Power Engineering Expert John B. Kitto, Jr., Named ASME Honorary Member

Date Published:

Apr 14, 2022

NEW YORK (April 14, 2022) – John B. Kitto, Jr., P.E., a renewable energy consultant and power engineering expert, has been named an honorary member of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME). Honorary Membership is awarded by the ASME Board of Governors to up to five corporate members of the Society each year for a lifetime of “distinguished service that contributes significantly to the attainment of goals of the engineering profession.” Kitto will be recognized at ASME’s Summer Heat Transfer Conference, co-located with the 16^th International Conference on Energy Sustainability, July 11-13 in Philadelphia.

Kitto retired as business development manager from The Babcock & Wilcox Company in 2012 after 37 years in the energy business. His responsibilities included product and business development focusing on power, emissions control, and renewable energy—most recently, waste-to-energy. An ASME Fellow and past member of the Board of Governors, he has conducted research in heat transfer and fluid flow and remains active in the field. He has served as co-editor, technical editor, and chapter author of the key power industry reference book, “Steam: Its Generation and Use,” for 25 years. He led the development and conceptual design of the Palm Beach (Fla.) Renewable Energy Facility—the first new waste-to-energy (WTE) plant in the U.S. in 20 years and the cleanest and most energy-efficient WTE plant of its kind in the world at the time of its commissioning in 2015. His patent for “Low NOx Cell Burner” won an R&D 100 Award in 1994 as one of the most significant technologies of the year by R&D World magazine.

Among the many honors and awards he has earned throughout his career, Kitto received ASME’s George Westinghouse Silver Medal in 1991, the Society’s Dedicated Service Award in 1992, and the 75^th Anniversary Award for lifetime achievement and service to the ASME Heat Transfer Division in 2013. He has been active in ASME leadership for more than two decades. Most recently, he served on the ASME Board of Governors committee on finance and investment (2014-2020). In addition, Kitto served on the ASME Board of Governors (1999-2002), as senior vice president of member affairs (1995-1998), region V vice president (1992-1995), and chair of the Heat Transfer Division (1992-1993), among many other boards and committees.

Kitto earned a Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering from Lehigh University in Penn. and a Master of Business Administration degree from The University of Akron in Ohio.

About ASME
ASME helps the global engineering community develop solutions to real world challenges. Founded in 1880 as the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, ASME is a not-for-profit professional organization that enables collaboration, knowledge sharing, and skill development across all engineering disciplines, while promoting the vital role of the engineer in society. ASME codes and standards, publications, conferences, continuing education, and professional development programs provide a foundation for advancing technical knowledge and a safer world. In 2020, ASME formed the International Society of Interdisciplinary Engineers (ISIE) LLC, a new for-profit subsidiary to house business ventures that will bring new and innovative products, services, and technologies to the engineering community, and later established the holding company, Global Knowledge Solutions LLC. In 2021, ASME launched a second for-profit subsidiary, Metrix Connect LLC, an industry events and content platform to accelerate digital transformation in the engineering community and an agent for the Mechanical Engineering® brand of media products. For more information, visit www.asme.org.