Celebrating STLE’s past and future
By Edward P. Salek, CAE, Outgoing Executive Director | TLT Headquarters Report January 2024
The best days are yet to come.
STLE has a long and impressive history that dates back to March 3, 1944, when the organization was incorporated in Chicago, the city that it still calls home.
This 80th anniversary milestone will be observed at the upcoming 2024 STLE Annual Meeting & Exhibition in Minneapolis, Minn., (USA) and in a variety of other ways throughout the coming year. This also will be a year of transition for STLE as I retire after a 27-year tenure as STLE executive director.
As my chapter in STLE’s history ends, I depart with a sense of accomplishment for what the organization has become during my watch, and sincere gratitude to all those volunteers, staff members and suppliers who contributed to that success.
There are good memories of the people I worked with, the projects that brought value to our members and the places visited to represent STLE and the technology we support. I like to think that the years 1996 to 2024—my time as executive director—will be recognized as a period when STLE became a stronger and more professional organization that is well-positioned for the future.
While it is worthwhile to remember and learn from the past, STLE’s focus at this inflection point must be on the future. That is because the future is at the core of why associations exist and how they provide value to individual members, companies and organizations, and to society itself.
Opportunities abound to accelerate and enhance the benefits promised in our “Connect, Learn, Achieve” value proposition. They will be found in an expanded technical education program that reaches a much larger and more diverse audience, thanks to our ability to supplement in-person training with programs that are delivered through digital technology.
Certification programs, which have been a part of STLE for more than a quarter century, are becoming essential for employers who want to see proof of applied knowledge and to employees seeking to differentiate themselves in the labor market.
In-person and virtual conferences will provide the technical and non-commercial forums needed to support emerging technologies like electric vehicles, additive manufacturing and virtual tribology.
Tribology’s impact on the future also encompasses the potential to be a significant factor in tackling some of the world’s most daunting challenges such as the quest for sustainability. The 2023-2026 STLE Strategic Plan sets a course to achieve this impact through outreach to government funders and collaboration with other like-minded and complementary associations in North America and around the world.
STLE’s newly published 2023 Report on Emerging Issues and Trends in Tribology and Lubrication Engineering emphasizes what this means for the next generation of our members. It states, “Individuals new to the tribology field would be wise to recognize that they will, throughout their careers, have an opportunity to effect meaningful change on achieving climate change and decarbonation goals.”
This future will not happen by chance. But STLE has the leadership that is needed to make this potential become a reality. You have a dedicated STLE Executive Committee and Board of Directors, and a talented and energetic new executive director in Rebecca Lintow, CAE. This team will work with leadership and staff to do remarkable things for members and the profession as you enter a new era.
As a final word, I want to say thank you for the privilege of having been a part of the STLE community. My closing thought in this last TLT monthly column is a confident prediction. STLE’s best days are yet to come!
You can reach Certified Association Executive Ed Salek at epsalek@gmail.com.