Daniel C. Conrad, Ph.D., is a Certified Reliability Engineer. He is currently the Hussmann Director of Design Quality, Reliability, & Testing. Prior to joining Hussmann he was the Global Design for Reliability Leader with Whirlpool. He received his B.S. from the University of Kentucky in Mechanical Engineering in 1989 and his MS and Ph.D. from Purdue University in Engineering Mechanics in 1991 and 1994 respectively. While completing his PH.D. degree he was employed by Whirlpool Corporation under and engineering fellowship. After receiving his doctorate, he joined Whirlpool Corporation where he has held several positions in research, quality, and new product innovation and delivery. He is a six sigma black belt, a robust product design mentor, innovation mentor and a customer excellence mentor. Dr. Conrad holds multiple US and foreign patents. He has published numerous papers in journals and conferences regarding new technology and processes for appliance applications. Dr. Conrad’s research interests include voice of the customer, systems engineering, reliability, quality, sound and vibration, materials, detergency and alternative cleaning methods, food safety.