For his steadfast dedication to the mission of the Space Superiority Systems Directorate, Mechanical Engineering alum, Mark Eddings B.S.’04, received the Meritorious Civil Service Award, from the Los Angeles Air Force. Noted was the the fact that many of the advances over the past two years were spearheaded under Dr. Eddings’ leadership.
The Meritorious Civil Service Award is the second highest award a civilian can receive in the Air Force. This is especially remarkable when considering Mark has only worked for the Air Force for five years.
Mark A. Eddings was born and raised in Bountiful, Utah. He attended Bountiful High School where he graduated in 1997. After serving a two-year LDS mission to the Fiji Islands, he returned home and began studying Mechanical Engineering at the University of Utah. He graduated in May of 2004 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering and received his PhD in Bioengineering.
Research work while working with mechanical engineering professor Bruce Gale in the Biomedical Microfluidics Lab include:
- Development of a painless drug delivery system using microneedles. The project utilized photolithography, wet etching, electroplating, and other MEMS processes.
- Development of micropumps for on-chip fluidic control for biosensors and protein spotting applications. Work was focused on PDMS-based peristaltic and permeation/diffusion pumps.
- Development of highly arrayed continuous flow immunoassays in a microfluidic device.
- Development of an ELISA assay for detection of antibodies to drug treatments given to Multiple Sclerosis (MS) patients.
The Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Utah is committed to providing students with broad-based, rigorous and progressive education. By combining state-of-the-art facilities with renowned faculty, the department provides an education that gives students the necessary skills to become the next generation of innovators.
