IFPS ANNOUNCES 2020 HALL OF FAME special award was established to acknowledge individuals who have dedicated their careers and have made significant contributions to fluid power technology. This year’s host, the International Fluid Power Society, is excited to announce the induction of the 2020 class. “The Fluid Power Hall of Fame recognizes the lifelong contributions of individuals whose innovative ideas, entrepreneurial spirit, and hard work have significantly contributed to the continuing success of the fluid power industry,” said Rance Herren, Hall of Fame committee chair. “The inductees for the 2020 class were selected from a slate of outstanding candidates, and I am, along with the selection committee, truly thrilled to honor these visionary and influential leaders.” Nominations were open Jan. 1 to April 15 to any individual, living or deceased, who demonstrated excellence within their 25-plus year fluid power career. A six-member selection committee from diverse segments of the industry chose the inductees based on their contributions to the fluid power industry using a subjective and objective evaluation system.
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BIOGRAPHIES
GEORGE BENIEK
ALAN HITCHCOX
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AUGUST 2020
TO SAY GEORGE BENIEK has participated in the widest, most unusual fluid power applications during more than 60 years in the industry is an understatement. From being the first employee of 1961’s brand new Char-Lynn Test Lab, to hydraulically controlling and rotating a 24-foot theater stage, to coordinating the combined development efforts of the University of Minnesota with Eaton Corporation to create an energy-efficient fluid power-operated Plymouth Valore, George has certainly traversed beyond the normal breadth of the field! George holds the patent for inventing Eaton’s low-speed-high-torque hydraulic motor. A veteran who served with the U.S. Army in Korea, George serves the Chanhassen American Legion Post and volunteers on its annual Fishing for Life summer veteran-family outings on Lake Minnetonka. But perhaps the accomplishment of which George is most proud is his role as cofounder overseer of the Minneapolis-St. Paul IFPS Chapter 5 Past President’s Scholarship Fund. This one-year, full scholarship, awarded to a second-year fluid power student at one of four Minnesota colleges, has been awarded annually for 20 years and accounts for cumulative awards totaling nearly $100,000. AFTER 33 YEARS as writer and editor at Hydraulics & Pneumatics magazine, Alan Hitchcox notes, “The most indelible aspect of my career: all the great people I’ve met and with whom I’ve worked”. Alan’s leadership at the periodical promoted the fluid power industry and advanced the cause of hydraulic and pneumatic power transmission and emerging technologies across a broad range of industries. Alan has served as the committee chair for NFPA’s Electronic Sensors Committee and edited NFPA’s Recommended Practices for both pressure and linear-displacement transducers. Not content with merely industry impact, Alan edited and appeared in episode 15, season 10, “Hydraulics,” of the popular television program “Modern Marvels.” Having started his career in publishing as assistant editor for Power Transmission Design magazine in 1981, Alan also organized technical seminars on fluid power technology and presented technical papers at IFPE. “I did not seek a career in fluid power,” Alan said. “Rather, after I fell into it, I developed a passion to learn as much as I could and have always found the wide variety of applications astounding.”
For more information, visit www.FluidPowerHallofFame.org.
HENRY HAVER
WINNER OF 2019’S Coolest Thing Made in Michigan award, Henry “Bud” Haver culminates his 25-year tenure with Peninsular Cylinder of Roseville, Michigan, as its president of seven years. Peninsular’s custom booster cylinder won the second annual Coolest award, sponsored by the Michigan Manufacturers Association, from a field of 10 extremely diverse contest finalists of Michigan things. He is largely responsible for Peninsular Cylinder’s expansion over three decades as well as its solid internal training program. With 42 years in fluid power, Bud earned Certified Fluid Power Specialist Certification in 1994 and subsequently earned Certified Solid Works Associate status. Bud recently joined the NFPA’s Cylinder Standards Committee. He has served on Macomb Community College’s Business Advisory Council, contributed to the publication “Basic Hydraulics – Component and Circuit Design, Operation, & Analysis,” and authored numerous fluid power periodical articles. Bud also directed development of Peninsular’s strong engineering and manufacturing team and led the company’s development and implementation of an ISO-9001:2015 quality system.
The Fluid Power Hall of Fame recognizes the lifelong contributions of individuals whose innovative ideas, entrepreneurial spirit, and hard work have significantly contributed to the continuing success of the fluid power industry. WWW.FLUIDPOWERJOURNAL.COM • WWW.IFPS.ORG
