Filipi to join CU-ICAR in Timken chair

CLEMSON — Zoran S. Filipi will join Clemson University as the Timken Endowed Chair in Vehicle Design and Development Jan. 1.

Filipi is a specialist in automotive power train systems at the University of Michigan. Essentially the heart and soul of an automobile, the power train includes all the components that propel the car, from the engine through the transmission and driveshaft to the wheels. The latest drive train innovations include hybrid propulsion systems with integrated electric or hydraulic motors and on-board energy storage.

“This area is one of the most critical in the nation’s path to energy independence, and Zoran’s presence at Clemson will enhance our competitiveness in this vital field,” said Imtiaz Haque, chairman of Clemson’s automotive engineering department.

“Zoran brings leadership and expertise to the advanced power train area at Clemson and will help us prepare the next generation of scientists and engineers to make important advances in power train development,” Haque said.

As the Timken Endowed Chair in Vehicle Design and Development, Filipi will hold one of four endowed chairs that form the academic core at the Clemson University International Center for Automotive Research (CU-ICAR) in Greenville. The chair was funded by The Timken Co., a leading global manufacturer of highly engineered bearings, alloy steels and related components.

Filipi currently is deputy director of the Automotive Research Center, a seven-university consortium led by the University of Michigan, and director of the Center of Excellence in Engineering through Hybrid Technology funded by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. He also leads the HCCI engine thermal studies thrust area in the University of Michigan-General Motors Collaborative Research Lab on Engine Systems Research.

His research includes a wide variety of projects involving hybrid vehicle systems and sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy, the Environmental Protection Agency and the National Science Foundation. Corporate sponsors of his advanced power train research have included Bosch-Rexroth AG, Chevron Energy Technology Co., Ricardo Inc., Detroit Diesel/Daimler Trucks North America, Chrysler LLC and General Motors Corp.

Filipi received his master’s and doctoral degrees from the University of Belgrade. He joined the University of Michigan in 1994. He is the recipient of the SAE Forest R. McFarland Award (2009), the IMechE Donald Julius Groen Award (2011) and the University of Michigan Research Faculty Achievement Award (2005). He is a member of the executive committee for SAE Powertrains, Fuels and Lubricants Activity; the former chairman of the SAE Advanced Power Sources Committee; and the associate editor of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers’ Journal of Engineering for Gas Turbines and Power.

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