Advice For Young Engineers: Learn From Failure, Not Just From Success

When it comes to offering lessons on navigating a fulfilling career in engineering, Mario Gaia has no shortage of rich material to draw on. He’sworked for more than a half century in energy, as an engineer, innovator, entrepreneur and businessman. Gaia, the founder and honorary chairman of MHI Group company Turboden, started out on the research team of Professor Gianfranco Angelino at Politecnico di Milano, investigating Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) thermodynamics and design. ORC systems generate electric and thermal power from multiple sources, including renewables, traditional fuels and waste heat from industrial processes, waste incinerators, engines or gas turbines, making them an important and versatile technology in decarbonization.