Donald Baskin

Dr. Donald Baskin teaches the Structural Materials Engineering course to both graduates and under graduates. Previously he taught courses in lightweighting and structural optimization and metals deformations processes for manufacturing.

In previous years, Dr. Baskin worked in the International Automotive Industry where he spent time at the Daimler (Mercedes-Benz) Materials Research Lab in Ulm, Germany, and in Body Engineering Release at Chrysler LLC in Auburn Hills, MI, USA. During this time, he held positions pertaining to every aspect of automotive body structure development. This included structural optimization (lightweighting), finite element analysis, structural materials development (both metals and composites), product design release, tolerance strategy (GD&T), and manufacturing (stamping, casting, forging, assembly, quality, etc.). This culminated in him attaining a supervisory rank, launching 7 vehicles into series production, publishing several articles and later a book chapter on body structure lightweighting.
Dr. Baskin holds a Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering from Northwestern University and a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from University of California, Irvine. Dr. Baskin’s graduate dissertation work focused on toughening and fracture mechanics of brittle-materials such as ceramics. As an undergraduate, Dr. Baskin conducted research in the field of spray atomization processing of refractory structural alloys.