Thomas Kurfess Begins Term as Newest ASME President

Thomas Kurfess has become ASME’s 142nd president. At the Society’s June 2023 annual meeting in St. Louis, Mo, the newest ASME leader expressed his eagerness to continue the important work of the Society and past presidents. “I want to make sure that current and future generations of mechanical engineers are poised to maximize their impact,” he said.
 
Kurfess is the chief manufacturing officer at Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta. Executive director of the school’s manufacturing institute, he is HUSCO Ramirez Distinguished Chair in Fluid Power and Motion Control and professor in mechanical engineering at George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering and past assistant director for advanced manufacturing at the U.S. Office of Science and Technology Policy.
 
An active member of ASME for more than 30 years, Kurfess has held a variety of volunteer positions, including member at large for the ASME Council on Standards and Certification and the ASME Committee on Government Relations, and chair of the ASME Manufacturing Public Policy Task Force. Kurfess earned a bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees in mechanical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge.
 

Environment of inclusion

 
Outgoing president, Karen Ohland, congratulated Kurfess and welcomed the governor nominees, Nicole Kaufmann Dyess, Dan Donahoe, Bill King, and Janis Terpenny. She conveyed her thanks to the Board of Governors and ASME Executive Director/CEO Tom Costabile, staff, and volunteers for their support throughout the past year.
 
As she handed over the leadership responsibility to Kurfess, she reflected on the past year and the ASME culture that kept its focus on one of her key goals—diversity, equity, and inclusion.
 
“Creating an environment of welcome and belonging that is grounded in mutual respect and collegiality among volunteers and staff,” is prioritized at ASME, she said. Kurfess is committed to continue to be consistent in ASME’s DEI efforts and “providing society with sorely needed mechanical engineers from all walks of life.” He articulated his focus on strategic priorities, as all presidents have in the past.
 
“The world needs more mechanical engineers now, more than ever. We will continue to support improving the human condition throughout the world by providing technical insight into a wide variety of pressing issues including climate change, the economy, and a secure and prosperous world,” he said.
 
For a complete interview with ASME’s president, make sure to check out the October/November issue of Mechanical Engineering.

Learn more about ASME's 142nd president and the nominees.