Dean’s Corporate Advisory Board Member
Dave Crawford ’95
Ride Engineering Studio Executive
Walt Disney Imagineering
Dave Crawford leads the Ride Engineering Studio for Walt Disney Imagineering. He has global responsibility for the engineering teams responsible for the design and delivery of ride systems for Disney Theme Parks, as well as the concept and development of new ride platforms and capabilities.
Crawford joined Imagineering in 1998 and has held various leadership positions in the Engineering, Creative, and R&D Studios, always focused on innovation and development of new products and experiences. Outside of his time at WDI, Crawford works on “rides” that actually went to space as the VP of engineering at Virgin Galactic.
During his decades at Imagineering, Crawford has participated in every aspect of attraction design and development: from early Blue Sky to attraction installation, turnover and certification. He has been involved with the development of attractions at every Disney theme park, and led a wide variety of strategic initiatives focused on creating new capabilities and products for Disney guests. He is a licensed professional engineer and listed as an inventor on over 60 patents.