Richard A. Hartlein has been named the new director of the National Electric Energy Testing Research and Applications Center (NEETRAC) at Georgia Tech. A principal research engineer at NEETRAC, Hartlein has served as the center's interim co-director since Hans B. Püttgen retired from Georgia Tech in March 2006.

"Given his background and experience, Rick is uniquely qualified to lead NEETRAC to a preeminent position in the field of electric energy research," said Gary S. May, Steve W. Chaddick School Chair of the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering.
For the first 20 years of his career, Hartlein worked at the Georgia Power Research Center. In 1996, he came to Georgia Tech to help establish NEETRAC, a merger of the Georgia Power Research Center and Georgia Tech's research and instructional programs in electric power.

While at Tech, Hartlein has served as the center's underground systems program manager, where he develops and manages research and testing projects related to electric utility underground cable systems and markets NEETRAC to prospective members. A graduate of Tech's Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering, Hartlein also serves in several leadership roles in industry technical organizations related to this field.

One of the world's foremost electric energy research and testing centers, NEETRAC has 31 industrial members, both manufacturers and utilities, involved in the transmission and distribution of electric energy. NEETRAC electric utility members provide more than 50 percent of the electric energy used by U.S. consumers. Members collaborate in baseline projects of broad interest to the membership, and they may also direct a portion of their membership to projects that focus on their individual needs. In addition to the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, the Schools of Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Industrial and Systems Engineering, Materials Science and Engineering and Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI) are also involved in NEETRAC activities.