HANOVER, N.H. (June 29, 2017) David Finnegan was recently named director, Remote Sensing/Geographic Information Systems Center of Expertise at the Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory in Hanover, New Hampshire.
CRREL is a component of the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center, headquartered in Vicksburg, Mississippi.
In 2001, Finnegan began his career at CRREL as a contract scientist and was hired as a federal employee in 2006 as a research physical scientist. During this time, he developed extensive knowledge and expertise as the technical lead for development in the field of 3-D Light Detection and Ranging, particularly for research and development on the collection, processing and distribution of precision enriched terrain information for civil, military and intelligence applications.
“He created a significant and ongoing program based on outstanding leadership and initiative,” said Timothy Pangburn, outgoing director of RS/GIS CX.
Finnegan leads a joint team with the National Geospatial – Intelligence Agency and ERDC on the development and sustainment of the Geospatial Repository and Data Management System, also known as GRiD. He has served as chief of the RS/GIS CX’s LiDAR and Wetlands Group since May 2014.
“Throughout his career, Finnegan has taken research to the next level and products developed under these programs have directly benefited the Warfighter, intelligence communities and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers civil business areas,” said Pangburn.
Finnegan earned a bachelor’s in environmental physical science from Black Hills State University and a master’s in geology from Indiana State University. He is the author of numerous technical reports and peer-reviewed publications.