Gavrilenko, Aleksandr

Born Mar. 1 (13), 1861, in Aleksandrovsk, now Zaporozh’e; died May 10 (23), 1914, in Moscow. Russian mechanical engineer who contributed to the development of higher technical education in Russia.

Gavrilenko graduated from the Moscow Technical School in 1882. He began teaching there in 1888, becoming a professor in 1895. In 1905 he became the director of the Moscow Higher Technical School. Gavrilenko did a great deal to base higher technical education on experimental investigations. He organized a laboratory for testing materials and machines and singled out a course in the technology of metals for development as an independent discipline. His published lectures on the technology of metals (1897) and steam boilers (1900) played an important role in training Russian mechanical engineers.