Bill R. Appleton, associate director for the Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) at the Department of Energy's (DOE's) Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), has announced the selection of Carl N. Strawbridge as project manager of the SNS Project. The appointment was effective Sept. 1.
Strawbridge, who most recently was vice president for quality and information systems at VP Buildings, Inc., in Memphis, has extensive experience in project and industrial facility management as an engineering specialist in the U.S. Navy.
ORNL is the prime contractor and proposed site for the SNS, which will be the world's most powerful source of pulsed neutron beams for materials research. The project to design and build the SNS is scheduled for completion in 2005.
"Because the SNS Project involves the collaboration of five Department of Energy laboratories, exceptional management skills will be required to maintain cost and schedule and coordinate the various technical aspects of the project," Appleton said. "We believe that Mr. Strawbridge brings the training, skills and experience needed to accomplish this demanding task. His strong track record in successful cost and schedule management of complex technical systems, such as nuclear submarine construction and repair, is particularly relevant to the needs of the SNS Project."
A native of Baltimore, Strawbridge has a B.S. degree in economics from the U.S. Naval Academy and M.S. degrees in both mechanical engineering and Naval architecture from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He completed the Executive Program at the Darden Business School at the University of Virginia. He is a registered professional engineer.
Strawbridge has 26 years of experience organizing and directing diverse project teams, managing large engineering operations, overseeing construction projects, and managing all site, business and financial functions of large organizations in both the Navy and the private sector. He also has skills in strategic planning and information systems.
As commander of the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, Maine, Strawbridge managed more than 4,000 workers with an annual budget of $332 million, negotiated with the unions, and interacted with the community and members of Congress. In previous assignments he was a hands-on project manager who planned, organized, managed and completed numerous complex engineering projects.
ORNL, one of DOE's multiprogram national research and development facilities, is managed by Lockheed Martin Energy Research.
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