New Wood Tech and Engineering teacher Dr. Bruno Nosiglia has a wealth of experience and a passion for innovation with the drive to inspire the next generation of engineers.
Nosiglia majored in electrical engineering at Northeastern University. After earning doctorates in engineering and mathematics, Nosiglia kicked off his 27-year engineering career and started four of his own companies, learning from each experience.
“They say that when you start a company, you [go through] three or four companies before you finally get successful,” Nosiglia said. “[It’s] not just the odds; the reason is you actually pay attention more, you know more, and when an opportunity pops up, you recognize that opportunity better.”
The final, most successful company, Protocol Technologies, invented a circuit box called a Lodging Link that allows a hotel’s systems to communicate with each other. Today, around 85% of hotels worldwide utilize the product.
Nosiglia feels that engineering has changed a lot since he started in the field, especially the process that goes into designing circuits like the ones he worked with.
“It used to be that you had to do an electronic diagram, send it to a shop, and they would ‘spin the board,’ make the electronic board, and it used to be $1000,” Nosiglia said. “Now, you can do that at home on your own computer.”
Nosiglia started teaching applied arts 21 years ago, as it was the only job that would allow him to get home when his two kids got home from school. In the classroom, Nosiglia’s creative teaching style gets students interested in learning more than just the rules. Nosiglia says that employers pay for skill, not for knowledge.
“What makes a really good engineer?” Nosiglia said. “Talented, abstract thinkers with imagination, not just good at math. I think imagination’s the most important thing for everything.”
Outside of the workplace, Nosiglia enjoys everything from hiking and camping to riding bikes and racing cars. He also has what he describes as a “god-given” artistic talent, and he once worked on a portrait for 16 hours straight. Nosiglia says that his drawing ability helps him with engineering as well.
“To be able to visualize a problem and put it down on a whiteboard so someone else can see it is a big need,” Nosiglia said.
Applied Arts and Technology department head George Clarke has high praise for Nosiglia.
“One thing I’ve noticed about him is that he’s a real team player,” Clarke said. “I took over [former Applied Arts department head Patricia Riley’s] role as department chair, and Dr. Nosiglia took over a couple of my classes on short notice, which was great.”
Clarke has enjoyed working with Nosiglia thus far and believes Nosiglia is a valuable person to have working at Algonquin.
“He’s a good human and a good professional,” Clarke said. “He has a pretty broad range of skills and a lot of knowledge about a lot of different things.”
