ARM Institute hires Larry Sweet as Director of Engineering

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The ARM (Advanced Robotics for Manufacturing) Institute is pleased to announce that Dr. Larry Sweet has joined the organization as Director of Engineering. In this role, Larry will be responsible for developing and managing the Institute’s engineering activities, including all aspects of sourcing, securing, and directing a portfolio of engineering projects while growing and maturing the engineering team. He will accelerate the transition of the ARM Institute’s advanced robotic manufacturing technologies to industry through collaboration with internal and external stakeholders to expand partnerships, secure funding, and support members.

This responsibility includes supporting the technical services for small and medium-sized businesses, currently being developed with funding from the EDA Build Back Better Regional Challenge Grant awarded to the ARM Institute in September 2022 as well as accelerating our work in the deployment of AI in robotics for manufacturing.

Larry is a widely recognized robotics and automation expert, working in both commercial organizations and academia. He provides experience in bringing emerging technologies into production by increasing their Technology Readiness Level (TRL), concurrent with improvements in factory floor processes and workforce skills. Prior to joining the ARM Institute, Larry was the Director of Worldwide Robotics Deployment at Amazon Robotics, where he led the system integration and deployment for all internally developed automation globally into Amazon Fulfillment, Ground and Air, and Last Mile networks.

Larry also held executive and senior manufacturing and technology roles at Symbotic, the Frito-Lay Division of PepsiCo, United Technologies, ABB, Fanuc, and General Electric. Industry recognition for robotics developed under his leadership includes 27 patents, the Edison and IR-100 Awards, and the Manufacturing Leadership Council Outstanding Achiever Award for Supply Chain Excellence.

Larry was a professor of the practice in robotics and associate director of technology transition at the Institute for Robotics and Intelligent Machines at Georgia Institute of Technology, where he focused on technology transition to major industrial sponsors.

Larry received his Ph.D. and M.S. degrees from MIT, and a B.S from the University of California, Berkeley. He was a tenured faculty member at Princeton University, where he received a Guggenheim Foundation Fellowship, the Rheinstein Outstanding Faculty Award, and the ASME Dynamic Systems, Measurement, and Control “Best Paper of Year” award with his courses twice recognized as the “Ten Best” at Princeton.

“We are delighted that Larry Sweet has joined the ARM Institute to direct and grow our robotics engineering capabilities”, said Chuck Brandt, ARM Institute Chief Technology Officer. “His expertise across a broad spectrum of robotics manufacturing applications and solutions will be invaluable to our consortium members, projects, and future opportunities.”