Karnika is a Senior Materials Expert and Lead Technologist within the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Auckland, New Zealand, where she contributes to the NZ Product Accelerator. With over 35 years of expertise in polymers encompassing rubber, plastics, composites, and coatings, Karnika is deeply engaged in various industry-funded projects across multidisciplinary technology platforms. She focuses on environmentally friendly materials sourced from renewable resources within sustainable manufacturing. Karnika is pivotal in mentoring and supervising undergraduate and postgraduate students involved in industry-funded initiatives.
Having obtained her PhD from the University of Aston, Birmingham, UK, Karnika boasts a rich background in both industry and academia. Before her tenure in New Zealand, she was the Deputy Director of Research (Technology) at the Rubber Research Institute of Sri Lanka, demonstrating her leadership and research acumen. Karnika's research interests prominently feature sustainable manufacturing practices, reflecting her steadfast commitment to advancing environmentally conscious materials science and engineering methodologies.