Alumni Spotlight: Robert DeFeo, M.Eng. 2013

Robert DeFeo received his B.S. in chemical engineering from U.C. San Diego in 2009 and his M.Eng. in biomedical engineering from Cornell in 2013. In between the two degrees, DeFeo worked at Genentech and a medical device startup.

While at Cornell, DeFeo focused primarily on tissue mechanics and worked under Dr. Jonathan Black to help develop a device for measuring ligament tension during ACL repair. DeFeo also enjoyed a variety of courses at the Johnson Graduate School of Management, which led him to pursue medical device operations upon graduation.

Following Cornell, DeFeo moved to the San Francisco Bay Area and joined operations at Boston Scientific as a manufacturing engineer on the Lotus aortic valve replacement system. Leveraging his background in chemical engineering and tissue mechanics, he helped commercialize and scale the Lotus operation. Today, still at Boston Scientific, he manages Lotus valve manufacturing where his team of 80+ employees span engineering, production and supply chain.

DeFeo enjoys staying connected with the BME M.Eng. program, whereby he regularly advises students on career strategy and has presented during the seminar series. Whether you’re interested in going into industry, want to learn more about manufacturing or are looking for some operational support, feel free to reach out to him!