Lily Hwei-Li Shu is a mechanical engineer whose research involves the

engineering design process The engineering design process, also known as the engineering method, is a common series of steps that engineers use in creating functional products and processes. The process is highly iterative – parts of the process often need to be repeat ...

, including

sustainable design Environmentally sustainable design (also called environmentally conscious design, eco-design, etc.) is the philosophy of designing physical objects, the built environment, and services to comply with the principles of ecological sustainability ...

bioinspiration Bioinspiration refers to the human development of novel materials, devices, structures, and behaviors inspired by solutions found in biological organisms, where they have evolved and been refined over millions of years. The goal is to improve model ...

, design for

remanufacturing Remanufacturing is "the rebuilding of a product to specifications of the original manufactured product using a combination of reused, repaired and new parts". It requires the repair or replacement of worn out or obsolete components and modules. Pa ...

, and psychological factors in design. Educated in the US, she works in Canada as a professor at the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...

Education and career

Shu studied mechanical engineering at the

University of Nevada, Reno The University of Nevada, Reno (Nevada, the University of Nevada, or UNR) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Reno, Nevada, United States. It is the state's flagship public university and prim ...

, graduating in 1989. She went to the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of moder ...

for graduate study in mechanical engineering, earning a master's degree in 1992 and completing her Ph.D. in 1996. Her dissertation, ''Application of a design-for-remanufacture framework to the selection of product life-cycle fastening and joining methods'', was supervised by

Woodie Flowers Woodie Claude Flowers (November 18, 1943 – October 11, 2019) was a professor of mechanical engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. His specialty areas were engineering design and product development; he held the Pappalardo Pr ...

. She is a full professor at the University of Toronto. She has joint appointments in the Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, where she directs the Design Effectiveness Laboratory, and in the Department of Psychology, where she directs the Collaborative Specialization in Psychology and Engineering.

Recognition

Shu was the 2004 recipient of the CIRP F. W. Taylor Medal Award of the International Academy for Production Engineering (CIRP), and was elected as a Fellow of the CIRP in 2013. She was elected as an

ASME Fellow The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) is an American professional association that, in its own words, "promotes the art, science, and practice of multidisciplinary engineering and allied sciences around the globe" via "continuing edu ...

in 2021.

References

External links

Design Effectiveness Laboratory
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Shu, Li Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Canadian mechanical engineers Canadian women engineers University of Nevada, Reno alumni Massachusetts Institute of Technology alumni Academic staff of the University of Toronto Fellows of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers