The Georgia Institute of Technology was honored by Boeing on April 18 for its exceptional performance and contributions to the company’s overall success during 2011.

Georgia Tech was one of 16 organizations to receive a Boeing Supplier of the Year Award. The Institute was selected from a pool of more than 17,500 Boeing suppliers in more than 50 countries.

Georgia Tech was honored in the category of Academia, which recognizes outstanding performance as a strategic university. As one of Boeing's eight strategic universities, Georgia Tech provides increased knowledge and understanding of fluid flow, advanced manufacturing technology, design and aircraft technology through basic and applied research, which is based in Georgia Tech's Manufacturing Research Center (MaRC).

The Boeing award recognizes multidisciplinary research by Georgia Tech Mechanical Engineering Professors Steve Danyluk and Ari Glezer, Industrial & Systems Engineering Professor Leon McGinnis, Aerospace Engineering Professor Dimitri Mavris and College of Computing Professor Henrik Christensen. 

Boeing supports various research activities at Georgia Tech related to manufacturing technologies, such as control and control systems on cranes, mobile platforms and robotics for moving parts in a factory environment and active flow control for wing tips, said Danyluk, professor and Morris M. Bryan Jr. Chair in Mechanical Engineering for Advanced Manufacturing Systems.

“I am very pleased that Boeing has expressed their confidence and support in Georgia Tech by providing the resources to conduct research and development on manufacturing problems of critical significance to their business,” said Danyluk, former director of MaRC. “Our faculty are excited and energized by the Supplier of the Year Award, and we'll continue to excel in developing the tools and processes that will keep the U.S. in a lead position in manufacturing sciences."

Other professors and research engineers from across campus who help support Georgia Tech's work for Boeing include Bert Bras, Jon Colton, Bill Singhose, Rick Cowan, Shreyes Melkote, Russell Peak, Chris Paredis, Tina Guldberg, Marc Goetschalckx, Joshua Vaughn, Frank Mess and Andrew Dugenske. 

The Boeing global supply chain is among the most geographically dispersed in manufacturing. The company annually purchases more than $50 billion in goods and services from approximately 28,000 suppliers that employ more than 1.2 million people around the world.

“In today’s challenging business environment, an agile supply chain that continuously delivers excellent performance is critical,” said Jack House, vice president of Supplier Management for Boeing Defense, Space and Security and the leader of Boeing’s companywide Supplier Management program. “The supplier partners receiving 2011 Supplier of the Year Awards have demonstrated outstanding commitment to providing our customers with the best-value, highest-quality products and services, while meeting the customers’ requirements and anticipating their needs for the future.”