Dr. Dhiren Panda is the Head (EVP) – R&D for Steel and Coated products at JSW Steel. In his current role, Dr. Panda is responsible for group R&D activities of the JSW Steel organization and is based out of Vijayangar, Karnataka.

Dr. Panda is a Metallurgical Engineering graduate of NIT Rourkela and has completed his M.S. and Ph.D. in Metallurgical Engineering from the University of Missouri-Rolla (Missouri University of Science and Technology). During his professional experience of over 25 years, Dr. Panda has worked in steel, oil and gas, and automotive industries, in areas of R&D, process engineering, product development, quality management, technology licensing, applications engineering and commercialization of new processes and products. His expertise lies in ironmaking, steelmaking, casting, rolling, coating, process and product metallurgy, with emphasis on developing new technologies and products for downstream applications. He has been an active participant and member of several industry organizations like ASTM, AWS, AISC, API and ABS, where he has been involved in the development and use of standards pertaining to steel. Prior to joining JSW Steel, Dr. Panda had stints with Tata Engineering, LTV Steel, Nucor Steel and TMK IPSCO.

Growing up in a steel town, I have always been fascinated by the scale of operations of a steel plant. As I have worked in the industry over the years, my fondness for the industry has grown because of the constant evolution and changes that are the hallmarks of steel making. I have also grown to appreciate the impact steel making has on the economy and society at large. It is impossible to build an advanced economy for a large country like India without having commensurate steel making capabilities. From infrastructure to mobility, steel plays a crucial role in providing the necessary building blocks and touches almost every aspect of modern life. With increased automation and digitalization, the steel industry stays competitive by deploying some of the latest cutting edge technologies. This makes it an industry that provides ample opportunities for the future generations to have a successful and rewarding career.

The technical academy is an innovative platform to provide insight into the different facets of steel making as well as the ability to continue developing and honing one’s own skills. The platform provides an opportunity to showcase some of the latest technologies that are prevalent in the steel industry as well as newer emerging ones. Being a Dean, the technical academy will provide me with an opportunity to participate in a very important endeavour to provide and disseminate information and participate in the discussions with the steelmaking community in general and fellow JSW teammates in particular.