Silicon Valley Engineering
Hall of Fame for 2000

Fredrick J. Moody, a pioneer and internationally recognized, received his BS in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Colorado in 1958. Also in 1958 he began working at the General Electric (GE) Nuclear Energy Division in San Jose, California. He went on to earn both his MS (1966) and PhD (1971) in Mechanical Engineering from Stanford University.

His achievements over the years have been acknowledged with reciept of the following awards: ASME Alfred Nobel Award for Outstanding Paper in 1966 at Standord University; General Electric Power Sector Award for Contributions to the State-of-the-Art for Two-Phase Flow and Reactor Accident Analysis, 1980; George Westinghouse Gold Medal Award, 19080; Elected Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), 1981; ASME Pressure Vessels and Piping Award, 1999; and listing in “Who’s Who in the West,” Marques, Inc. In addition, has has published three books and more than 50 papers.

Dr. Moody was an Adjunct Professor of Mechanical Engineering at San Jose State University (SJSU) since 1972. A very effective and well-respected teacher, his mastery of the subject was readily apparent and the clarity of his presentation phenomenal. In 1981 he also provided invaluable guidance in proposing and formulating thesis assignments for GE employees. Dr. Moody has been mentor and role model to his students at SJSU, GE and, throughout the nuclear power industry.

After 41 years of distinguished service at GE and 28 years at SJSU, Dr. Fred Moody retired in July 1999, yet he continues to publish and lecture in the nuclear energy field. He and his wife Phyllis now reside in the Gold Rush Area in Murphys, California.

Dr. Koichi (Ko) Nishimura
Chairman of the Board, President and Chief Executive Officer of Solectron Corporation

Ko Nishimura joined Solectron in 1988 as chief operating officer and became president in 1990. In 1992, he was appointed chief executive officer and was subsequently elected chairman of the board in 1996. During his tenure, Nishimura has grown Solectron from a regional entity into the world’s largest and most profitable electronics manufacturing services (EMS) company. Under his watch, Solectron received the prestigious Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award twice - in 1997 and 1991 - after infusing the rigorous certification criteria into the company’s corporate culture and strategy.

Before coming to Solectron, Nishimura worked at IBM Corporation for 23 years, where he held a number of senior management positions in the company’s disk file design, technology and manufacturing divisions.

Dr. Nishimura serves on the boards of Merix Corporation, the Center for Quality Management and the Santa Fe Institute. He also serves on the Baan Company supervisory board, the advisory board of Santa Clara University’s Leavey School of Business, the board of the Santa Clara Valley Manufacturing Group and is vice president of the Malcolm Baldrige Foundation. He is a former board member of the Tech Museum of Innovation in San Jose, California.

In addition, Nishimura is known within the Japanese-American community for his support of the Japanese Western U.S. Association and the Yu-Ai Kai Senior Community Center in San Jose.

Dr. Nishimura holds a doctorate in material science and engineering from Stanford University, and master’s and bachelor’s degrees in electrical engineering from San Jose State University. He is a senior member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers and the Society of Manufacturing Engineers.