Three NUWC Division Newport engineers win Women of Color Magazine’s Technology Rising Star Award

Photo By Public Affairs Office | Nipun Aggarwal of Naval Undersea Warfare Center Division Newport's Sensors and Sonar Systems Department recently won the Career Communications Group Women of Color Magazine's Technology Rising Star Award. She will be honored at the Women of Color STEM Conference award ceremony this fall in Detroit, Michigan.  

NEWPORT, RI, UNITED STATES

08.07.2018

Story by Public Affairs Office 

Naval Undersea Warfare Center Division Newport

NEWPORT, R.I. — Nipun Aggarwal and Karin Kaplan, of Naval Undersea Warfare Center (NUWC) Division Newport’s Sensors and Sonar Systems Department, and Kristin Giles, of the Platform and Payload Integration Department, have won the Career Communications Group Women of Color Magazine’s Technology Rising Star Award.

This annual award program recognizes women who have demonstrated exceptional achievements in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) and in their communities.

Aggarwal, a resident of North Kingstown, Rhode Island, began her career as an electrical engineer at NUWC Newport in 2010 when she worked as an intern and was competitively selected to participate in NUWC’s Sea Mentor Program onboard USS James E. Williams (DDG 95). She is currently the engineering test lead for the Surface Ship Undersea Warfare (SSUSW) In-Service Support project for the AN/SQQ-89 SSUSW system. Her primary focus is to ensure the ships' sonar remains operational and able to complete their assigned mission by providing direct fleet support. Aggarwal oversees a team of more than 15 engineers and scientists. Working with the Regional Maintenance Centers, under Aggarwal's oversight, the team completed 123 in-service support events, comprising 47 on-ship technical assists and 76 distance support assists in fiscal year 2017.

Kaplan, a resident of Bristol, Rhode Island, joined NUWC Newport 16 years ago and worked as a test engineer in the Submarine Combat Control Department and subsequently became a test lead for numerous programs. Since 2016, she has been head of the Surface and Aviation Test, Evaluation, and Analysis Branch. She manages a diverse team of engineers and scientists who are responsible for the entire test and evaluation (T&E) process for the AN/SQQ-89 Undersea Warfare Sonar System for surface warships. She is a longtime supporter of continuous process improvement and is working to improve the AN/SQQ-89 surface sonar development and production programs. In addition to her managerial responsibilities, Kaplan mentors and trains employees on test and evaluation and systems engineering principles and best practices. Her efforts in workforce development and technical contributions earned her this prestigious honor.

Giles began her career as a mechanical engineer at NUWC Newport in 2006 as an intern with one of the Navy's in-service engineering agents, then later transitioned to a full-time position within that group. Giles contributed to design improvements, developed engineering change proposals, provided logistics support, handled maintenance procedures and facility support, provided tactics development, completed operational procedure updates, trained personnel and developed training

products. She leads a team of more than 10 engineers across the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) warfare centers to design, develop, and safely integrate and certify the supporting equipment and the program's payload. She employs a thorough systems engineering approach to the development of the integrated components under her team's purview thereby ensuring excellence in technical rigor and safety of ship and divers in the fleet.

Aggarwal, Kaplan and Giles will be honored at the Women of Color STEM Conference award ceremony this fall in Detroit, Michigan. For more information on the conference, visit http://www.ccgmag.com/newwoc/home/aboutconference

NUWC Division Newport, part of NAVSEA, is one of two divisions of the Naval Undersea Warfare Center. NUWC Division Newport’s mission is to provide research, development, test and evaluation, engineering and fleet support for submarines, autonomous underwater systems, undersea offensive and defensive weapons systems, and countermeasures. NUWC’s other division is located in Keyport, Washington.

• Date Taken: 08.07.2018
• Date Posted: 08.07.2018 11:47
• Story ID: 287638
• Location: NEWPORT, RI, US
• Hometown: BRISTOL, RI, US
• Hometown: NORTH KINGSTOWN, RI, US