SPE to Honor Service Members, Fellows at ANTEC During NPE2015

SPE, Bethel, Ct., has only named 316 Honored Service Members since the honor was established in 1992, choosing candidates on the basis of “having demonstrated long-term, outstanding service to, and support of, the Society and its objectives.”

The newest inductees include:

Paul Andersen. Nominated by the Extrusion Division, Andersen is a past president of the Society (2009-10), and served on the Executive Committee from 2004 – 2011. He has been an active member of the SPE Extrusion Division’s Board of Directors since 1990. He has authored numerous ANTEC and TopCon technical papers, served as technical consultant for the SPE Twin-screw Extrusion educational video and wrote the chapter on Twin-screw Extrusion for the SPE Plastics Technician’s Toolbox.

Brian Landes. Nominated by the Engineering Properties and Structures Division, Landes has served the Division in a variety of roles since 1997, including Chair, Councilor, TPC, and TopCon Technical Chair. In addition to serving as Division Chair for the Society for two years, Landes has been actively involved in student activities, mentoring, teaching and networking, working with Best Paper, Best Student Paper, and Best Student Poster Award committees and judging since the late 1990s, while volunteering with the Next Generation Advisory Board (NGAB).

Prithu Mukhopadhyay. Nominated by the Quebec Section, Mukhopadhyay has provided leadership to the Quebec Section as President and Councilor and to the Plastics Pipe and Fittings SIG as the TPC. He was instrumental in the creation and growth of the Plastics in Building and Construction SIG and has been a member of the New Technology Committee (NTC) since 1998, serving as its chair in 2005-2007. Since 2000, he has also helped to develop the ANTEC New Technology Forums.

Kimberly Rush. Nominated by the Chicago Section for her long-time service there, including the Chicago Section Educational Foundation where she served in a variety of positions, including multiple terms as President. Rush’s efforts with the Foundation’s annual fundraiser Supplier’s Night EXPO, have helped raise tens of thousands of dollars for matching grants and scholarships. As a two-term President of the Chicago Section, she is recognized for increasing the number of technical conference programs.

John R. Wagner. Nominated by the Flexible Packaging Division, Wagner joined SPE in 1969 and has served on the Extrusion Division Board since 1984. He was elected SPE Fellow of the Society in 1998 and has served on various Extrusion Division committees. Wagner was also involved in forming and transitioning the Flexible Packaging Division from a SIG to one of SPE’s top Divisions. Wagner is the editor of the Journal of Plastic Film & Sheeting and president of consulting firm Crescent Associates, Inc.

Mark P. Wolverton. Nominated by the Chicago Section and the Product Design and Development Division, Wolverton has contributed as an officer for his section and division. Wolverton, who is known for facilitating successful events in cooperation with other divisions and Sections, is also a member of the Plastics Pioneers Association. 

Newest Fellows of the Society

Candidates for the Fellows honor must be sponsored by an SPE Division or Special Interest Group, with the SPE Fellows Election Committee considering eligible candidates on the basis of a personal history as well as written sponsorships from two SPE members. Only 309 members, counting the newest inductees, have been elected Fellows since the honor was established in 1984.

The Newest members are:

Len Czuba, president of Czuba Enterprises, a Chicago-based medical device product development consultancy. Czuba, who holds 15 U.S. patents, works with clients to take products, especially medical devices, from concept to production. His primary focus is in the selection and processing of plastics and biomedical polymers.

Hani E. Naguib, Professor at the University of Toronto and holder of the Canada Research Chair in Smart and Multifunctional Materials. Naguib, who is the director of the Toronto Institute for Advanced Manufacturing, has expertise in the manufacture of smart and active materials, macromolecules and composites, and bio-based materials.

Maureen T.F. Reitman P.E., Corporate Vice President and Principal Engineer at Exponent, and Director of the company’s Polymer Science & Materials Chemistry Practice. Reitman’s research focuses on polymer structure-property relationships and the effects of formulation, manufacturing, and environment on performance. She holds three patents and regularly publishes in the peer-reviewed literature.

Jose Timmerman is Executive Vice President of Supply Chain at Tupperware Brands. In over 40 years at Tupperware, he has focused on the development and training of engineers, excellence in new product development, manufacturing of masterbatches, development of silicone manufacturing for large parts, and the development of modular molds. He spearheaded process automation and optimization using central resin distribution systems, automatic part removers, centralized part inspection, and packing systems.

Shing-Chung “Josh” Wong has made seminal contributions to developing graphite polymer nanocomposites. Wong was the first to introduce nanoscale graphite platelets into thermoplastics, using scalable extrusion compounding process to form polymer nanocomposites. He also introduced commercial electrospinning into the adhesives industry, creating a new field known as “electrospun polymer adhesives and blends.”