Melanie Kukura

I love challenges that require both curiosity and resourcefulness. Whether that be patching together a robot end-effector with whatever happens to be in the nearby tool cabinet, or building northeast-Ohio’s coolest bunk-bed fort as a kid, “making it work” is a proud motto of mine. As a kid, this meant I was the “remote” person in the family, always in charge of figuring out why the tv was not doing what we wanted it to do. As an adult, this led me down the path to a Mechanical Engineering degree from Case Western Reserve University.

After moving to Michigan to start my career as a full-fledged engineer, I discovered a whole new world of obstacles in need of creative solutions. As an application engineer, I got to work hands on with industrial robots, helping them visualize their environment in order to assist the people working alongside them. This was also my first taste of the software development process, and I found myself endlessly curious to learn more. Armed with a deeper understanding of the innovative ways software can help people be both more productive and more creative, I decided to pursue a Masters in Robotics Engineering at UM Dearborn in the Fall of 2024. Since starting the program, I’ve discovered how naturally my mechanical background and software development can work together. It has also reinforced how much I enjoy using software to tackle real-world problems, something I’m excited to continue doing for Atomic’s clients.

In my free time, I enjoy playing on my adult rec soccer team, camping with people I love, and snuggling my cable-chewing cat Mackle.