2022 Engineering Leader Under 40: Rob Delles, 38

Rob Delles, 38
Controls + Automation Technical Consultant
Hargrove Controls + Automation
Mobile, AL, United States
BS Electrical Engineering, Syracuse University
MS Electrical Engineering, South Alabama

Why Rob is an Engineering Leader

Rob Delles is a highly talented, well-respected Engineer who can take on any project, small to highly complex, and ensure successful completion. He is motivated, driven and takes ownership of his personal growth and development, as shown by earning his PhD while engaged in project work full-time. He works hard and in the best interests of his team and clients. He maintains the highest ethical standards while understanding and meeting client needs. He is viewed as a leader by peers, a mentor to junior teammates and continually seeks ways to engage, develop and grow his team.

Achievements, Advancement & Career-related Industry Contributions

Rob began his career with General Dynamics on U.S. military RADAR and surface ship designs. He was part of the team that designed and delivered the first-in-class Independence variance of the Littoral combat ship. He received recognition for his work on both the ship and the full simulation shore-based training facility. He was the only civilian engineering contractor on board as the U.S.S. Independence made her maiden voyage from the East coast through the Panama Canal and into her home port of San Diego. On this trip, he received what he considers his highest award to date – a chief’s challenge coin given by the chief petty officers in appreciation for his hard work. Exhausted from travel, he transitioned to Kimberly-Clark as engineer on two towel machines before moving to Hargrove.

罗布是有执照的专业工程师,PMI Certified Associate in Project Management and an INCOSE Certified Systems Engineer. He won the Louis N. Demartini Award for best team design from Syracuse University as well as numerous Star and Achievement awards throughout his career. He is the current President of the local INCOSE Blues chapter and an active member of the Institute of Industrial and Systems Engineers.

Non-work-related Activities & Hobbies

Rob is an SSI Master Diver and loves to explore the Gulf waters. The ocean is teeming with life and has many areas yet to be explored. He is looking forward to exploring the petrified cypress forest recently discovered off the Alabama coast and the latest additions to the underwater museum of art in Florida. When not blowing bubbles, Rob enjoys hand tool woodworking. He believes there is something meditative that relaxes the mind while your hands shape wood into something new.

Interesting Details

1. Rob enjoys volunteering with BEST Robotics, an annual robotics competition for middle and high school students to help promote careers in STEM fields.
2. Rob loves to cook and experiment in the kitchen. He views cooking as an artistic outlet and very rarely follows a recipe. He enjoys mixing aspects of different cuisines and baking. He readily admits his decorating skills are terrible, but what his creations lack in appearance, they make up for in flavor.

Why Rob chose this career

Rob loves to be challenged, and feels that the more difficult the problem, the more rewarding the solution. Engineering provides that challenge and the rewards for solving the problem are more than just personal satisfaction for a job well done. Solving these problems provides a chance to leave a lasting impact, improving the production of everything from gasoline to cancer medication. His college professor once told him, “If you want to be famous, be a physicist. If you want to change the world, be an engineer.”

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