Obituary: Alan Guisewite Was a Robotics Institute Factotum

But between his technical capabilities, institutional memory and seemingly comprehensive knowledge of building materials, Alan Guisewite was a veritable Swiss Army knife in the Robotics Institute for 40 years. “You couldn’t write a job description for what Alan did,” said Mel Siegel, an emeritus professor in RI who worked with Guisewite for more than 20 years. “He was a factotum for the Robotics Institute. He helped build Ralph Hollis’ Microdynamic Systems Lab, worked for Cameron Riviere’s Medical Instrumentation Lab and assisted Lee Weiss on multiple projects. In honor of Guisewite and his 50 years of service to the university, CMU created the Alan Guisewite Fellowship, which will financially assist graduate students in the Robotics Institute.