Left to right: Sibendu Som (ES), Aaron Greco (AMD), Doug Longman (ES), Ralph Muehleisen (ES), Jeffrey Binder (EGS) and Amber Dach (NSF).
The Energy and Global Security (EGS) directorate recently presented its third annual set of EGS Excellence Awards recognizing outstanding contributions in the categories of People, Project and Process.
Ralph Muehleisen of the Energy Systems (ES) division received the 2018 EGS People Award in honor of his “impact on the lab’s programs via staff development, significant outreach to the external community and embodiment of Argonne’s core values to create an inclusive environment.” The nomination also recognized Muehleisen for his work to assist fellow staff members to identify funding, growth and networking opportunities; his tireless efforts to expand the laboratory’s external engagement and work in the Urban Science realm and his leadership within the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Energy I-Corps and Small Business Voucher programs, which provide local entrepreneurs with access to laboratory experts and mentors who can help them develop their technologies.
Doug Longman and Sibendu Som of the ES division received the 2018 EGS Project Award for their work to establish VERIFI, the Virtual Engine Research Institute and Fuels Initiative, Argonne’s portal for industry to access multi-disciplinary expertise and user facilities to create design optimized solutions for engine manufacturers. Beyond the value of VERIFI’s work with industry, it has become a model for internal collaboration, having created a cross-cutting research team across three Argonne directorates: EGS (ES), CELS (ALCF, MCS) and PSE (CSE), along with the Advanced Photon Source. With VERIFI, Argonne is the go-to national laboratory for engine modeling, and in FY17, VERIFI’s portfolio was about $3M USD, employing more than a dozen researchers at Argonne.
Amber Dach of the National Security Facility (NSF) received the 2018 EGS Process Award for her efforts to implement numerous new processes to enhance the capabilities of the NSF. She has grown the NSF training program and has made enhancements to the current training requirements by creating and updating online courses. Dach worked with the NSF’s information technology manager to develop an automated solution to processing the required foreign travel-reports for clearance holders, reducing a workload burden of nearly 80 hours a month to 30 minutes a month. Her success in automating other processes in the NSF has saved time, effort and money for both Argonne employees and NSF visitors.
EGS Associate Laboratory Director Jeffrey Binder announced the winners at an all-hands meeting in April and presented the awards at a function in May.
By Suzanne Williams (BIS)