Robert “Bobby” Besuner, the Engineering Division’s Manufacturing Engineering Department Head, will retire from Berkeley Lab in December. From the Supernova Acceleration Project (SNAP) to gathering light from the far reaches of the universe with the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI), Besuner’s career has focused on helping advance knowledge of the universe through physics and cosmology instrumentation projects.
“In the Engineering Division, we are particularly good about engagement and creating symbiotic and very productive relationships with physicists and other scientists here at the Lab,” Besuner says. “Many of the scientists and engineers know how to best leverage the talents of their counterparts, and it’s a great feeling to be involved in that. As engineers, we help enable science, and it’s very much a team effort.”
Besuner first came to Berkeley Lab in 2001 to work on SNAP, a joint UC Berkeley and Berkeley Lab project. SNAP evolved into the Joint Dark Energy Mission (JDEM). JDEM led to the Big Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey (BigBOSS), which eventually developed into DESI. Besuner played important engineering roles in each project, culminating in serving as the systems engineer and then project manager for DESI.
“The nice thing about the size of many of the projects here at Berkeley Lab is that it’s possible for a junior-level engineer to go through the life cycle—through the concept, the design, the review, the building and assembling,” Besuner comments. “I did have that opportunity to go through the initial conception and design, to go through the whole life cycle and actually build and install these instruments. So that’s quite rewarding.”
Besuner in an official leadership portrait taken for the Engineering Division at Berkeley Lab. (Credit: Robinson Kuntz, Berkeley Lab)
Reflecting on his career at the Lab, Besuner says the highlight is the completion and commissioning of DESI.
“It’s incredibly gratifying and rewarding,” Besuner says. “The press releases and the science results that come out about DESI really make me quite proud of what we accomplished together. I hope that the next generation of engineers and scientists and the next generation of fiber-fed spectrographs does even more.”
In 2025, Besuner became head of the Manufacturing Engineering Department, overseeing the fabrication and technical production capabilities of the Division, including the B77 shops. Prior to this, he was the Deputy Head of the Mechanical Engineering Department. His work at the Lab has included systems engineering, engineering leadership, and project management roles. Besuner is a graduate of the DOE Project Leadership Institute program. He received his M.S. in mechanical engineering from the University of California, Berkeley.
Besuner came to the field of engineering through an aptitude for math and science, a love of machines, and a fascination with tinkering.
“When offered opportunities, it’s good to take them, even if you’re uncertain,” Besuner advises. “And here at the lab, you’ll get support and mentoring when you need it. It’s served me very well—even when I felt uncertain—to accept offers and opportunities.”
