A November to remember

Edward P. Salek, CAE, Executive Director | TLT Headquarters Report June 2022

STLE announces two innovative conferences.
 


It’s not too early for the tribology and lubricants community to think about two major technical events coming in November.


It may be spring, but it’s not too early for the tribology and lubricants community to think about two major technical events coming in November.

The STLE Tribology Frontiers Conference (TFC) will be held Nov. 14-16, 2022, at the Cleveland Marriott Downtown at Key Tower in downtown Cleveland, Ohio (USA). The conference hotel is in the heart of city center and within walking distance to great restaurants and attractions like the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

Since it was founded in 2014, the TFC has gained a reputation for bringing together the tribology research community in a format that maximizes the opportunity to experience the latest in research and network with peers in a relaxed environment.

Each day of the conference begins with a keynote presentation by a distinguished speaker who is in the forefront of the tribology research community. The speakers will be:
Professor Juliette Cayer-Barrioz, research director of the Laboratory for Tribology and Dynamic Systems for the Central University of Lyon in France. Her research activities focus on the dynamics of lubricated interfaces, integrating surface phenomena, topography and physico-chemistry.
Professor Roland Bennewitz, senior group leader of the Nanotribology Group at the INM - Leibniz Institute for New Materials in Saarbrücken, Germany. His program is concerned with the mechanical properties of materials and seeks to understand the microscopic mechanisms of friction.
Dr. Michael Kotzalas, director, global customer engineering, for The Timken Co. in Cleveland, Ohio. Kotzalas has coauthored the two-volume 5th edition of Roller Bearing Analysis, a standard reference for bearing engineers. He participates on advisory boards with the International Organization for Standardization and the American Bearing Manufacturers Association.

In addition to these keynote speakers, the TFC will feature invited “spotlight” talks from noted principal investigators and 20-minute presentations from leading tribology researchers and institutions from around the world. And, as it has since the conference began, the program will conclude with the popular “Beyond the Cutting Edge” symposium, organized by the editors of STLE-affiliated journal Tribology Letters. The conference registration and housing reservation website will be available in June. Later in November, STLE will present the second Tribology and Lubrication for E-Mobility Conference. It will be Nov. 30-Dec. 1 at Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) in San Antonio, Texas (USA). STLE established this new event in response to the rapid movement of the automotive industry to develop and commercialize electric vehicles (EVs). This trend is placing growing demands on the lubricants that will be required to ensure optimum operation.

The inaugural conference in 2021, also held at SwRI, presented more than 20 speakers from leading companies and organizations with an interest in e-mobility. These speakers provided their unique perspectives on the requirements for lubricants operating in EVs.

The Electric Vehicle Conference Planning Committee will issue a call for papers later in June. The conference program and other details will be available in late August.

Both the TFC and the EV event will be presented as an in-person conference, although the latter will offer a virtual attendance option for those unable to travel to San Antonio. The return to in-person meetings will provide participants a quality technical experience balanced with the opportunity to reconnect with peers. Those two things will make November 2022 one to remember for the STLE community.
 
You can reach Certified Association Executive Ed Salek at esalek@stle.org.