Industrial Liaison Officer | University of Kansas - Military Veterans

The Industrial Liaison Officer (ILO) will lead the effort to identify and facilitate collaborations with companies and other external stakeholders that interact with the HVACR market. This individual will report to the EARTH Innovation Ecosystem Lead and will be the voice of industry and other stakeholders, working closely with EARTH leadership to shape the vision and long-range strategy for the center. The ILO will work with academic partner technology transfer offices to ensure there are appropriate communications to consortium members per the membership agreement. Moreover, the ILO contributes to student training by encouraging internships with members, fostering industry seminars on best practices, and sharing their extensive experiences in industry. An ideal candidate for this position is someone who is eager to make a difference in academia by strengthening university-industry interactions and mentoring students. About Engineering Research Center: Heating, ventilation, air-conditioning, and refrigeration (HVACR) are essential to the quality of life for all humans. HVACR systems are widespread throughout society, enabling transportation and preservation of fresh foods, storage of medicines, and cooling of buildings. However, most refrigerants used today are hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), which have high global-warming potential (GWP), with 2000-4000 times the impact of CO2. Combined with high leak rates and high energy consumption, HFCs account for 7.8% of total greenhouse-gas emissions. To address this challenge, a new NSF Engineering Research Center (ERC): Environmentally Applied Refrigerant Technology Hub (EARTH) will create a "sustainable refrigerant lifecycle" to address technical, environmental, and societal challenges facing the HVACR industry. EARTH is a multi-institution, multi-disciplinary team from the University of Kansas, University of Notre Dame, University of Hawai'i, University of Maryland, University of South Dakota, and Lehigh University.