Jay Rushforth

Center for Coastal & Ocean Mapping/Joint Hydrographic Center
Jere A. Chase Ocean Engineering Lab
24 Colovos Road
Durham, New Hampshire 03824

Jay Rushforth is CCOM’s Project Manager. From EE to project manager, product designer to business development strategist, Jay Rushforth has over 20 years’ experience and demonstrated success in the field of technical engineering and product development in both the industrial commercial sector and world of academia. Throughout his career, Jay has worked on a variety of complex engineering projects, demonstrating a keen ability to manage both technical and business aspects. His skills in project management and business development have enabled him to lead cross-functional teams and drive successful project outcomes. Most recently, Jay managed a $30M NASA funded space science program at UNH to build a flight instrument, called “IMAP-Lo”, which delivers energy and position measurements of low-energy Interstellar Neutral (ISN) atoms tracked through the local interstellar medium.

During his tenure at MIT, Jay initiated several extensive cost-saving facility programs, and commissioned construction projects exceeding $300M, such as MIT’s state-of-the-art nano material clean laboratory “Nano” building.  Prior to that, Jay dedicated almost 10 years to SBIR-funded research and product development for Physical Sciences Inc., bringing two technology products to market, and contributing to various research areas spanning industrial process control, optical sensing, atmospheric sciences, and oceanographic modeling. He earned a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the University of New Hampshire (2000) and a master’s degree in Engineering Management from Northeastern University. Jay is passionate about technology and enjoys finding innovative solutions to engineering challenges, providing a multi-disciplined approach to achieving great results. When he's not working, he enjoys spending time with his kids on the water surfing and fishing, or in the mountains hiking and skiing.