Southern Indiana Business Report
CRANE – Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane Division Command Chief Engineer Lori Zipes received the Achievement Award from the Society of Women Engineers for her significant and progressive technical contributions throughout her Navy civilian career. The Achievement Award is part of SWE’s Apex Award category, which represents SWE’s highest level of awards recognizing individuals with at least 20 years of experience. The award was announced in August and recipients were recognized at the SWE WE24 conference in Chicago, Illinois, on Oct. 24-26.
Zipes has over 30 years of engineering and leadership experience with the U.S. Navy. She was recognized by SWE for the “highest-level technical contributions to the U.S. Navy; for vast knowledge of systems engineering; and for demonstrating the clarity and rigor that national security demands.”
“I am so honored and proud to receive this award,” said Zipes. “I have had some truly amazing opportunities working in the Warfare Centers throughout my career. I feel fortunate to work with so many other smart and dedicated individuals who are committed to supporting our warfighters with the best possible technologies and capabilities.”
Zipes said receiving the award at the annual SWE conference was a distinct honor.
“Walking among some 18,000 women engineers, most just starting their careers, significantly increased the gravity of this award for me,” she said. “To feel their energy and excitement and think about how the engineering environment looks for their futures, was very moving.”
Well-renowned RDML Grace Hopper received the same award from SWE in 1964. She was a computer programmer during World War II and has been credited by the U.S. Navy as a “computer science pioneer”. She made significant contributions to the Navy’s computing infrastructure and retired in 1986 at 79.
Zipes cites RDML Hopper as a source of inspiration to continue technological advancement.
“That really shook me,” said Zipes. “But I also know that she spent another 20-plus years dedicating herself to the Navy, so I guess I have a lot of work still to do!”
Zipes is the first woman from the 10 Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) Warfare Centers to serve as a Command Chief Engineer. In this role, she ensures the quality and rigor of technical work execution, leads a career competency program, and guides NSWC Crane as it transitions to a fully digital engineering organization. Zipes recently served in a rotation as acting Chief Engineer at Headquarters, NAVSEA Surface and Undersea Warfare Centers, overseeing the technical execution of more than 150 acquisition programs and over 27,000 military and civilian scientists, engineers, and support employees.
Zipes started her career at NSWC Panama City Division (PCD) in 1991. In her 28 years there, she rotated through all the major technical departments and went from engineering roles to engineering leadership and project management roles. In 2018, Zipes served as the Chief Engineer for the Science and Technology Department at NSWC PCD where she focused on applying technical rigor while preserving innovative culture in a research environment. Zipes transferred to NSWC Crane in 2019 to serve as the Chief Engineer for Cybersecurity in the Expeditionary Electromagnetic Warfare Division and in 2021, she was selected for her current role as Crane’s Command Chief Engineer.
Zipes earned both a bachelor’s and master’s degree in ocean engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and she also holds a master’s degree in systems engineering with distinction from the Naval Postgraduate School. Zipes is an active member in the International Council on Systems Engineering (INCOSE) and is a co-author of the Systems Engineering Competency Assessment Guide published by Wiley. Zipes received the first Certified Systems Engineering Professional (CSEP) designation in the U.S. Navy in 2008. She has also earned the INCOSE Expert Systems Engineering Professional (ESEP) designation.
Zipes hosts NSWC Crane’s podcast series Chief Engineers (CHENG) Chat, where she interviews NSWC Crane Chief Engineers throughout the organization.
About NSWC Crane | NSWC Crane is a naval laboratory and a field activity of Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) with mission areas in Expeditionary Warfare, Strategic Missions and Electromagnetic Warfare. The warfare center is responsible for multi-domain, multi- spectral, full life cycle support of technologies and systems enhancing capability to today’s Warfighter.