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ASC 2006 Conference – 21st Annual Technical Conference at University of Michigan-Dearborn

By Navid Zobeiry, Communications Editor, American Society for Composites, Last updated: April 24, 2025

The 21st Annual Technical Conference of the American Society for Composites (ASC) was held from September 17–20, 2006, at the Fairlane Center on the campus of the University of Michigan-Dearborn. Organized by the Center for Lightweighting Automotive Materials and Processing, the event brought together researchers, engineers, and students to share advances in composite mechanics, processing, multifunctionality, and design.

The conference hosted sessions on mechanics and experimental methods, fatigue and durability, manufacturing, joining and repair, as well as growing applications in nanocomposites, bio-composites, and education. A joint symposium on fatigue and fracture was organized in cooperation with ASTM Committee D30, emphasizing damage tolerance and certification methods.

For more details, you can access the full conference program below:

Keynote and Invited Highlights

  • Jim deVries (Ford Motor Company) – "The Future of Composites within the Automotive Industry"
    Discussed evolving composite usage in automotive manufacturing, highlighting the potential of carbon and natural fibers for lightweighting, and emphasized the need for cost-effective, high-volume production processes.
  • Larry B. Ilcewicz (Federal Aviation Administration) – "Safety & Certification Initiatives for Composite Airframe Structure"
    Presented the FAA’s Composite Safety & Certification Initiatives (CS&CI), addressing challenges in damage tolerance, bonding, maintenance, and standards, and emphasized the importance of industry-academia collaboration.
  • Keith T. Kedward (University of California, Santa Barbara) – "Integrating Composites Science & Technology into the University Design Curriculum"
    Shared case-based teaching strategies integrating composites into undergraduate and graduate curricula, using real-world applications to promote system-level thinking and innovation in design education.
  • Donald F. Adams (Wyoming Test Fixtures, Inc.) – "Test Methods and the Path to Standardization"
    Explored the spectrum of test standardization—from consensus-based ASTM to narrowly-defined consortia—and emphasized the complementary roles of both in defining meaningful test procedures for composites.

Awards and Recognitions

  • ASC Research Award: Dr. Robert L. Sierakowski (Air Force Research Laboratory)
  • ASC/DEStech Award: Dr. Charles E. Bakis (Penn State University)
  • ASC Fellows: Dr. W. Steven Johnson and Dr. Erian Armanios (Georgia Tech)
  • Best Paper Award – Emerging Composites Technology Division:
    “Electrospinning of Submicron Polyacrylonitrile Fibers Containing Vapor Grown Carbon Nanofibers”
    Authors: Dr. Hoa Lam, Dr. Frank K. Ko, Dr. Henry H. Ye, Dr. Yury Gogotsi
  • ASC PhD Scholarship Award:
    • Richard J. Cross (Georgia Tech, Advisor: Dr. Erian Armanios)
    • Samer A. Tawfik (Georgia Tech, Advisor: Dr. Erian Armanios)

Conference Themes

Technical sessions covered structural analysis, fracture mechanics, fatigue, multiscale modeling, nano-engineering, manufacturing, and real-world composite applications. Special emphasis was placed on education and certification pathways, long-term durability, and the use of experimental mechanics for validation.

Organizing Committee

  • Conference Chair: Prof. P.K. Mallick
  • Conference Co-Chairs: Dr. Ronald Krueger (ASTM Co-Chair), Prof. G.T. Kridli, Prof. G. Reyes
ASC 2006 conference website

Screenshot of the ASC 2006 conference website hosted by UM-Dearborn