2016 Engineering Leader Under 40: Yogesh Prasad Balajee, 28

Senior Controls Engineer, Puratos, Cherry Hill, N.J.

By Erin Dunne, CFE Media September 15, 2016

Yogesh Prasad Balajee, 28
Senior Controls Engineer; Puratos, Cherry Hill, N.J.
MS Electrical Engineering, Drexel University

Balajee is the lead automation engineer for the east coast division of Puratos. From 2012 to 2015, he was the U.S. lead automation engineer for a $55M expansion project for Puratos titled, "Apollo," involving Automation, MES, OEE, and historian. Currently, Balajee is working on multiple projects ranging from PLC migration, OEE implementation, and new control system design and implementation. The Siemens industry has recognized Balajee’s work in automation and has invited him to talk at the 2016 Automation Summit on "Meeting Safety, Quality, and Sustainability goals with SIMATIC Automation." In June 2016, he travelled to Africa for a week where he supported the locals with troubleshooting equipment for a rural hospital and also worked with some organizations to provide HIV and AIDs awareness training for the African community. Balajee has also been a technical reviewer/key contributor for an industry-oriented book for young automation engineers titled, Learning RSLogix 5000 Programming, published in August 2015. Outside of work, Balajee aims to travel to all seven continents. He enjoys being involved in a variety of recreational activities including directing stage plays, making short films, photography, and playing musical instruments.