May/June_AMP_Digital

HIGHL IGHTS A D V A N C E D M A T E R I A L S & P R O C E S S E S | M A Y / J U N E 2 0 1 8 5 4  MEMBERS IN THE NEWS Mohawk Valley Gets Lesson in Shape Memory The fascinating alloy Nitinol was the focus of a pre- sentation by SAES Smart Metals of New Hartford at a joint meeting in March of the ASM Mohawk Valley (MV) Chapter and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME). SAES makes Nitinol, which is used in a wide variety of 21st century shape memory applications. What is your vision for ASM and MA student chapters around the world? My vision as ASM President is threefold: Teamwork… works; volunteerismmust be tripled in the next seven years; and the ASM Renewal must be accomplished through the Digital Transformation, a multimillion dollar investment in digital-first publishing and providing efficient, searchable materials properties databases. What are your plans to support student activities around the world? I am offering a career planning/professional growth seminar at every college, technical school, and Material Advantage Chapter meeting throughout the ASM global net- work. Obviously, what is meaningful in India, Austria, China, Russia, Egypt, and the U.S. are different. However, the gen- eral principles remain the same: Diversification, lifelong learning, implementation through teamwork, and active listening all need to be practiced to discover the root cause of process or reliability issues. What message do you have for recent materials science and engineering (MSE) graduates? My message to emerging professionals is to realize that MSE specialists actually speak a foreign language. “Marten- site, adiabatic shear, critical resolved stress, and hydrogen effect” are foreign terms to management and financial teammates. We must talk in designs/illustrations and use units of measure so our coworkers and managers “get it.” For a component to be useful, it must be affordable, func- tional, durable, and recyclable. Be persistent. Share suc- cesses with your teammates and accept ownership if you fail the mission. MEMBERS IN THE NEWS Shi Receives Young Investigator Award Jian Shi, assistant professor of materials science and engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, won a Young Investigator Research Pro- gram (YIP) award from the Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR). Shi will use the three-year, $450,000 grant to pursue fundamental research on nanoscale complex materials that could lead to development of next-generation resilient and high-performance energy conversion and sensing technolo- gies. The award is given to scientists and engineerswho have received Ph.D. or equivalent degrees in the last five years and show exceptional ability and promise for conducting basic research. Shi’s AFOSR YIP project is titled “Nanoscale Pyroelectric Hybrid Materials Undergoing Structural Phase On the screen is a NASA test airplane with winglet adjusters made of Nitinol, which improve speed, fuel efficiency, and control. Shown are presenter Frank Sczerzenie (foreground), chief technical officer at SAES; Jim Fesko (left of screen), chair of the MV Chapter; and Bob Whitney (to the right of screen), chair of the local ASME chapter. Shi Presidential Wisdom: Suez University Interviews Schmidt The Suez University Material Advantage (MA) Chapter, Egypt, recently interviewed ASM President Fred Schmidt for its student newsletter. Included here is an excerpt. What were the main challenges you faced when you started your career? I started out as a blue sky R&D scientist. After 10 years in this role, industrial “mission impossible problem solving” became my focus. This was a big transition involving the skills of team leadership and determining the root cause of plant problems. Often, management’s idea of the core tech- nical problem was incorrect. Therefore, communication skills and tactfulness had to be learned and practiced.