Greg Smith

Wind Farm Utility
As the principal engineer for the Wind Turbine Mechanical Systems division for over 10 years, Greg oversaw gearbox design, performed reliability studies, and performed root cause failure analyses. Greg developed a program to aid in the prediction of the remaining useful life for equipment and was appointed as the company representative on the NREL Gear Reliability Committee. His experience and indepth knowledge culminated in the development of patent no. 9,341,158 Quiet Wind Turbine Blade and a patent application for Wind Turbine Split Main Bearing. Greg also authored a White Paper on Bearing Irregular White Etching.

Wind Turbine Design
Greg designed and developed various gear drive systems for wind turbine and locomotive drive systems. His role as Senior Engineer also involved the design and analysis of gearing stresses, including microgeometry optimization.

Drivetrain Technology Manufacturer
Greg led the development of gearing for an all-electric, all-wheel drive and start-stop program for a prominent drivetrain technology manufacturer. Greg also designed gear drives and Continuous Variable Transmissions for hybrid powertrain systems. Greg was awarded patent no. 6,736,228 for Electric Machine with Integrated Wet Clutch and he has three other patents pending for Electro-Mechanical Valve Actuator, Auxiliary Drive for Hybrid Power Train, and Pressure Pulsation Reduction in Gear Pumps Utilizing Asymmetric Gearing.

Industrial Gearbox Design
Greg was the head of the engineering department, and he managed 12 staff engineers & designers responsible for the design of gear reducers from application evaluation through manufacturing. He also oversaw discreet design aspects, such as gear hobbing, grinding, heat treatment, and assembly. During his tenure, Greg accomplished the development and design of a carburized and ground parallel shaft gear reducer product line.

Gearbox Design
Greg managed the engineering aspects of the parallel shaft gear reducer product line including the design manufacturing, and assembly. Greg developed a quantitative means of tracking engineering performance, organized the department for the parametric design of gear reducers, and he further implemented a gear design program utilizing UTS gear design for gear stress and geometry analysis.

Power Transmissions
Greg designed and developed mechanical power transmission equipment including gear reducers, couplings, and belt drives for wind turbines, conveying systems, and extruder dives applications. He also performed load spectrum analyses to predict the life & reliability of gears & bearings for wind turbine and conveying systems. Greg’s work led to the redesign of the variable pitch sheave product line utilizing design for manufacturing and assembly. This redesign resulted in a 10% profit increase and is memorialized in US patent no. 5,304,098 Developed Value Analysis Program for Parallel Shaft Gear Reducer product line.

Mechanical Coupling Design
Greg designed, developed, and tested mechanical couplings and he devised a quality function deployment program for the marketing and development of a new coupling product line. On a separate project, Greg drove the quality assurance program, including developing a QA manual, vendor certification, and the program for statistical process control and gear control.

Link-Belt Chain Design
Appointed as the QA manager, Greg was responsible for the manufacturing plant’s quality, specifically the product warranty and field service operations, and he oversaw the metallurgical lab division.

Power Transmission Design
Greg was a design engineer responsible for the application and design of power transmission equipment as required by OEM and customer specifics. He provided technical support to sales and marketing teams, including technical training seminars for the company’s customers and field representatives.

Wind Turbine, Gears & Blades
5,304,098 Adjustable Sheave
9,341,158 Quiet Wind Turbine Blade
US201440112606 Roller Bearing for Wind Turbine

Automotive Industry
6,736,228 Electric Machine with Integrated Wet Clutch
US20030116368 Accessory Drive for Vehicle with Hybrid Drive
US20050001702 Electro-Mechanical Valve Actuator