30 M A T E R I A L S E V A L U A T I O N • J A N U A R Y 2 0 2 0 Twelve companies participated in the Exhibitors Innovation Forum, which was attended by 147 participants. These sessions, held on Tuesday and Wednesday, gave attendees the chance to learn more in-depth about new products and developments. Lecture Series This year’s standing-room-only keynote address kicked off the conference programming on Tuesday with an exciting and inspiring story of scientific achieve- ment. The address was given by Adam Steltzner, an award-winning rocket scientist with NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory who led the team of engineers that developed the “sky crane” technology that successfully landed the Mars rover Curiosity on the Martian surface in 2012. Steltzner shared the challenges and successes his team faced as they had to test and re-test innovative solutions to this task, applying the lessons he learned from this highly technical achievement to princi- ples about teamwork and problem-solving that can be applied to any problem. Immediately following Steltzner’s keynote on Tuesday, Colleen McClanahan of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) gave a special presentation about radio- logical threats and how NDT practitioners can work with the FBI to counter them. This presentation aimed to establish a collaborative relationship between the NDT industry and the work done within the Weapons of Mass Destruction Directorate of the FBI. On Wednesday, Tsuchin (Philip) Chu, Ph.D., of Southern Illinois University, delivered the Lester/Mehl Honor Lecture. His lecture, titled “Tiny Random Speckles: Why They Matter,” covered his research on laser speckles and their potential use as an NDT technique. He shared the various applications of the technique he has utilized in his career in the hopes that attendees would see the potential in this technique. On Thursday, Krishnan Balasubramaniam, Institute Chair Professor and Dean at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras, delivered the plenary address. His lecture, titled “New Approaches to Asset Management using Novel NDT Tools,” focused on corrosion, covering advanced guided wave–based ultrasonic methods and using waveguide sensors for distributed process monitoring, among other techniques and technologies. Short Courses and Educational Sessions This year’s conference presented five short courses from Monday through Thursday. The first two courses took place on Monday, with Johannes L. Vrana, VRANA GmbH, leading “NDE 4.0: Ideas, Basics, Technologies, Applications and How to Implement” and Robert J. Woodward, CABVI, leading “NDT Fixture Design Additive Manufacturing.” On Tuesday, Jesse Groom, ALS Global, led “Automating Data and Processes.” Joshua McCumber, Phoenix LLC, led the course “Benefits and Capabilities of Neutron Radiographic Testing” on Wednesday, and George K. Hodges, Hodges NDT, led the course “Introduction to Digital Radiography” on Thursday. The technical program was presented from Tuesday through Thursday and featured 101 presentations in 28 different sessions. These presentations are the highlight of the Annual Conference, and this year’s program explored a wide range of NDT topics that covered various tech- niques, industry applications, and emerging technologies with offerings suited to any skill level. An in-depth session focused on the Hanford decom- missioned nuclear complex included 12 presentations and lasted all day on Thursday. Awards Banquet The Awards Banquet on Wednesday evening recognized the achievements of Society and industry leaders with an elegant evening. The master of ceremonies was Antionette (Toni) Bailey. The event featured a three-course meal, the wrap-up With more than 200 booths in two exhibit halls, conference attendees had plenty of options to explore. After delivering his keynote address to a standing-room-only crowd, NASA engineer Adam Steltzner signed copies of his book, The Right Kind of Crazy.

J A N U A R Y 2 0 2 0 • M A T E R I A L S E V A L U A T I O N 31 presentation of awards, and the ceremo- nial installation of the 2019–2020 Board of Directors. After the meal, the 2019 award winners were recognized. The 50-Year Member Recognition was given to Stanley F. Botten, Neil W. Breslow, David L. Culbertson, Philip A. Oikle (not present), Chester F. Trzuskowski (not present), and William F. Via, Jr. The Faculty Grant was presented to Rakesh Kumar Behera (not present) and Tsuchin (Philip) Chu, and the ASNT Fellowship Awards were presented to Iowa State University, Pennsylvania State University, Southern Illinois University, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and the University of Pittsburgh. Alec Jobbins (not present), Jake M. Wagner, and Stetson Watkins received the Engineering Undergraduate Scholarship. The Mentoring Award was presented to Antionette (Toni) Bailey, Richard H. Bossi, Kathy L. Ferguson, Salahuddin (Sal) Razi, and Ryan J. Spencer (not present). The winners of the Outstanding Paper Recognition were announced: Shimin Pan, Donglai Zhang, and Enchao Zhang for Materials Evaluation, and Ahmed Balamesh, Mohammad Salloum, and Samir Abdul-Majid for Research in Nondestructive Evaluation. The following ASNT sections received the President’s Gold Award: Chicago, Greater Houston, Greater Los Angeles, Miami Valley, North Atlantic, Old Dominion, Pacific Northwest, San Diego, Saudi Arabian, and United Arab Emirates. The Recognition for the Advancement of Women in NDT was presented to Jocelyn A. Langlois and the Young NDT Professional Recognition was presented to Ahmed Arabi Hassen. The 2019 Class of Fellows was announced: Jennifer Anaya, Timothy L. Burkholder, Tsuchin (Philip) Chu, Ajay M. Koshti, and Jason Neill Taylor. The Charles N. Sherlock Meritorious Service Recognition was presented to Flynn Spears, and the George L. Pherigo Tutorial Citation was presented to Richard C. (Dick) Hooper. A recognition was presented to the 2019 Lester/Mehl Honor Lecture winner Tsuchin (Philip) Chu, and the Robert C. McMaster Gold Medal recipient Claudia V. Kropas-Hughes was recognized. The Philip D. Johnson Honorary Member Recognition, the Society’s highest honor, was presented to Joseph L. Mackin. After the presentation of awards, Scott P. Cargill carried on ASNT’s tradition of passing the presidential collar, presenting it to the 79th president of ASNT, Michael V. McGloin. McGloin’s address highlighted the importance of mentoring and networking for the strength of the industry and the Society. New Media This year’s conference introduced a new publication, the daily onsite printed and digital conference newspaper ASNT Daily. Those who were not able to attend the conference (or want to look back on their time there) can explore the digital edition at asntevents.org. The conference also featured a three-part series of podcasts on ASNT’s new channel, Chat NDT with ASNT, which can be found on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Podbean, and at asntpodcast.podbean.com. Scott P. Cargill (right), outgoing president, transferred the presidential collar to 2019–2020 president Michael V. McGloin in a ceremony that took place at the Annual Banquet. Conference attendees enjoyed starting each day with a new issue of the ASNT Daily newspaper published onsite in Las Vegas. Curtis Evans (left), the author of Introduction to NDT, interacted with attendees at a meet and greet held in the onsite ASNT Store. Digital Extras To view a slideshow from the Awards Banquet, view this article on the digital edition of Materials Evaluation.