-
2009
年国际钛协会的钛成就奖
HILL WINS 2009 TITANIUM
ACHIEVEMENT AW
ARD
Robert
Hill
Jr.,
president,
Solar
Atmospheres
of
Western
PA,
has
garnered
the
International
Titanium
Association’s
(ITA)
2009
Titanium
Achievement
Award,
citing
him
as
a
leader
and
pioneer in developing vacuum-thermal
processing solutions for the aerospace industry.
Hill will
receive the award at the ITA’s annual conference,
TITANIUM 2009, which will be held
Sept.
13-16 at the Hilton Waikoloa Village, Hawaii. The
ITA is headquartered in Broomfield, CO.
The
ITA’s
Achievement
Award
recognizes
outstanding
contributions
to
the
advancement
of
technology
and
applications
in
the
titanium
industry.
Twelve
men
have
received
the
prestigious
honor during the last nine years.
Recipients must demonstrate a body of work that
has helped to
advance the titanium
industry.
“
I am
completely thrilled, feel blessed and supremely
honored to win this award,” Hill declared.
“Considering my years of work in the
titanium market, this award represents the
pinnacle of my
ac
hievements.” Solar
Atmospheres of Western PA is a unit of Solar
Atmospheres Inc., Souderton,
PA.
A
member
of
American
Society
of
Materials’
(ASM)
since
1980,
Hill
has
published
numerous
articles on vacuum
technologies and vacuum heat treating
applications. By way of comparison, he
noted that he recently won the ASM
William Hunt Eisenman Award, but considered the
ITA award
more dear to his heart. Why?
“Because Solar Atmospheres’ has built its business
on titanium here
in
western
Pennsylvania,”
he
said.
“Titanium
is
a
big
part
of
what
I’ve
done
throughout
my
professional life.”
Hill,
in
a
career
that
spans
three
decades,
has
specialized
in
the
development
of
large
vacuum
furnace technologies and titanium
processing capabilities for Solar Atmospheres.
Nine years ago
he launched the
company’s 60,000
-square-foot facility
in Hermitage, PA.
During
that
period
he
has
overseen
three
major
capital-investment
plant
expansions.
The
site
houses 13 vacuum
furnaces including one that measures 36 feet in
length. Hill and his associates
pioneered the dual-
loading
“car
-
bottom” furnace design,
which is shaped like a rail car with a total
weight capacity of 150,000 pounds.
The facility registered $$13
million in sales last year, with a large segment
of the business devoted
to the heat
treating of large structural parts for the Boeing
787 program. In particular, he said the
Hermitage
site
is
the
only
North
American
facility
approved
to
meet
Boeing’s
Beta
Anneal
Slow-Cooled
Aged
(BASCA)
160
specifications,
which
involves
the
vacuum
heat
treating
of
forged parts using VSMPO’s Ti 5553
alloy.
“
Bob’s
enthusiasm,
drive
and
grit
have
been
primary
in
the
success
of
the
Hermitage
plant,”
William
R.
Jones,
Solar
Atmospheres’
chief
executive
officer,
stated.
Jones
praised
Hill
for
developi
ng a valuable asset
for the titanium market, “without which this
industry would not have
advanced as
quickly or easily as it has during the last five
years.”
Dan Buwalda, plant
manager, Alcoa Power and Propulsion, Whitehall,
MI, served as the chairman
of
the
Achievement
Award
selection
committee.
“We
reviewed
a
number
of
highly
qualified
nominees and the
individual that clearly rose to the top was Robert
Hill,” Buwalda said. “He is
recognized
as
a
pioneer
in
developing
titanium
vacuum-thermal
processing
solutions
for
the
aerospace
industry.”
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