Mohamed Elbestawi, Director of McMaster's W Booth School of Engineering Practice and Technology, cited widely for his contributions to manufacturing engineering research, is known as a champion for university/industry partnerships.  He worked for several years in industrial research and development, before joining McMaster.  He was the driving force in the establishment of the newly created $19 million McMaster Manufacturing Research Institute (MMRI) and was appointed as its first Director in 2000.  Dr. Elbestawi also held the NSERC Industrial Research Chair in Precision Machining and held the inaugural Braley-Orlick Chair in Advanced Manufacturing Engineering.