Dick Zimmer helped put men on the moon.

As a young systems technician, Zimmer worked for the Zia Company, a NASA contractor responsible for measuring testing parameters of the ascent-stage engine for the Apollo Lunar Excursion Module. With the landing and return of the Apollo 11 spacecraft, Zia's contractual obligations were met and Zimmer was in need of a new job, which he found with what was then known as the Texas Transportation Institute.

And he's worked there ever since.

Dick Zimmer has almost 50 years of transportation research experience with emphases on the development and use of research vehicle instrumentation and control systems. He has participated in electronic and mechanical system design, software development, and supervision of proving ground test system procedures, operations and technical personnel. Prior to joining the Texas A&M Transportation Institute, Mr. Zimmer designed and fabricated electronic instrumentation for the U.S. Air Force, the Uniroyal Tire Proving Ground and NASA's Lunar Landing Program.