $14,000,000 in research funding to support his work, primarily from industrial and manufacturing corporations. Professor Hartman’s industry research partners include Rolls Royce, Cummins, Boeing, GM, Ford Motor Company, Collins Aerospace, Lockheed Martin, Textron, Gulfstream, Procter & Gamble, GM, Honda, and others. He has also done funded research work through NSF, DoD, DoE, DMDII, and NIST programs. Professor Hartman has served in numerous capacities within the data interoperability and standards communities. Prior to his time at Purdue, Professor Hartman worked in industry for nearly eight years at Fairfield Manufacturing, Caterpillar, and Rand Worldwide.
As CEO, Cynthia Hutchison spearheads initiatives to engage the national manufacturing ecosystem, driving local, national, and international projects that expedite the shift toward advanced manufacturing. Her role involves shaping the global production agenda, enhancing the competitiveness of the U.S. manufacturing sector, and integrating new technologies with established practices. Previously, Hutchison completed a 12-month World Economic Forum Fellowship, managing the development of the Global Network of Advanced Manufacturing Hubs. Her success as Vice President of Automation Alley, where she championed Industry 4.0 efforts, led to a partnership with WEF to launch Michigan’s AMHUB. Hutchison's ability to authentically connect people and organizations for measurable outcomes extends to strong relationships with corporate leaders, elected officials, academia, and strategic partners. A dynamic speaker, she transitioned from telecommunications sales to establish Band of Angels, advocating for individuals with Down syndrome. Hutchison's achievements have earned her numerous awards, including recognition as a Notable Woman in STEM and a Michiganian of the Year. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in English Literature and Communications from Allegheny College.
A veteran of the automotive industry, Michael is the Director, EV Policy and Regulatory Affairs for General Motors. He has worked in the Electric Propulsion space for over 10 years as part of GM’s Product Planning and Strategy group. He led the advanced planning effort for GM’s next generation of battery electric vehicles, debuting in the form of the Cadillac Lyriq and Hummer EV. He is also the Indiana EV Product Commission Chair. Michael has worked all over the globe for GM on electrification and strategy projects, including a three-year assignment in Germany with GM’s former subsidiary Opel. He leads GM Policy work on EV incentive, infrastructure, supply chain, and regulatory topics. He is a member of the Massachusetts Zero Emission Vehicle Commission, the Indiana EV Commission, and also sat on the advisory panel for Drive Change, Drive Electric, a public/private partnership between automakers and Northeast states to promote electric vehicles. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Michigan, and an MBA from University of Chicago Booth School of Business.
Chris M. McCorkle is the Data Science and Analysis Flight (DSAF) Flight Chief in the 418th Supply Chain Management Squadron at Tinker AFB, Oklahoma. He leads a team of 23 Technical Analysts providing organic data science and analytics to cut through conventional wisdom and volumes of data providing objective, accurate, and timely insights to 448th Supply Chain Management Wing enabling better decisions for Air Force Weapon Systems.
Mr. McCorkle has 15+ years of subject matter and technical experience interpreting and analyzing USAF Logistics data and processes driving innovative business solutions. He is recognized as an USAF Supply Chain Technical leader driving powerful advanced analytics, and Data Science methodology implementation within the Air Force Sustainment Center (AFSC). He has extensive experience in USAF Supply Chain Management, Operations Research, Engineering and Technical Management, and Lifecycle Logistics Management.
Brandon Moore is the Director of Operations for Con-Air Industries, a subsidiary of Filtration Group who is a global market leading provider of filtration consumables. Brandon’s previous experience includes Amazon operations and Tier 1 Automotive manufacturing. Specializing in operations and business turnarounds, Brandon’s expertise is in complex change management. Specifically, the people side of change and managing the headwinds associated with large and small scale change. He recently shared this systematic approach and results in a feature article with BOSS Magazine. Over the last 10 years, Brandon has provided transformational leadership through the establishment of long-range goals, strategies, plans, and policies that have yielded more than $40M in annual cost savings. Brandon holds a BS in Manufacturing Engineering Technology and MBA from Purdue University.
Richard Ryffel is the Executive Director of Business Leadership and a Professor of Practice in the Mitchell E. Daniels, Jr. School of Business at Purdue University. He is responsible for leading the Professor of Practice faculty and for outreach to the practice community across multiple functions at Daniels. Prior to joining Daniels, he was a Professor of Finance Practice at Washington University in St. Louis, as well as an adjunct instructor at several universities in the U.S. and Europe. Professor Ryffel’s professional experience over 35 years was concentrated in public and corporate finance and wealth management. As a private wealth and endowment manager, he advised high net worth families and endowed institutions on investment management and financial planning. He previously worked at A.G. Edwards (now Wells Fargo Advisors), Bank of America, Edward Jones and J.P. Morgan. He has a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Tufts University and an M.B.A. in Finance from Boston University.
