LAFAYETTE — Kenya looms large for Naseem Munshi.
It’s where Munshi grew up, where she was urged by her mother to “dream big.”
It’s also where the name originated for a composite material developed by Munshi shortly after she founded her company, Composite Technology Development, 23 years ago.
“I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t dream,” Munshi said of the company where she is president, owner and chief chemist.
Called Tembo — the Swahili word for elephant — the polymer primarily developed by Munshi is an elastic memory composite.
Just as elephants never forget, the carbon fiber laminate material doesn’t forget its shape. Lightweight structures — such as antennas and solar arrays — can be folded into small packages for launch and then unfold to their original shape using a small amount of heat, but no motors or hinges.
The material, which has been tested aboard a space shuttle and an Air Force satellite, also is being developed for use in the oil business and medical markets and in industrial safety equipment. Munshi estimated that about a third of CTD’s business is aerospace.
CTD has expanded to 27,000 square feet of office, lab and manufacturing space. It generates more than $7 million in annual revenue with the potential for more and employs 40 — up from eight in 2002.
One of those who began work at CTD in 2002 was Dana Turse, the space deployables manager who Munshi says represents the next generation of women scientists and engineers.
“Perseverance,” Turse said of finding her way through educational and work challenges.
Her advice for other women: “If somebody tells you you can’t do something, don’t take that sitting down.”
Munshi, who is Indian, said she recalls being told as she grew up to not think about her station in life.
Her parents urged her “to go out and try,” Munshi said. “You may not get all the way to the top, but you will achieve something.”
