Join Us in September for Our Monthly Tech Talk via Zoom

Wednesday, September 17, 2025 6:00pm – 7:30pm (PST)

Join via Zoom Meeting

https://us06web.zoom.us/j/83684703447?pwd=nGUDSE566SpWK6d0gBy6xl9jaEn627.1

Meeting ID: 836 8470 3447

Passcode: 246829

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Talk Title:  Making it Work vs. Making it Scale:  A Quality Journey in Hardware Startups

Abstract:
Startups are designed to move fast – prototypes, iterate, and get to market quickly.  In this environment, quality is often defined as “making it work.”  But as a hardware startup grows, that definition is no longer enough.  Scaling requires building processes, systems, and a culture that ensures consistent, reliable, and sustainable quality across teams and products.
This talk will share the journey of building quality function inside a growing hardware startup:  the challenge of balance speed with rigor, the critical transition from reactive fixes to proactive systems, and the strategies that helped quality evolve from an afterthought to a core enabler of growth.  Through real examples and lessons learned, we’ll explore how startups can embed quality without losing agility, and how quality professionals can act as change agents during this shift.

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Speaker:

Dr. Chockkalingam “Chock” Karuppaiah 

Dr. Chock brings more than 27 years of product commercialization experience in the energy and technology sectors.  Dr. Chock is the Founder of Vetri Labs and Chief Science and Technology Officer at Ohmium International.  Prior to this, he was the Vice President of Stack Engineering at Bloom Energy, Professor at Case Western Reserve University, and Fundamentals Team Manager at Plug Power.  During his tenure, he led the product design, process development, and manufacturing scale-up of ten product generations, across polymer electrolyte fuel cells, solid oxide fuel cells, and flow batteries, lithium ion batteries and eletrolyzers.

Part of his professional experience includes being Director of Process and Quality at Bloom Energy, Director of Quality Engineering at Deeyya Energy and Interim Head of Quality at Enovix.  He has 45 US patents issued in the area of electrochemical technology and devices.  Chock holds a B.Tech in Electrochemical Engineering from Central Electrochemical Research Institute and a Ph.D in Electrochemistry and Fuel Cells from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

Message From the Section Chair

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dear ASQ Silicon Valley Quality Professionals,

Welcome to 2025—a year of groundbreaking advancements in quantum computing, yet also a stark reminder of climate change’s impact. Experiencing freezing temperatures in Florida during my recent visit to the University of Florida and witnessing ongoing wildfires in California underscores the urgency of sustainable solutions.

ASQ Silicon Valley remains committed to supporting emerging technologies and cleantech for a sustainable future. I want to recognize each of you for your contributions to our section’s success. 2024 was marked by two major initiatives—the Inaugural Cleantech Conference and the Fireside Leadership Summit. For 2025, I’m pleased to announce our leadership updates: Congratulations to Aruna Ghildiyal, our new Program Chair, and welcome to Alan Wang and Dr. Pegah Mottaghizadeh as new core committee members. Vern Saini will continue as Operations Chair.

Looking ahead, we will elevate our annual Cleantech Conference and Fireside Summit while continuing our flagship Technical Speaker Series (Tech Talk), which attracts 60+ attendees per session. With over 2,000 ASQ members and 5,000+ quality professionals in the Bay Area, we provide a vibrant platform for networking and professional growth in emerging technologies. Let’s push boundaries, share knowledge, and foster leadership development to drive innovation and quality excellence in 2025.

Thank you, and I look forward to another impactful year together.

Sincerely,

Dr. Sunil Roy, ASQ-SV Chair

Senior Director, Head of Quality Eng

QuantumScape Battery