Sebastian Strunk, upon completing an apprentinceship as automotive mechatronic technician at Mercedes-Benz in Bremen, Germany, began his bachelor studies in automotive engineering at Ilmenau University of Technology in 2009. He completed his Bachelor thesis, i.e. — efficiency improvements of newly designed, automatic transmissions — during an internship in the R&D department of Mercedes-Benz in Stuttgart, Germany in 2013. His passion for transmissions and gears prompted him to apply for an internship at The Gleason Works in Rochester, New York. The intership began in April, 2014, during which time he wrote his Master Thesis about the roll-optimization of ground bevel gears. After finishing both his thesis and a brief stint working in Ludwigsburg, Germany for Gleason-Pfauter, Strunk in late 2015 returned to the U.S. to begin work in the R&D department of The Gleason Works.