SME Recognizes Dr. Bopaya Bidanda as a 2025 Fellow

On June 5, SME announced that Dr. Bopaya Bidanda, the Ernest Roth Professor of Industrial Engineering at the University of Pittsburgh Swanson School of Engineering, is one of seven joining its 2025 College of Fellows.

SME is a nonprofit organization that promotes innovation and talent in the manufacturing industry across North America. Since 1986, the organization has recognized transformative industry leaders from around the world who advance the field.

SME will celebrate the 2025 College of Fellows and their work throughout the year during luncheon and gala events and other occasions.

“This recognition is so well deserved,” said Lisa Maillart, Professor and Interim Department Chair of Industrial Engineering at the Swanson School. “Bopaya is a tireless advocate for industrial engineering and for the potential of individuals working across disciplines to solve the most pressing problems we face today. Whether in the classroom here at Pitt or abroad in places like Kenya, where he works to ensure rural communities can access safe blood donations, he is helping make our world a better place.”

Along with his more than 38 years as a professor at Pitt, Bidanda served as the department chair of industrial engineering at the Swanson School for 21 years. A Past President of the Institute of Industrial & Systems Engineering, he supports wide-ranging transdisciplinary projects around the world.

A strong proponent of a transdisciplinary approach, Bidanda runs Pitt’s Center for Industry Studies, which promotes research and collaboration across disciplines and countries. Through the Center’s Transdisciplinary Awards Program, Pitt engineering faculty can receive grant funding for projects that involve researchers in other fields and that seek to address current challenges around the world.

“To be recognized by SME and to be among these incredible individuals is truly an honor,” said Bidanda. “As a member of the 2025 College of Fellows, I am excited to continue building connections across fields and countries to ensure industrial engineering is poised to make transformative change and thrive in a fast-changing world.”