Surface Design Solutions Secures Funding to Preserve Shop-Floor Expertise with Smart Manufacturing Tools

Surface Design Solutions, a Pittsburgh-based startup specializing in physics-informed machine learning (PIML), has secured $365,000 in funding from the Richard King Mellon Foundation to accelerate the rollout of its Surface Builder platform. While the company’s roots lie in manufacturing software, its technology offers compelling applications for aerospace production environments grappling with skilled labor shortages and rising demands for precision.

Bridging the Gap Between Retiring Experts and New Technicians

The funding will support the development of intuitive software interfaces and training materials designed to capture and transfer critical surface engineering knowledge from veteran machinists to newer employees. With retirements accelerating across manufacturing sectors, including aerospace, Surface Builder aims to reduce onboarding time and preserve tribal knowledge that often disappears with workforce turnover.

Dr. Tevis Jacobs, co-founder and president of Surface Design Solutions, emphasized the urgency: “We’re not just building smarter tools, we’re helping ensure the knowledge of today’s experts becomes the foundation for tomorrow’s workforce.”

Why Surface Finish Is No Longer an Afterthought

In aerospace manufacturing, surface quality directly affects aerodynamic performance, fatigue life, and component reliability. Yet surface finish has historically been treated as a secondary concern, measured post-process, often destructively, and rarely optimized in real time. Surface Design Solutions challenges that paradigm by offering predictive insights into surface behavior using PIML, a technique that delivers actionable results even in small-data environments typical of high-mix, low-volume aerospace production.

This approach is especially relevant for aerospace tooling, where surface degradation can lead to increased scrap rates, unplanned downtime, and costly rework. One early adopter, a global high-volume manufacturer, reported a 35% boost in production efficiency after using the software to optimize tooling surfaces.

A Strategic Fit for Aerospace MRO and Advanced Manufacturing

While Surface Builder is currently focused on shop-floor deployment, its potential extends to aerospace MRO facilities and OEMs seeking to digitize tribal knowledge and improve process repeatability. The platform’s ability to deliver real-time feedback without destructive testing could streamline inspections, reduce variability, and support sustainability goals by extending tool life and minimizing waste.

Workforce Resilience Through Smart Tools

The Richard King Mellon Foundation’s investment, made through its Social-Impact Investment Program, reflects growing interest in technologies that blend profitability with workforce development. For aerospace manufacturers navigating demographic shifts and increasingly complex production demands, Surface Design Solutions offers a timely solution: a digital bridge between experience and innovation.

As the aerospace sector continues to modernize, tools like Surface Builder may become essential not just for quality control, but for preserving the human expertise that underpins high-performance manufacturing.