Manufacturing Leader Lorin Sodell Joins CCAM

CCAM is proud to announce and welcome Lorin Sodell as its Business Leader for Machining and Factory Development. Mr. Sodell will be responsible for the development of CCAM’s machining business. Congruently, Mr. Sodell will serve as a Research and Industry Liaison for the College of Engineering and Technology at Virginia State University (VSU). This appointment will go into effect on February 4, 2019.

Lorin Sodell brings over 33 years of manufacturing and engineering experience to both VSU and CCAM. Mr. Sodell was the Manufacturing Executive and Site Director for Crosspointe, the Rolls-Royce advanced manufacturing center in Prince George, Virginia. In this role, Mr. Sodell oversaw the design and launch of two manufacturing facilities, including staffing, process validation, and production acceleration. Rolls-Royce currently operates two facilities on its Crosspointe campus and has invested more than $300 million and created more than 400 jobs, including registered apprentice programs for CNC machinists and maintenance mechanics. Prior to joining Rolls-Royce in 2006, he held several executive leadership positions at United Technologies Corporation. Mr. Sodell began his career as a Manufacturing Engineer at General Motors, and later established Standard Global Processes for Engineering and launched an automotive engine manufacturing plant in Germany.

“After several years of collaborating with both organizations,” says Lorin Sodell, “I am looking forward to the opportunity to join Virginia State University and CCAM. I’m energized by the chance to strengthen manufacturing technologies and the pipeline of engineering professionals who will deliver those technologies – giving Virginia’s industries a competitive advantage.”

“We could not be more pleased to welcome Lorin Sodell to CCAM,” says CCAM’s President and CEO, William T. Powers. “Lorin’s vast experience and unique skill set will be of great value to our research projects and members here at CCAM.”

Dawit Haile, Interim Dean of VSU’s College of Engineering and Technology adds: “We are excited to welcome Lorin Sodell to VSU and fully appreciate his wealth of experience in industry-university synergy and how to use these partnerships as a vehicle for faculty and industry collaborations.”

Mr. Sodell previously served on the Board of Advisors for the Virginia Tech College of Engineering and is a current member of the Advisory Board for the Petersburg Central School Career and Technical Education Program. He is a member of the Region 4 Council of GO-Virginia, a state-wide workforce development initiative. He is Past President of the Board of Directors for The READ Center – an adult literacy organization based in Richmond, VA. For the past eight years, he has also been an avid volunteer for VirginiaFIRST, an organization that promotes career-oriented STEM experiences for youth.

Mr. Sodell earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, NY and an MBA from Lawrence Technological University in Southfield, MI. He and his wife Janet live in New Kent County, Virginia.