20 Minutes With... Dr. Michael Kotzalas

Tribology & Lubrication Technology, Jan 2007 by Phipps, Karl M

This engineering specialist from the Timken Co. is developing new technology to reduce friction in bearings used in various machine applications.

Professional experience

* The Timken Co., Timken Industrial Business, Canton, Ohio, Technical Group Leader of Application and Design Engineering, 2005-present.

* The Timken Co., Timken Research, Canton, Ohio.

* Product Development Specialist, 2001-2005.

* Principal Product Development Engineer, 1999-2001.

* Engineering Intern, 1998.

* The Pennsylvania State University, Applied Research Laboratory, University Park, Pa., Research Assistant, 1996-1999.

* The Pennsylvania State University, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, University Park, Pa., Teaching Assistant, 1995-1996.

Education

* The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pa. Doctorate in Mechanical Engineering, 1999.

* The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pa. Master's of Science in Mechanical Engineering, 1997.

* The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pa. Bachelor's of Science in Mechanical Engineering, 1994.

Registration

* Professional Engineer, Ohio, No. 69637, 2004-present.

Professional Societies

* ASME, 1994-present.

- Secretary/Treasurer, Tribology Division, 2006 present.

- Contact Mechanics Technical Committee, 2005-present.

- Rolling Element Bearings Technical Committee, 2000-present.

- Publications Committee, 2002-2006 (Chairman, 2005-2006).

- Webmaster, Tribology Division, 2002-2005.

* STLE, 1997-present.

- Awards Committee, 2002-present. (Chairman, 2006-present).

- Bearings and Bearing Lubrication Technical Committee, 1999-present.

Awards and Honors

* STLE Walter D. Hudson Award, 2003 and 2006.

* ASME Journal of Tribology Best Paper Award, 2000.

What do you enjoy most about working for the world's third-largest bearing company?

I love working at Timken because there is always variety on the job, which comes in many different ways This variety is shown in Timken's flexibility in giving their employees the ability to move around and grow within the company. You are not bound to the particular path you started. One could easily move between R&D and the Automotive. Industrial or Steel Business units multiple times within his or her career.

In my case, after working as a product development specialist in corporate R&D for six years, I began a new position as technical group leader of application and design engineering in Timken's Industrial Business unit. Instead of focusing on technologies that enable new and innovative products and solutions, I am now applying them to help our customers' machinery achieve their design requirements.

Another form of Timken variety is that I get to work with many different types of applications serving different markets around the globe, sometimes within the same day. For example, I have been able to work on off-highway machinery such as drag lines, mine haul trucks, front loaders, motor graders, paving equipment and farm tractors and their implements; heavy industrial equipment such as metal casters, rolling mills and shears, paper mills, coilers and marine gearboxes; and consumer equipment such as treadmills, ATVs, snowmobiles and motorcycles. It is really interesting to see our customers' obstacles and design challenges across such a diverse range of equipment and market segments, each one requiring a different solution to achieve their goals and objectives.

Even when it is the same type of equipment, the regional requirements often can be very different. For example, farm tractors in the United States are primarily used on large, self-contained farms to pull heavy equipment that enables more ground cover in a single pass. Trucks are used when pulling trailers on and off the farm, so top-end tractor speed is not as much of an issue.

In Europe, farms are smaller and often disjointed, so lighter equipment is used in the fields. Also, the farmers do not use trucks to pull their trailers, so the tractor is frequently driven on the roadways at higher top speeds. This defines the tractor manufacturer's requirement for higher torque with lower speeds in North America and lower torque with higher speed capabilities in Europe, all with a desire to share common platforms and/or parts to help meet economic targets.

The last part of working at Timken that I enjoy is the different cultures I get to interact with on a daily basis. Working for a global company, I routinely coordinate efforts with my colleagues at our 13 technology centers, 23 distribution centers, 63 manufacturing plants and over 100 sales offices covering 27 different countries on six continents. This daily interaction includes telephone calls, video conferences and traveling for face-to-face meetings, so there are many opportunities to interact with people from different cultures around the globe.

Why did you decide to become an STLE member, and how has the society helped you to do your job better?

I joined STLE to network with members, whose research I followed when I was in college. I wanted the opportunity to meet those individuals and establish contacts to help me with my own research. Attending both the annual meeting and the International Joint Tribology Conference were great ways for me to do this. Hearing their research presented first hand and being able to ask questions and network made learning a lot easier.