Richard Freeman

IEST mourns the loss of Richard "Johnny" Freeman. Johnny passed away on April 22, 2022 in Springfield, Ohio. He was 89. Johnny was an IEST member since 1979 and an IEST Greater Ohio Chapter officer. He earned a mechanical engineering degree from the University of Dayton in 1968. For more than 40 years, Johnny used his engineering degree working at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. Johnny was passionate about continuing education, photography and Formula One car racing.

   

Lucy E. Belonger

Former IEST staff member Lucy E. Belonger passed away on May 2, 2022 in her northern Alabama home. She was 95. Lucy was the exhibit and membership coordinator at IEST in the 1980s and early 1990s. She received the IEST President's Award for outstanding work in 1991, specifically for her excellent contributions that led to an increase in membership and an increase in attendees and exhibitors at IEST's annual technical conference that year. Lucy retired from IEST in May 1991. 

   

Michael L. Mendias

Michael L. Mendias, P.E., an IEST member since 1975, passed away on January 7, 2022. His contributions to IEST include serving as IEST’s Southwest chapter president, authoring papers published in the Journal of the IEST, presenting at several annual conferences, and serving on annual technical meeting and program committees. In 1993, Michael received the IEST Fred Hermann Memorial Award. Michael spent the last 27 years of his career as environmental manager at Triumph Aerostructures, a successor company to Vought Aircraft Company.

   
 

David C. Swinehart

IEST Fellow David Swinehart, 86, passed away February 12, 2022 in Kokomo, Indiana. He left a work legacy of leadership, dedication, and innovation for his contributions to the industrial cleanroom field. David worked as an engineer for The Boeing Company, the Stellite Division of the Cabot Corp., and for Delco Electronics. An IEST member since 1969, David helped to create standards for cleanrooms as a voting member of several working groups. He was the recipient of several IEST awards: the Robert L. Mielke Award in 2012 for outstanding contributions to IEST's development of standards and practices; the Al Lieberman Mentoring Award in 2011 for mentoring and sharing his expertise; the Willis J. Whitfield Award in 1996 for substantial contributions to the contamination control field through published papers, studies and reports; and the James R. Mildon Award in 1990 for advancing the field of contamination control. David was also affectionately known by his colleagues as a compulsive editor, proofreader, and punster.

   

Herbert Egbert

IEST Fellow Herbert Egbert, 79, passed away in December 2020 in Glibert, Arizona. Herbert was an expert of the widely used Military Standard 810, publishing the popular “History and Rationale of MIL-STD-810,” a treatise prepared exclusively for IEST with background and analysis to assist in the interpretation and application of the test method standard. He became an IEST member in 1981 and was a voting member of IEST Working Group 043 of the IEST Design, Test, and Evaluation Division, which reviews current environmental testing guidance and recommends improvements to MIL-STD-810. Herbert was the 2000 recipient of IEST’s Dr. Irwin Vigness Memorial Award, presented for substantial contributions to the fields of shock and vibration through published papers, studies, and reports.

   

John Sexton Sr. 

The IEST community mourns the loss of John Sexton Sr. He was a long-time member of IEST and was awarded a Fellowship in 1961. John founded Sexton Industries and was the 1984 recipient of the U.S. Small Business Award for Excellence. After retirement, he remained active in the industry and formed Sexton Corporation, an engineering consulting firm. John passed away at age 95 on June 17, 2021.  

   

George H. Cadwell

IEST is saddened to learn of the passing of George H. Cadwell last year. George died August 21, 2019, at age 81. He was distinguished as a Fellow of IEST in 2008 for his many contributions and accomplishments to his field. George was a major contributor to establishing Flanders as the leading HEPA filter manufacturer as he is the holder and/or inventor of six U.S. patents related to cleanroom technology. George also wrote numerous magazine and trade journal articles, and recently co-authored “American Dream, From Coasters to Containment: a Memoir of Flanders Filters, Inc.”

   

Joseph W. Ross

IEST mourns the passing of IEST Senior Member Joseph W. Ross, a member of IEST for 35 years. Joseph passed away May 27, 2020, at age 71.

   

Robert Giroux

It is with great sadness IEST announces the passing of Senior Member Robert Giroux from Certifab, Inc. Bob was considered by many to be an industry pioneer and professional mentor. He was a long-time contributor to IEST, devoted to advancing the industry through recommended practices and standards and presenting at conferences. Bob was a voting member and observer of many IEST Working Groups. He was a frequent attendee of ESTECH and EDUCON (IEST Fall Conference), a member of the Journal of the IEST Editorial Board, and an ESTECH session presenter. He passed away September 3, 2020 at the age of 63.

   
 

David P. Taylor

The IEST community mourns the loss of Member David P. Taylor from NASA Langley Research Center. He passed away on September 7, 2020 at the age of 63.

   

Harry Himelblau

The IEST community mourns the recent passing of Harry Himelblau. Harry was a long-time IEST member and supporter of IEST. He was awarded the Dr. Irwin Vigness Memorial Award in 1991. In 1996, he was awarded IEST Fellowship. Harry also was awarded the John D. Campbell Space Simulation Award in 2007 and the Maurice Simpson Technical Editors Award in 1990, 1997, and 2014. He passed away on January 7, 2020 at the age of 92.

   

Col. Ben H. Swett, Ret.

It is with deep sadness we announce the passing of IEST Honorary Fellow, Col. Ben H. Swett, Ret., who died on July 20, 2019 at the age of 84. Col. Swett served in the Air Force for more than 30 years. During the 1970s, he served as a development engineer and research director at Air Force Systems Command Headquarters at Andrews AFB in Maryland and at the Pentagon as Assistant for Reliability and Maintainability in the Office of the Secretary of Defense. In the latter role, he wrote and coordinated the Department of Defense Directive on Reliability and Maintainability of systems and equipment. He was awarded an IEST Honorary Fellowship in 1981 "for scientific study and analysis of the deficiencies in military hardware reliability development and the courageous pursuit of corrective action on both technical and adminstrative fronts."

   
 

David B. Horne

The IEST community mourns the loss of Retired Member David B. Horne. David was a longtime member of IEST and a Working Group voting member. He passed away on August 15, 2019 at the age of 66.

   

Robert Geminder

IEST mourns the passing of Robert Geminder, an aerospace engineer and IEST Executive Board President from 1978-79. Robert, born in Wroclaw, Poland, and a Holocaust survivor, died on January 27 in the Los Angeles, California area at age 83.

 

   

Philip Marshall

We mourn the loss of IEST Fellow Philip Marshall, an active supporter and generous contributor to IEST for several decades. In 1989, Philip became an IEST Fellow and in 1992 was the recipient of the Dr. Irwin Vigness Memorial Award. He served in leadership roles including IEST Board Vice President as well as president and national director of the Boston chapter. He was the founder of M/RAD Corporation--once the world's largest manufacturer of mechanical vibration shakers, shock machines, and other related equipment. Philip died on June 20 at age 84. 

   

Carl LaBella

IEST mourns the passing of Carl LaBella, Senior Member and Working Group Voting Member of IEST. Carl's experience at CSI Testing made him a nationally recognized expert on performance testing and engineering controls, used in medical technology and sterile drug preparation. He passed away May 4, 2018 at the age of 62. 

   

Wayne Tustin

We mourn the loss of IEST Fellow Wayne Tustin, a dedicated member since 1961. Throughout his career, Wayne was a voting member of several IEST working groups and was involved in teaching vibration and shock testing for 70 years. He spent the beginning of his career at Boeing and MB Electronics, and later formed two companies: Tustin Institute of Technology and Equipment Reliability Institute. Wayne died on May 10 at age 95.

   
Milena Krasich

The IEST community mourns the loss of Milena Krasich. Milena was a longtime member and the first woman to be named a Fellow of IEST. She was a past IEST Board President, served as a Technical Editor for the Journal, and was a chair of an IEST Working Group for Product Reliability. Milena was recognized for her contributions as recipient of several IEST awards, including the Exceptional Woman Contributor Award. She passed away on March 21, 2018.
   
  Frank M. Tillou

The IEST community mourns the loss of Retired Member Frank M. Tillou. Frank was a longtime member of IEST and a member of the Southern California Chapter. He passed away on March 16, 2017 at the age of 87.
 
   
  Mike S. Hartman

IEST mourns the loss of Senior Member Mike Hartman. Mike was a longtime ESTECH attendee and served on several Working Groups. He was owner and President of T.E.S.T. Technology.
   

Frank Hallstein

IEST Past-President Frank Hallstein Sr. passed away on Thanksgiving Day, November 24, 2016, at the age of 90. Hallstein was born in Tarrytown, New York and graduated from Kings Point Merchant Marine Academy with a master’s degree in science and engineering. He then served as an officer Lt (JG) in the U.S. Navy. After the Navy, Halletstein worked as an engineer at Dayton Brown, Bell Aircraft, Bendix Systems, TRW, Hughes and Litton Industries. He was the president of the Institute of Environmental Sciences in 1973.

   

Peter F. Harrington

The IEST community is mourning the loss of IEST Senior Member Peter F. Harrington. Harrington passed away June 23, 2016. A Navy veteran, Peter worked for Raytheon for 32 years and was listed as an inventor on several patents. “He will be missed throughout the industry,” writes mentee and IEST Senior Member Bill Wilson. Harrington and his wife served as foster parents for 33 years.

   
 

Charles “Chuck” Farrington

The IEST community is mourning the loss of member Charles “Chuck” Farrington. He passed away on August 3, 2015, at the age of 54. Chuck was an active voting member of several IEST Working Groups. Read more.

   

David L. Earls

IEST Greater Ohio Chapter (GOH) Emeritus Member, David L. Earls, passed away on Saturday, June 6, 2015, at the age of 87. David joined IEST in 1961, was active in the Greater Ohio Chapter, and was distinguished as an IEST Fellow in 1987 for his expertise and accomplishments. Read more

   
 

George Olear

The IEST community is saddened by the passing of George G. Olear II, Saturday, June 6, 2015. George had been an active member of IEST since 1985, serving as the President of IEST from 1998 to 1999. He was also the President and Treasurer of the Boston Chapter and a National Director. Read more.

   

David W. Crosby

IEST members were deeply saddened to learn of the passing of David W. Crosby on April 23, 2015. David’s jovial spirit and willingness to share his vast knowledge made him an immensely popular member of IEST and a friend to countless colleagues.

David was awarded the title of IEST Fellow in 2012. David’s many honors included the IEST Willis J. Whitfield award (for substantial contributions to the field of contamination control) and Robert L. Mielke award (presented to a member of the IEST Working Group program who has made significant and substantial contributions to the development of Recommended Practices in the Contamination Control Division). He also received the prestigious Mel First award from the Controlled Environment Testing Association (CETA).

David was active in the air filtration and respirator industry for more than 50 years. He began his career with Air Techniques International (ATI) in 1962 and retired in 2010, but remained on with ATI as a consultant. David was involved in the design of the first portable aerosol photometer and held several patents on photometers. He was a contributing author for various trade publications, wrote and presented many technical papers, and lectured on HEPA filtration theory, aerosol generators, and aerosol photometers.

   

Henry C. Pusey, IEST Fellow

It is with great regret that we announce the passing of Henry C. Pusey on December 11, 2014. He was 87.

An IEST member since 1961, he received the Irwin Vigness Award from IEST in 1974, and became a Fellow of IEST in 1984. He was known to many as the “godfather” of the Shock and Vibration Symposium and serving as a major leader among several other forums during his career.

   
Scott Carpenter, Space Explorer Scott Carpenter

Renowned astronaut Malcolm Scott Carpenter, one of the seven astronauts selected for NASA’s Project Mercury in 1959, died October 10, 2013, at the age of 88. An IEST member since 1965, Carpenter was named an Honorary Fellow in 1967.

As the fourth American in space, Carpenter flew the second US orbital spaceflight in 1962. Later in his NASA career, Carpenter worked on developing underwater training to help astronauts with spacewalk. Upon leaving NASA in 1967, he joined the US Navy as Director of Aquanaut Operations for SEALAB III. He subsequently founded Sea Sciences, Inc., a corporation focusing on utilizing ocean resources and improving environmental health. Fellow Mercury 7 astronaut John Glenn said of Carpenter, “History books will remember him as an explorer of the heavens and the seas.”

In recent years, Carpenter joined other space-race astronauts to advocate retaining the US manned spaceflight program. The astronauts co-signed a statement asserting: “NASA must continue at the frontiers of human space exploration in order to develop the technology and set the standards of excellence that will enable commercial space ventures to eventually succeed.”
   
Howard Gaberson, IEST Faculty Member
We were sorry to hear of the death of Howard Gaberson, IEST member and instructor on the topic of Pseudo Velocity Shock Analysis, on June 9, 2013. A shock and vibration specialist for more than 45 years, Dr. Gaberson published more than 110 papers and reports, with recent work on time frequency signal processing of machinery vibrations and the use of shock spectra for evaluation of explosion-induced equipment motion. In his early career, he taught at Lowell Technological Institute, Boston University, and the University of Hawaii. As senior technologist for the US Navy Civil Engineering Laboratory (NCEL) from 1968-1993 and the Naval Facilities Engineering Service Center from 1993-2000, his primary focus was dynamics research. At NCEL he also served as division director and project manager.

His friends at the Shock and Vibration Exchange (SAVE) and HI-TEST Laboratories remember:
Known to most as "Howie" and easily recognized by his signature vest … Howie was a great friend, teacher, and pioneer in the shock and vibration community. The Lifetime Achievement Award (in shock and vibration) was presented to Dr. Gaberson in November of 2007 at the 78th Shock and Vibration Symposium in recognition of a career dedicated to the improved understanding of shock and vibration processes. This award recognized his contributions and advancements spanning the width and breadth of shock and vibration research, particularly his work in evolving the shock spectrum pseudo-velocity as a central concept for assessment of equipment fragility.
   
Scott Berger, IEST Senior Member

Scott Berger, Senior Member and long-time contributor to IEST, died Wednesday, April 10, 2013, at age 60. Scott was active in cleanroom testing and IEST activities associated with contamination control. Scott joined IEST in 1993, served as a voting member of 12 IEST Working Groups, and actively participated in many others. His knowledge and efforts made our professional lives better.

A graduate of North Carolina State University, Scott entered the contamination control industry working with CCI, Inc. of Lansdale, PA, a manufacturer of biological safety cabinets and clean air equipment. After leaving CCI, he worked briefly with Forma Scientific in sales and then joined ENV Services, Inc., of Hatfield, Pennsylvania. He worked with ENV Services in its cleanroom testing group for more than 20 years, throughout the United States and internationally in Singapore and Ireland. He worked in all phases of cleanroom testing from scanning filters, to running complex projects and overseeing certification reports. He trained, consulted, and supported many aspects of cleanroom certification and operation in pharmaceutical manufacturing, microelectronics fabrication, and more. He was a master of his craft and well respected in the profession.
   
Bob Wiley In Memoriam Bob Wiley

Robert G. Wiley, 81, passed away Friday, January 11, 2013. Bob spent over four decades in the environmental test chamber field. He was vice president at Thermotron Corporation, Sexton Industries, and ESPEC, all major manufacturers of environmental chambers. He was well known nationally and internationally and conducted product support seminars worldwide. He was truly a pioneer in the industry.
   
Sallie W. Pusey

IEST mourns the loss of Sallie Winslow Cummings Pusey, 87, who died Wednesday, January 2, 2013, in her home.

As the matriarch of many shock and vibration forums since 1973, Pusey left a lasting mark on the people of the Shock & Vibration community. Along with her husband, Pusey was a fixture at the annual S & V symposium for almost 40 years. In addition to her symposium duties, she served as course registrar for multiple S & V shock courses for multiple organizations for over a decade. Pusey was also an Executive Secretary for the Public Health and Visiting Nurses Association for Connecticut State. She received the “Appreciation Award in Shock and Vibration” in 2008 in recognition of decades of service to the S & V community.
   

In Memorial Dr. Willis Whitfield, IEST

In Memorial Dr. Willis Whitfield, IEST

Willis Whitfield

Everyone connected with IEST is saddened to learn of the passing of Willis Whitfield on November 12, 2012. In 2011, Dr. Whitfield was named a Fellow of IEST “For his pioneering breakthrough of the laminar flow cleanroom, which led to orders-of-magnitude improvements in manufacturing capabilities, cleanliness, and the protection of life from airborne hazards.” IEST also honors Dr. Whitfield each year by presenting the annual Willis J. Whitfield Award to worthy recipients for substantial contributions to the field of contamination control through published papers, studies, and reports.

From 1954 to 1984, Dr. Whitfield worked as a physicist at Sandia National Laboratories and was project leader for advanced development studies of microwave propagation measurements, contamination control, and cleanroom development. His idea to supply air to a cleanroom in a unidirectional flow instead of moving the air randomly about the room led to the construction of a model of the Whitfield cleanroom 1961. The idea was patented in 1964, and the introduction of contamination-free laboratories enabled the miniaturization of electronic and mechanical components, leading to our current cell phones, laptop computers, and the emerging field of nanotechnology.

Among his many honors, Dr. Whitfield was recognized by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers with the Holley Medal for the unique concept of the laminar flow cleanroom principle, and CleanRooms Magazine honored him as its first Hall of Fame inductee.

   
Robert Peck

IEST Fellow Robert (Bob) Peck died August 10, 2012, at age 90. Peck was respected as a pioneer in the concepts of cleanroom technology. In 1960 Peck founded Controlled Environment Corporation, the first company to offer turnkey construction of the new concept of cleanrooms for space, electronic, medical, and other industries.

Peck was a member of IEST for 47 years and was heavily involved in the early development of the IEST Standards and Practices program. Peck received IEST’s Monroe Seligman Award (1984) and Robert L. Mielke Award (2006). He also was an early inductee of the Clean Rooms Hall of Fame, served as Executive Vice President of the American Association for Contamination Control, and was a member of ASME and ASHRAE.
   

Walter Edwin Willing

IEST mourns the passing of Walter Willing on July 28th, 2012. He was a longtime member of IEST. Willing provided outstanding representation for the IEST Product Reliability Division in his role on the Reliability and Maintainability Symposium (RAMS) management committee. He was active in the IEEE and Reliability and Maintenance Society of Engineers. He also volunteered as a coach for the IEEE Robot College and Discover-E program to foster high school students interested in engineering.

Willing was the author of numerous papers, with the most recent presented at the 2012 RAMS. He was working on another paper for the 2013 RAMS at the time of his death. He was a fixture at ATL where his contributions led to the success of numerous space systems with his innovative redundancy schemes and protection circuits that made their way into every payload delivered over the last two decades. He will be dearly missed for both his knowledge and wit.