NABIL GRACE:
 
NABIL GRACE




 
 
 
 
 
Chair and University Distinguished Professor of Civil Engineering at Lawrence Technological University in Southfield. He is also director of Lawrence Tech’s Center for Innovative Materials Research (CIMR). Grace is best known for his research on extending the lifespan and reducing the maintenance costs of bridges by replacing steel components with noncorrosive carbon, glass, and aramid fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP, GFRP, AFRP) materials and other advanced composites. CIMR researchers are collaborating with the U.S. Army Research Laboratory and the U.S. Army Tank Automotive Research, Development and Engineering Center (TARDEC) to design, test, and evaluate advanced carbon fiber materials that can reduce the weight of military vehicles and body armor while providing greater protection and durability. Grace has three patents and two more pending related to the use of composites in infrastructures and armor. In the past 10 years he has won more than 30 research grants and contracts totaling more than $11 million. Grace earned a master’s degree and PhD in civil engineering from the University of Windsor and has published more than 100 articles in scholarly publications.


WHERE BORN: "Port-Said, Egypt."

MOST INFLUENTIAL PERSONS: "My wife, Nadrine, has been my main motivator for pursuing innovation and adhering to what I believe in. My son, Mina, is a biomedical engineer and a lawyer who gives me very precise suggestions on how I should proceed with new ideas."

LAST BOOK READ: "Good to Great by Jim Collins."

WORDS THAT DESCRIBE ME: "Dedicated, sincere."

WHERE MY FIELD/INDUSTRY IS HEADED: "America must replace its aging infrastructure and facilities, accommodate new growth, new approaches and technologies, and use energy more efficiently and effectively. There is a tremendous need in civil engineering to develop new materials that will perform better, be more sustainable and environmentally friendly, and cost less. A major challenge right now is to develop and evaluate new materials that can protect our troops and lighten armored vehicles. Also, many civil engineers are reaching retirement age, and we need to attract a new generation to the field."

FAVORITE TECHNOLOGICAL GADGET: "Laptop and GPS."

FAVORITE PLACE: "Home is my favorite place to be, and I also enjoy traveling to my native country."

FAVORITE HOBBIES: "Reading, travel."

FAVORITE FOOD: "Sushi."

MY HIDDEN TALENT: "The capability for visualizing and delineating new means to make life easier for the next generation."

HOW I WANT TO BE REMEMBERED: "For helping people. One of my dreams is to have highway bridges last for over 100 years, so I am hoping to be remembered as the ‘bridge innovator man’ who helped achieve what our country needed. In addition, 20 years ago when I chose to teach at a small private university, I was determined to demonstrate that a university’s reputation for dedication to students and the engineering profession is dependent on the faculty, and not the other way around. I would like to be remembered for having developed a national and international reputation for my department that attracts the brightest students and outstanding young faculty to Lawrence Tech."

Grant Thornton Website At the annual awards reception in April 2009, one Leader & Innovator from the previous 12 months will be selected as the Grant Thornton Leader & Innovator of the Year.