January AMP_Digital

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 | J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 9 2 2 I am honored to have the privilege of introducing the 2018-2019 president of ASM International, Dr. David Ulrich Furrer, FASM. Friends, colleagues, and coworkers who know him well can attest to the fact that he is botha strategic think- er and a man of passion and intellec- tual curiosity. He is an extremely accom- plished, ethical, and assiduously hard- working individual. Dave is originally from Wiscon- sin and attended the University of Wis- consin−Madison. He may frequently be heard to proudly proclaim, “Yes, I am a Badger!” Dave met his wife Patti during his time at the university, and this is He subsequently rejoined Pratt & Whitney where he is currently the senior fellow discipline lead for the compa- ny’s Materials and Processes Engineer- ing organization. In this role, he leads a range of technology initiatives related to advanced materials and manufactur- ing technology. He is focused on efforts to develop and implement step-change capabilities through utilization of data, data analytics, and computational mo- deling, including high temperature ma- terials development, additive manu- facturing methods development, and manufacturing process control and feedback systems. Dave is a visionary with a long track record of working on cutting edge technologies. For example, he was active in the area of integrated computational materials engineering (ICME) before the acronym ICME had 2018-2019 PRESIDENT OF ASM INTERNATIONAL DAVID ULRICH FURRER William E. Frazier, FASM, 2016-2017 ASM President Dave and Patti Furrer at Banff National Park. also where he became fascinated with materials while studying under Profes- sor John Perepezko. Dave went on to receive a doctorate of engineering from Ulm University in Germany where he studied microstructural evolution in su- peralloys under the guidance of Profes- sor Hans-Jörg Fecht. MATERIALS CAREER PATH Dave began his professional career at Pratt & Whitney in West Palm Beach, Florida, where he worked on advanced materials and atomization process de- velopment. He says it was just too hot in Florida for a Wisconsin guy, so he re- turned to his home state and joined La- dish Co. Inc. (now ATI Forged Products) in the cooler climate of Cudahy, where he honed his skills in deformation pro- cessing by working on nearly every con- ceivable aerospace alloy. After sever- al years, Dave had an opportunity to join Rolls-Royce where he was able to pursue his passion for modeling and simulation. VISION FOR ASM The World is Changing: ASM International is not the same society it once was; it is even better. This has not come with- out challenges, and further challenges are ahead. Membership, chapter activities, and corporate involvement are critical to ASM’s future success. Dave believes this success will come from being relevant and delivering value to members, companies, and the society. ASM International Strategic Plan: Dave is passionately committed to implementing ASM’s strategic and operational plans, which are focused on the core values and deliverables that will make ASM relevant today, tomorrow, and well into the future. Teamwork can accomplish amazing things. Dave is working with the Board of Trustees on board-led taskforces that represent the heart of ASM’s values and goals. These taskforce efforts are defining changes that the society is undertaking to grow and improve, and they include a focus on education; committee structure; attracting and maintaining new members; the computational and digital materials environment; diversity and inclusion; and international activities. Each of these areas aligns with ASM’s annual operating plan. Dave is also working with the board to guide ASM toward a much enhanced committee structure, where technical com- mittees can be spontaneously created by grassroots communities of practice. He believes that enhancing ASM’s technical committees will enable great volunteerism. It has been pointed out that without a technical “home room,” many members do not know how to engage and become involved in ASM activities. ASM is working on a process to allow groups to seam- lessly stand-up committees on focused topics and specific purposes, such as developing Handbooks, technical books, and journal content, and supporting conference programming by proposing symposia topics. Restructuring the technical com- mittees will help make ASM more relevant, thereby attracting new members and sparking interest in existing members to become more active in the society.