randylewis

Randy Lewis, Ph.D., Sythetic Bio-Manufacturing

Known for his work on spider silk proteins, Lewis has been published in some of the nation's most prestigious scientific journals and has appeared several times on the Discovery Channel. In January 2011, Lewis’s research was featured on NOVA’s four-part series, “Making Stuff: Stronger”—a program that examines emerging technologies that are enhancing material properties.

Lewis is an integral member of the USTAR Synthetic Bio-Manufacturing team at USU. SBC brings together a team of both university researchers and USTAR hires within the College of Engineering and the College of Science to work on projects including the manufacture of bio-crude oil from poultry litter as well as billiverdin from water produced during the extraction of oil from the Uintah Basin in eastern Utah, among others.

“The SBC team is unique in its dedication to a common goal,” said Lewis. “We share a common vision despite our different backgrounds. Everyone is interested in seeing the team succeed.”

“The real key is the emphasis that USU has in the biological sciences and the USTAR support for developing those areas,” Lewis said. “We believe we are bringing expertise in areas that can be used by a number of faculty in a variety of departments.”

Lewis has a long history of success in obtaining external funding for his own research, totaling more than $3.2 million to support work on the structure and function of spider silk proteins. Lewis has attracted the attention of some of the nation’s top funding sources, including NIH, the Air Force, the DOE, NSF and USDA.

innovationUTAH.com

Randy Lewis, Ph.D., Sythetic Bio-Manufacturing

Research Team