History
AEROLAB was founded in 1947 by Professor A. Wiley Sherwood. At the time, Professor Sherwood was teaching Aerodynamics in the Mechanical Engineering Department at The University of Maryland, College Park. Motivation to start AEROLAB came from the need for high-quality, affordable classroom educational tools. His first major effort was the AEROLAB Educational Wind Tunnel (EWT). Although the EWT has evolved from Professor Sherwood’s original design, it is still AEROLAB’s flagship product.
AEROLAB’s first sale was an EWT to the Academy of Aeronautics (currently known as Vaughn College of Aeronautics and Technology) in New York. This first sale occurred in 1947.
In the mid and late 1940s, Professor Sherwood worked closely with the Martin Company during the design phase of the Glenn L. Martin Wind Tunnel (http://windvane.umd.edu/). The tunnel opened in 1949 on the College Park campus and Professor Sherwood was named the first Director. Although he ended his Directorship in 1951, he continued to be very heavily involved with tunnel operations for many years to come.
Also in 1949, the University formed the Aeronautical Engineering Department and terminated the Aeronautical Sciences Option of the Mechanical Engineering Department. Professor Sherwood was chosen as the first Chairman where he served until 1969. Professor Sherwood concentrated his efforts on developing a high-quality undergraduate curriculum. He brought real-world engineering to the classroom by inviting local military and civilian engineers and researchers to teach and lecture at the University.
Although Professor Sherwood had many responsibilities at the University, he continued to build AEROLAB. Being a wise businessman as well as being technically brilliant, he hired capable help to develop the product line.
In 1960, Professor Sherwood hired Hans Ostendorp, a young, energetic draftsman/machinist/designer. Mr. Ostendorp continues to design and fabricate AEROLAB mechanical systems such as model positioning systems and traverse systems. On September 21, 2008, Hans celebrated his 48 th anniversary at AEROLAB. Congratulations to Hans!
Dr. Chao-Mei Chen worked at AEROLAB from 1963 until the time of his death in 1992. Like Professor Sherwood, Dr. Chen was an educator. For many years, he taught part-time at The Catholic University in Washington, D.C. When his AEROLAB duties became too great, Dr. Chen retired from teaching and focused, full-time, on wind tunnel and wind-tunnel instrumentation design. Many current designs are direct descendants of his work.
In addition to his responsibilities at the Wind Tunnel and the University, Professor Sherwood and his wife Helene (PhD of Zoology) raised two children.
Throughout AEROLAB’s long history, Dr. (Helene) Sherwood has taken on many key roles in the business. These include owner, general manager, accountant and coordinator. At the age of 87, she still participates in most aspects of the business on a daily basis.
In 1997, Professor Sherwood passed away as a result of cancer. His dreams and his business, however, live on. Today, his widow Helene and grandson Daniel co-own AEROLAB.
In 2004, Dr. Sherwood passed management duties to Daniel Rodgerson. A graduate of University of Maryland at College Park, Mr. Rodgerson’s management skills and vision inspire AEROLAB’s continuing commitment to Professor Sherwood’s original ideal of cutting-edge, high-quality educational (research) tools at affordable prices.
Mr. Rodgerson’s first duty as Manager was to hire a replacement electronics designer. Fortunately for AEROLAB, Richard Vanbuskirk responded to the employment ad. Mr. Vanbuskirk studied engineering at Louisiana State University. Afterward, he enlisted in the United States Navy and entered Electronics school. Mr. Vanbuskirk became an Electronics Technician First Class with a specialty in communications. Following his enlistment, Mr. Vanbuskirk continued to work with the Navy through independent contractors for many years. His vast experience and expertise give him a unique ability to design AEROLAB’s Data Acquisition and Control Systems.
In 2007, Mr. Rodgerson wisely hired Andy N. Ferguson to act as Chief Aerospace Engineer. Prior to his move to Maryland, Mr. Ferguson was a Program Manager for the Air Force Jet Engine testing modernization program . With wind tunnel testing and teaching experience at the University of Oklahoma, Andy holds both B.S. and M.S. degrees in Aerospace Engineering.
Under the management of Mr. Rodgerson, AEROLAB continues to evolve. Recently, a small number of highly-skilled machinists and fabricators were hired. All with a commitment to quality and a passion for wind tunnels, Team AEROLAB is ready and capable of designing, fabricating, finishing, calibrating and installing your next test/research system.