IPC Introduces New Committee Leader and Committee Volunteer Awards at IPC APEX EXPO 2023
February 8, 2023 | IPCEstimated reading time: 1 minute

In keeping with its commitment to showing appreciation for its strong volunteer community, IPC introduced two new awards in IPC standards development at IPC APEX EXPO 2023. The awards, Committee Leader of the Year and Volunteer of the Year, were named in honor of key leaders and volunteers from IPC standards development efforts. The Hillman-Lambert Award, named for IPC Hall of Famers and longtime standards committee volunteers David Hillman and Leo Lambert, is awarded to volunteers of the year. The Goldman-Kessler Award, named for IPC Hall of Famers, and longtime committee leaders, Patty Goldman and Bernie Kessler, is awarded to leaders of the year.
Nominations for the 2023 awards were open to all volunteers and leaders whose groups had completed their standards projects between October 2021 and October 2022. The awards were peer-selected, and a nomination committee was formed to review and judge all nomination packets.
The Hillman-Lambert Award was presented to Michael Ford, Aegis Software, and Christina Rutherford, Honeywell International, as the result of a tie vote. Ford received his nomination for his work with the 2-12c Cybersecurity Protection Standard Task Group. Rutherford was nominated for her work with the 7-31f IPC/WHMA-A-620 Task Group.
The Goldman-Kessler Award was presented to Bob Cooke, NASA Johnson Space Center. Cooke was nominated for his leadership of the 7-31k Wire Harness Design Task Group and the 5-24g Polymerics Standard Task Group.
In addition to Ford and Rutherford, nominees for the Hillman-Lambert Award included Erika Crandall, TE Connectivity; Hermann Eicher, EPT Guglhoer GmbH; Joseph Kane, BAE Systems; Garry McGuire, NASA Marshall Space Flight Center; Zhiqian Sang, Hangzhou Dianzi University; and Wei Wang, New HC3 Technologies Co., Ltd.
In addition to Cooke, nominees for the Goldman-Kessler Award were: Scott Bowles, Lockheed Martin; Constantino Gonzalez, Acme Training and Consulting; Thomas Marktscheffel, ASMPT GmbH & Co. KG; and Victor Xu, Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd.
“Volunteerism is the bedrock of our standards development activities,” said Teresa Rowe, IPC senior director, assembly and standards technology. “The new standards development committee awards program is entirely volunteer-driven, created to recognize the best-of-the-best in our standards development activities.”
Committee Leader and Volunteer of the Year awards will be presented on an annual basis, with next presentation taking place at IPC APEX EXPO 2024 in Anaheim, California.
Suggested Items
I-Connect007 Editor’s Choice: Five Must-Reads for the Week
03/28/2025 | Andy Shaughnessy, I-Connect007I’ve spent my week recovering from a busy and interesting week in Anaheim for the 25th IPC APEX EXPO. I think back to my first APEX EXPO, and the changes since then are too numerous to count. I first attended in 2004, also in Anaheim, back when there was almost no design content in the conference or expo portions of the show. It was just a few years after the downturn, and attendees and exhibitors alike were skittish, almost afraid to show confidence in our industry. A few unemployed design friends handed out copies of their resumes. Travel budgets were still down, and the aisles weren’t exactly packed with traffic.
Real Time with... IPC APEX EXPO 2025: Transforming Engineering With Digital Solutions from Zuken
03/27/2025 | Real Time with...IPC APEX EXPOBob Potock discusses Zuken's focus on digital engineering and a move away from traditional document-based processes to model-based designs. This change improves product definition, reduces design errors, and optimizes product parameters. Bob notes that the IPC-2581 standard is crucial for connecting designs, while AI enhances design efficiency.
25 Years of IPC APEX EXPO: Organizer Alicia Balonek Reflects on a Milestone
03/28/2025 | Alicia Balonek, IPCAs I celebrate my 25th work anniversary with IPC, I can’t help but reflect on my incredible journey. From its inception in 2000, IPC APEX EXPO has evolved into one of the most anticipated and dynamic events in the electronics industry, and I’m proud to have been a part of its growth every step of the way.
EIPC Summer Conference 2025: Call for Distinguished Speakers in Edinburgh
03/26/2025 | EIPCThe European Institute of Printed Circuits (EIPC) is pleased to announce its Summer Conference 2025, scheduled for June 3-4 in the historic city of Edinburgh, Scotland.
Real Time with... IPC APEX EXPO 2025: Blackfox—The Future of the Electronics Manufacturing Industry Depends on Training
03/26/2025 | Real Time with...IPC APEX EXPOBlackfox's Levi Gibbon is a newcomer to IPC APEX EXPO, but he has been in electronics manufacturing since 1999. In this interview, he focuses on quality assurance and teaching. He discusses the challenges posed by an aging workforce and the urgent need for new talent as experienced trainers retire.