A.K. Velan: A Universal View of an Earthly Industry

Without these ubiquitous objects, we would have no electricity, no oil, no gas and no water. Most people don’t notice them, and if they do, rarely give them a second thought. It is fortunate, then, for the human race, that there are people who spend their lives thinking about them, inventing and perfecting them. Of course, we’re speaking about valves.

VMA Through the Eyes of Morris Beschloss

Morris Beschloss was the youngest incoming VMA Board member ever when he attended the VMA’s 25th Anniversary event at the Waldorf in New York City in 1963. In 1988, he was the speaker for the past chairmen in Washington, D.C.

These are but two of the milestones Beschloss has achieved since he first started work as an assistant sales manager at Hammond Valve Corp. in Hammond, IN. "It started when I got a call from Chuck Kennedy in 1960," he said. "He was chairman that year. He asked when I was going to be in New York. The Board of Directors would like to see you."

Keeping an Eye on Valves and More: Fluor’s Ron Merrick

Ron Merrick, P.E., is one of those increasingly rare individuals: he has spent his entire professional career at one company. Merrick has been at Fluor for 34 years and is currently director of piping material engineering and a Senior Fluor Fellow. In that capacity, he explains, “[I’m] the person at the corporate level who keeps an eye on valve requirements and other piping material; not just valves, but basically anything that’s round with liquid in it.” But his involvement in the industry runs deeper than his job at Fluor: he’s vice chair of the American Petroleum Institute’s Downstream Piping and Valves Manufacturers and Contractors subcommittee, and he’s president of the PVF Roundtable.

Engineering Woman: Lori Garrett of Eastman Chemical

From her early, trying days in construction to a challenging yet rewarding position as manager of the Eastman Valve Shop at the Eastman Chemical plant in Kingsport, TN, Lori Garrett’s career path shows there are no barriers—gender or otherwise—when you “go for it” with all your heart.

Manufacturing Woman: Colleen VanderVelde

With manufacturers facing shortages of skilled workers, women are being increasingly recruited to fill the gap. Meanwhile, the National Association of Manufacturers reports that the number of women-owned manufacturing firms has almost doubled in the past decade. Nearly one out of five firms is owned by women, and they employ one-sixth of the nation's manufacturing workforce.