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2009 Fellows

A picture will be provided for posting for each candidate as received at HQ.

Lawrence Barone, Jr.   
Orange County Section - South Coast Systems, Inc. - Santa Ana, California
In recognition of: contributions to the design, development, and implementation of control systems.
About: Lawrence is owner and principal engineer at South Coast Systems, Inc. Prior to founding South Coast Systems in 1977, Lawrence held positions at Foxboro, where he was responsible for the implementation, testing, and startup of control systems. He has also held engineering positions with Cutler Hammer and Lockheed Missiles and Space Co., and he holds a patent for a liquid pipeline leak detection system. Lawrence became a member of ISA in 1977 and is a licensed control systems engineer in California.

Edson da Costa Bortoni
Triangulo MineiroSection - EFEI UNIFEI - Itajuba-MG, Brazil
In recognition of: educational and technical contributions used on several energy management processes.
About: Dr. Bortoni is professor and coordinator of the Energy Engineering post-graduation program at Itajubá Federal University, Brazil. He has authored numerous published papers, two books, and co-authored five books. Prior to his academic career, Dr. Bortoni ran tutorial courses, R&D, and field tests for major international companies. He also provided consulting services for the Brazilian government and regulatory agencies. Dr. Bortoni holds two patents and has three registered software. Dr. Bortoni became a member of ISA in 1999, obtained a Senior ISA Membership in 2005, and is a member of ISA’s Power Industry Division. He is also a member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE), International Society for Optical Engineering (SPIE), and a member of the Brazilian Energy Systems Planning.

Dennis Brandl
Tarheel Section - BR&L Consulting - Cary, North Carolina
In recognition of: contributions to the science, practice and standardization of batch processing.
About: Brandl is President and founder of BR&L Consulting, Inc. Prior to founding BR&L he held various positions at Sequencia, Schneider Electric, Siemens, and Shell Oil. Brandl is the author of “Design Patterns for Flexible Manufacturing” and “A Guide to the Automation Body of Knowledge”, chapter 24, and has authored or co-authored over 36 articles relative to his field of expertise and holds several patents. He became a member of ISA in 1997 and is also a member of IEEE, AAAS, IEC SC65A, and IEC SC65E. Brandl was the recipient of the IEC 1906 Award in 2008.

Eric Byres
British Columbia Section - Byres Security, Inc. - Lantzville, BC, Canada
In recognition of: contributions to the fields of industrial network design and process cyber security.
About: After founding the British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT) Critical Infrastructure Security Centre in 2001, Byres then shaped it into one of North America’s leading academic facilities in the field of SCADA cyber security. In 2006, he and Joann Byres founded the Control System Security Certification Organization (CSSCO) and co-authored three whitepapers on standards and compliance in security which later became the foundation of the ISA Security Compliance Institute in 2007. Today, Eric Byres, chief technology officer of Byres Security Inc, is an internationally recognized leading expert in the field of critical infrastructure security, SCADA security, and industrial security. He has consulted on major security projects for governments, national security agencies, and multinational corporations. He is the past recipient of, among others, ISA’s Donald P. Eckman Education Award and Keith Otto Award, and currently chairs the ISA SP-99 Security Technologies Working Group. Eric Byres has been an ISA member since 1997.

John W. Gay
Baltimore/Washington Section - Power Max Consulting - Lanham, Maryland
In recognition of: the development and implementation of control algorithms used in fossil fuel power plants.
About: Gay is CEO, principle engineer, and consultant at Power Max Consulting, Inc. His development and design assures that process sub-systems obtain maximum possible capacity and still maintain emergency control action ability. Prior to Power Max Consulting, Gay spent almost two decades holding various positions at Potomac Electric Power, Co. Gay has authored and presented numerous papers at various technical conferences. He has provided services to the CIA, been called as a technical expert witness, and technical expert for a control system technical review. Gay became an ISA member in1995 and a senior member in 2009.

Ulrich Gokeler
Houston Section - Siemens Energy & Automation, Inc. - Houston, Texas
In recognition of: contributions to the specification and development of chromatographic applications used for process and environmental measurements. 
About: Gokeler is business development manager at Siemens Energy & Automation, Inc. His dedication to the advancement of new applications of process chromatography, spans over a three-decade career that started with Siemens AG in Germany in 1977. Gokeler has authored numerous papers and written chapters for two books. He initially became a member of ISA in 1983, a senior member in 2009, and is also a member of the American Chemical Society.

Robert Heider, PE
St. Louis Section - Confluence Solar - Hazelwood, Missouri
In recognition of: contributions to the simulation, development, and implementation of advanced control strategies.
About: Heider is senior control system engineer at Confluence Solar where he is part of a group responsible for the design, development, process simulation, and commissioning of instrumentation, system, and automation of processes and equipment with which to produce silicon material for the photovoltaic industry. Heider is also adjunct professor at Washington University in St. Louis, MO, instructing chemical engineering students on the concepts of process simulation and control. Prior to joining Confluence Solar, Heider spent over 30 years with Monsanto, where he was responsible for the specification, design, and commissioning of process control computers in Monsanto petro-chemical plants worldwide. He has authored numerous papers and contributed to a chapter to one book. Heider became a member of ISA in 1974 and is licensed professional engineer.

Marcos Peluso
Twin Cities Section - Emerson Process Management – Rosemount - Chanhassen, Minnesota
In recognition of: contributions to the development and deployment of industrial field instrument digital communications.
About: Peluso holds the position of Distinguished Technologist at Emerson Process Management - Rosemount. He has been instrumental in the development of the first prototypes required by the Fieldbus Foundation to verify that the technology itself works properly. He has also been responsible for developing digital communication products for the Fieldbus Foundation standards. Peluso has authored numerous papers and holds several patents. He became a member of ISA in 1987, is a member of the Brazilian Petroleum Society, and the Astronomy Society.

H.L. “Leo” Staples, Jr.
Greater Oklahoma Section - Oklahoma Gas & Electric - Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
In recognition of: contributions to the practical application of automation technology in fossil power plants.
About: Staples currently serves as compliance management leader at Power Supply Division, Oklahoma Gas & Electric (OG&E). He joined OG&E in 1978 and has held several positions with the company. Staples has an extensive list of accomplishments during his 30-plus year career in the power industry. He designed and produced a fully computerized boiler optimization test system for fossil fuel power generation units and established a program to bring National Institute of Standards and Technology traceability to the calibration of power plant instrumentation and systems. Staples has authored numerous papers, reviewed technical papers and ISA books, and is currently authoring his own book titled, “Project Management: A Technician’s Guide”. He became a member of ISA in 1989.

Angela E. Summers, Ph.D., PE
Houston Section - SIS-TECH Solutions LP - Houston, Texas
In recognition of: contributions to education, technology, and standardization impacting safe automation in the process industry.
About: Dr. Summers is President of SIS-TECH Solutions LP and a United States representative to the international safety instrumented system standards’ committee. During her illustrious career, Dr. Summers has received numerous awards for her contributions to safe automation of the process industry, including induction into the Process Automation Hall of Fame (2009) and the Albert F. Sperry Award (2005). Dr. Summers has written more than 50 papers and technical guidelines, holds eight U.S. and 20 international patents for safety instrumentation, and has presented at numerous conferences around the world. Dr. Summers has a Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Alabama, who named her a 2009 Distinguished Engineering Fellow and a 2008 Department of Chemical Engineering Fellow. She is also a licensed Professional Engineer in the State of Texas. Dr. Summers became a member of ISA in 1997 and has served the Society in numerous leadership positions.

ISA Fellows List

ISA Fellow is the highest grade of membership. It is provided by ISA to qualified members who have made exceptional engineering or scientific contributions to the ISA purpose of setting the standard for automation. While there is no limit on the number that can be elected, the criteria for selection are demanding so only a relatively few members can be elected. The compilation of demanding criteria and modest number of elections make the Fellow grade a coveted honor.

Criteria: Award for outstanding achievement in scientific or engineering fields as recognized by ISA peer; ISA member for five years or more; recognized ISA Senior Member; at least 10 years in instrumentation development, application, operation, management or teaching.

*=Deceased