Solidia Technologies®, a leading provider of decarbonization technologies and sustainable solutions to the construction and building materials industries, today named R&D and building materials expert Padmaja Parakala, Ph.D., director of Research and Development.
“Dr. Paddy” brings 20 years’ experience leading the technical direction of material science teams, driving breakthrough innovations in performance and sustainability in multinational companies. Her expertise includes energy-efficient building products, sustainability and durability, thermal barrier coatings, formulation development for ready-mix, and fiber cement technology. She has filed 30 patents and helped commercialize new products and solutions through sponsoring organizations, contributing to a significant increase in revenue and market share.
“Solidia’s mission to create environmentally sustainable products is aligned with my higher purpose of making the world a better place for our future generations,” said Dr. Paddy. “The opportunity to create and commercialize products that have a lower carbon footprint, decrease water consumption, reduce energy consumption, and cut gas emissions greatly inspires me as it would help address major environmental and societal needs.”
Dr. Paddy’s relationship with Solidia commenced at Innovantage, the professional services firm she founded to help companies gain a competitive advantage through innovation. There, she supported strategic initiatives and oversaw aspects of the development of new technologies, including delivering a white paper covering risks and opportunities for the application of Solidia’s low-temperature ceramic technologies for emerging new products. She also provided guidance to Boral Innovation Factory on optimizing the performance of natural pozzolans as supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs) and in developing large-format, lightweight concrete panels with an authentic look to meet both residential and commercial markets.
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She also previously served as principal scientist and product performance leader at James Hardie Building Products in Sydney, Australia, where she was awarded Innovator of the Year for four consecutive years and received the Captain’s Award for Excellence in Leadership. She was also recognized by General Electric as one of the top 10 scientists at the Jack F. Welch Technology Centre, where she served as lead scientist.
“Dr. Paddy has dedicated her life to driving innovation and increasing efficiency, and we’re incredibly grateful that she has come on board,” said Solidia Interim CEO Russell Hill. “Not only is Solidia the right technology at the right time, we have the right team to accelerate innovation and scale sustainable solutions across the global building materials and construction industry.”
Dr. Padmaja Parakala was awarded Doctor of Philosophy from Queensland University of Technology, Australia, in biomaterials, bulk and thin films for joint replacement, a Master of Technology, Material Science and Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur, and a Master of Science from the Indian Institute of Technology (BHU), Varanasi.
Her many passions include travel, architecture, dancing, attending musical concerts, and cooking. She explores gourmet innovation in her home kitchens, which fashion as “material science” labs where she experiments with new ingredients and recipes, achieving “process efficiencies” and improving the taste for many Indian, Asian, and Italian dishes, that she hopes to publish one day.
Source: Solidia Technologies