Robert Barber: Engineering Hall of Fame - 2003

Robert Barber received his bachelor's in mechanical engineering in 1957. In 1966 he co-founded Barber-Nichols Engineering Company, which provides consulting engineering for customers that include Sundstrand, Lear Motors Company, and Fairchild-Hiller. Barber-Nichols Engineering built its early reputation by providing design engineering and analysis in difficult applications. In 1970, the National Institute of Standards and Technology contracted Barber-Nichols to design and manufacture a cryogenic liquid helium pump for a laboratory experiment. Since that time, the company's reputation as a manufacturer of custom cryogenic turbomachinery has flourished. Barber retired from the company and is now a full time nature photographer. He is a member of the OSU President's Club and also serves as a board member on the Red Rocks (Colorado) Community College Foundation.