Material connections: Jeff DiMaio builds businesses and gives back to Clemson University

Material connections: Jeff DiMaio builds businesses and gives back to Clemson University College of Engineering, Computing and Applied Sciences Taking Jeff DiMaio away from Clemson University would be like removing the stripes from a tiger– it just doesn’t happen. For nearly 30 years, Clemson has been woven through his professional and personal life, first as an undergraduate, then a Ph.D. student, then a faculty member and now as a parent of three undergraduates and business owner who gives back to his alma mater. “Clemson set me on a path that has been wonderful, and I’m grateful for it,” DiMaio said. “It doesn’t take a lot of effort to make a big difference in other people’s lives. Serving on an advisory board is a small thing, but Clemson has a way of amplifying your effort.” It’s true that DiMaio helps guide the Department of Materials Science and Engineering as a member of its External Advisory Board. But he has done so much more, from talking to Clemson students about entrepreneurship to hiring students and graduates as interns, part-time employees and full-time staff.  DiMaio serves as CEO of VBASE Oil and co-owner of Tetramer Technologies, an advanced-materials startup that grew out of Clemson research. The two companies are housed in the same Pendleton building about 10 minutes from the main campus and together employ 27 people, including a ClemsonLIFE graduate. Jeff and Michelle DiMaio said Clemson University has been a key ingredient in the success of their businesses. They are pictured with Zach Hunt, who holds a Master of Science from Clemson in materials science and engineering and now works with VBASE Oil. Few alumni have maintained such strong ties to the Clemson Family. DiMaio is married to 2001 Clemson graduate Michelle DiMaio,  who serves as CEO of Tetramer Technologies. Three of their children– Clark, Paul and Colleen– are Clemson undergraduates, while two others– Nate and Thad– are freshmen at D.W. Daniel High School. Jeff and Michelle DiMaio have worked together for years to build VBASE Oil Company and Tetramer– and they said their alma mater has been a key ingredient in their success. “Clemson has given us a great network over time,” Michelle DiMaio said. “It is where we find much of our talent, and we benefit from strong relationships with a number of departments across campus.” Jeff DiMaio came to Clemson from Aynor in 1997. As an undergraduate, he met John Ballato, then an early-career faculty member who helped him get started in research. DiMaio shared a lab with Kyle Brinkman, then a master’s student and now chair of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering. Jeff DiMaio has stayed closely connected to Clemson materials science and engineering and said he likes what he sees. DiMaio received his Bachelor of Science in materials science and engineering in 2001, went to North Carolina State for a year and returned to Clemson for his Ph.D. as a National Science Foundation Fellow, with Ballato as his advisor. Ballato, now the J.E. Sirrine Endowed Chair of Optical Fiber, said he has watched DiMaio grow from an undergraduate researcher into a business leader while maintaining a strong Clemson connection and creating opportunities for those who followed him. “Jeff has built a remarkable career without ever losing his connection to Clemson,” Ballato said. “He took the opportunities he found here and built on them, and he has spent years creating those same kinds of opportunities for students and graduates who came after him.” After earning his Ph.D. in 2004, DiMaio stayed at Clemson as a research professor for two years and then joined Tetramer Technologies full time. Tetramer develops advanced materials and moves them from the laboratory into the marketplace. At Tetramer, DiMaio progressed from laboratory research into project management and company leadership. He has worked on technologies ranging from fuel cells and radiation detection to fiber lasers and industrial lubricants. One of those technologies led Tetramer to spin out VBASE Oil as a separate company focused on global commercialization of synthetic base oils. VBASE Oil produces a new type of high-performance base oils for industrial lubricants using chemistry developed at Tetramer.  As his career has grown, DiMaio has stayed closely connected to Clemson materials science and engineering, and he likes what he sees. The department, he said, is in the strongest position it has ever been– with top-quality faculty and research and the new Advanced Materials Innovation Complex bringing together multiple disciplines and a world-class imaging center. “I see the level of thought and strategy Kyle and the faculty are putting into making sure Clemson gives a quality materials education to every student who needs one, not just MSE majors,” DiMaio said. “Clemson is going to be a force to reckon with in materials.”