Daniela Leitner, deputy for science at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory’s engineering division, has been named director of the engineering division and Berkeley Lab’s chief engineer, effective Oct. 1.
The national lab said Friday Leitner will report to Berkeley Lab Director Mike Witherell and will coordinate and advance safety, diversity and recruitment initiatives and facilitate strategies to build new tools to support the lab’s engineering community and research partners.
“The success of all of our big science projects relies on excellent engineering, and I count on the Chief Engineer to help us maintain that level of excellence across the Lab. Daniela has the perfect experience and expertise for this job, and I am looking forward to working with her in this new role,” said Witherell.
In 1996, Leitner joined Berkeley Lab as a postdoctoral fellow in the Accelerator and Fusion Research division.
Her career at the Department of Energy-backed national lab has included research and operations positions supporting major projects, including DESI, LCLS-II, the 88-Inch Cyclotron, GRETA and the ALS Upgrade.
She spent five years at Michigan State University, where she oversaw the installation and commissioning of the superconducting post-accelerator linac ReA and its experimental hall as part of the Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, or FRIB, project.
In 2015, Leitner returned to Berkeley Lab to form and oversee a cross-functional group focused on systems engineering processes, project management and quality assurance.
