ASME Workshop and Briefing Explores Technology Development Goals for Advanced Gas Turbines

ASME President-Nominee Said Jahanmir (at podium) introduces the panelists at the ASME Congressional Briefing Realizing Gas Turbine Performance Goals through Advanced Manufacturing in October. Participating in the briefing were (left to right) Mike Aller of the Consortium for Advanced Production and Engineering of Gas Turbines and Rotating Machinery (CAPE); Tim Lieuwen of Georgia Institute of Technology; Thomas Prete from Pratt & Whitney; Guy Deleonardo from GE; Douglas Rawlins of Solar Turbines; and Karen Thole from Pennsylvania State University. Photos by Paul Cleri, Technology Advancement and Business Development.

ASME recently convened a workshop and congressional briefing in Washington, D.C., on Realizing Gas Turbine Performance Goals through Advanced Manufacturing. The events explored technology development in gas turbine industrial sectors and how public-private partnerships like Manufacturing USA are enabling manufacturers to create jobs and achieve technology goals, all while supporting overall U.S. public policy priorities in energy, transportation, and national security.

Gas turbines are a key platform technology that support a wide variety of strategic applications and industry sectors, including aviation (commercial and military), oil and gas production and distribution, and power generation. Recent years have seen a decline in cross-cutting Federal investments in gas turbine R&D while other countries have invested heavily in accelerating the development of advanced gas turbine technologies for generating power, propulsion, and a range of industrial processes.

ASME’s two-day event, held Oct. 17 and 18 at the Rayburn House Office Building, brought together leaders from a wide variety of industrial sectors and related organizations, including the Gas Turbine Association, the Consortium for Advanced Production and Engineering of Gas Turbines and Rotating Machinery (CAPE), the Department of Energy, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the Air Force Research Laboratory, and other leaders in research organizations across industry and academia. The House Manufacturing Caucus, led by U.S. Representatives Tom Reed (R-NY) and Tim Ryan (D-OH), and the House Natural Gas Caucus, chaired by U.S. Representatives Glenn “G.T.” Thompson (R-PA), Gene Green (D-TX), Tom Reed (R-NY) and Jim Costa (D-CA), also provided support in sponsoring the briefing.

(Left to right) ASME Fellow Karen Thole of Penn State, ASME Fellow Tim Lieuwen of Georgia Tech, ASME member Richard Dennis of the Department of Energy and ASME member Mike Aller of CAPE were the ASME volunteer organizers for the Realizing Gas Turbine Performance Goals through Advanced Manufacturing Congressional Workshop and Briefing.

The opening keynote featured Brett Lambert, formerly Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Manufacturing and Industrial Base Policy and now vice president of corporate strategy for Northrop Grumman, who discussed his experiences at the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) to establish the first National Network for Manufacturing Innovation (now Manufacturing USA) site. Lambert discussed how public-private collaboration on advanced manufacturing technical challenges results not only in new technical capabilities that can be shared across industry, but also as a critical resource development point for human capital in advanced manufacturing.

The workshop also featured technical sessions on readiness levels of advanced manufacturing for turbines, technical presentations on certification, user acceptance, turbine component and system improvements, and a session to discuss roadmapping technology development in advanced gas turbines.

The event closed with a briefing for congressional staff and other public policy makers which highlighted the scope of the economic impact of gas turbines technologies, the challenges facing industry today, as well as the public policies necessary to ensure U.S. leadership in advanced gas turbine technologies.

For more information on ASME Congressional Briefings, visit Congressional Briefings Events.

- Paul Fakes, Government Relations

Gas Turbine Powerpoint presentation.