Alon Heimer knew what his career path would be from a young age. “I spent my childhood disassembling electric appliances – there was no way I could reconstruct them – since then, I remember myself being attracted to engineering and physics,” he says. “I like taking little challenges and trying to crack them. At work, I have a lot of technological sub-challenges and each is a world unto itself.” His creativity and professional passion were, among other things, why he was the presidential choice for outstanding initiative and innovation.
My story
Alon grew up in Be’er Sheva and stayed in the city until graduating from Ben-Gurion University. He studied for his Masters’ degree in the Technion University in Haifa, where he settled down with his family. His first job was at EORD, which was later acquired by Elbit, and has been with the company for 20 years altogether. As a signal engineer, Alon belongs to the Advanced Sensing Systems unit within the C4I & Cyber division. “Until recently, our main line of activity was to develop sensors and systems that monitor micro-vibrations and produce insight into the targets that generate them. In practice, almost all human activity (especially military) generates vibrations, and their analysis using algorithmic tools enables us to understand who and what caused them,” he explains.
In another line of activity, which the group began engaging in recent years, he has participated in developing a system based on LiDAR sensors. “This sensor maps the terrain, even between rocks and vegetation, generating millions of points and creating three-dimensional point clouds. This sensor actually originated in the civilian world. Its applications can range from discovering ruins of ancient cities in archaeological excavations to the movements of autonomous vehicles, and more,” he says.
Alon is married to Orit, an economist and presently also a Doctor of Psychology, and father of two, a 16.5-year-old son and 13-year-old daughter. Alon also devotes part of his free time to an engineering hobby: building decorations based on plays of light. “One example is a structure made of mirrors that I plan on the computer, organize, cut by size and glue. The final object creates a feeling of observing a sky full of stars.”
