Meet the Team: Durairaj (Raj) Shyam
Meet Raj Shyam, aeronautical engineer and master of the skies. We asked Raj to give us the skinny on who he is, what he does, and how he’s spread his wings at MicroTau.
Image: Raj is a huge fan of turbines.
Who are you and what do you do?
I'm Durairaj, but you can call me Raj - and I like planes! Here at MicroTau I am an aeronautical engineer and more specifically, I work in the product engineering team to design, optimise and simulate the performance of our drag-reducing microstructures for any given application.
Tell us about your journey at MicroTau. What was your first role, and how did you get to where you are today?
My journey actually began in 2021 when I was in my penultimate year of my Aeronautical Engineering degree at The University of Sydney and was invited over for a tour of the MT office and manufacturing space by our now Head of Partnerships, Dylan McGrath. At the time, I knew absolutely nothing about riblets or what MicroTau even did. But when the opportunity for an internship opened up a year later I knew I had to give it a go after seeing how cool this tech was first-hand. I joined as an intern in my final semester of university and following graduation it was a bit of a no-brainer for me to stay and continue in a graduate role, having enjoyed the internship so much. I feel I developed a lot in this period right after university where I adjusted to working in a "real" engineering job for the first time.
Now in my current role as a product engineer for all our microstructures, I have responsibility in ensuring that the riblets we manufacture are not only the right ones for the customer but also do not have any adverse impact on safety or overall handling characteristics of the aircraft. I enjoy the challenge and the excitement that comes with providing solutions for different aircraft that I have grown up admiring - now I have the opportunity to improve them and reduce emissions at the same time... talk about a win-win!
Image: Raj looking fly.
What do you do in your spare time?
When I am not nerding out on planes, I am probably busy topping the official MicroTau Formula 1 Fantasy League or riding my motorcycle to interesting locations in NSW. I also enjoy skateboarding around parks but please don't ask me to do an ollie. Futsal and cricket are my go-to sports and I try to catch the MotoGP and F1 races on the weekends if they are not on at ungodly hours :/
What’s been most exciting to work on lately?
The most exciting thing I've been working on is actually super top secret but stay tuned to our socials because you will definitely hear about it... Nevertheless, the next most exciting thing has definitely got to be the iterative development of our own bespoke riblet modelling and optimisation capabilities from the ground-up. I have had the privilege to work with, and get advice from experts at Lockheed Martin, University of Melbourne and even from Formula 1 teams and it is super inspiring to learn from such characters with great expertise.
Image: Raj in front of the wind tunnel where riblets were tested by NASA for the very first time.
Tell us about the cool stuff you get to do as part of your role.
It's actually insane how many utterly unexpected and truly amazing opportunities I've gotten as part of my role. I've been fortunate enough to take riblets I've designed to NASA Langley Research Centre (where riblets were invented) and hold it side-by-side with the first ever panel of riblets from the 70's. It is also an incredible feeling when something born out of your little notebook and computer screen somehow manages to find its way onto a Boom Supersonic aircraft, breaking the speed of sound during multiple flight tests. To be able to contribute in some manner to such ground-breaking advancements in the world of science and engineering is not something I would have ever imagined, even a few years ago.
What’s your crowning achievement at MicroTau?
Definitely seeing the riblets that I had designed on a USAF aircraft - glimmering in its lustrous rainbow sheen, sitting majestically on the tarmac - it was truly a sight to behold. The C-130J is an aircraft with so much lore: From being the largest aircraft to have completed an aircraft-carrier landing, to having rocket-assisted take-off (RATO) capabilities... And now, in some small way, I feel proud to have worked on making it a little bit better than it once was.
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