Alan Howard (August 19, 1905 – May 19, 1966)''Transactions of the Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers,'' Volume 74, 1967. p. 617 was an American

engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the l ...

, General Manager of the Gas Turbine Department at

General Electric Co. General Electric Company (GE) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in 1892, and incorporated in New York (state), New York state and headquartered in Boston. The company operated ...

, and inventor. He was known as "one of the world's leading authorities on the development and application of

gas turbines A gas turbine, also called a combustion turbine, is a type of continuous flow internal combustion engine. The main parts common to all gas turbine engines form the power-producing part (known as the gas generator or core) and are, in the directi ...

," and recipient of the 1964

ASME Medal The ASME Medal, created in 1920, is the highest award bestowed by the ASME (founded as the American Society of Mechanical Engineers) Board of Governors for "eminently distinguished engineering achievement". The award has been presented every year ...

Biography

Youth, education and early career

Howard was born in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

in 1905. He obtained his BSc in

Electrical Engineering Electrical engineering is an engineering discipline concerned with the study, design, and application of equipment, devices, and systems which use electricity, electronics, and electromagnetism. It emerged as an identifiable occupation in the l ...

from

Purdue University Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and money ...

in 1927.ASME,
3500 kW Gas Turbine at the Schenectady Plant of the General Electric Company
,'' November 8, 1984 After his graduation in 1927 Howard started his lifelong career at the General Electric Company in Schenectady, New York as electrical engineer. He advanced rapidly various positions, and moved into steam turbine activities in 1941.

Further career and acknowledgement

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

at General Electric Howard managed the development of aircraft gas turbine engine for the United States Air Force, and developed the TG 100 and TG 180 turboprop engine. After the war, Howard became responsible for the "development of all GE's heavy-duty, industrial gas turbines, including the first locomotive gas turbine in the United States."''Railway Age,'' Volume 160. 1966. p. 89 In 1949 Howard had been appointed assistant to the vice-president and general manager, and in 1951 he became appointed general manager of the gas turbine department.''Electrical Engineering,'' Volume 73. 1954. p. 832 Howard had been awarded the Charles E. Coffin Award by General Electric for his "accomplishments in connection with the design and development of the TG100 and TG180 aircraft gas turbines." In 1954 he was awarded the honorary degree of doctor of engineering by Purdue University. In 1962 he had been elected Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, and in 1964 he was awarded the

Selected publications

* Arthur H. Morey and Alan Howard,
Gas turbine power plant
" U.S. Patent No. 2,403,388. 2 Jul. 1946. * Alan Howard,
Gas turbine power plant with axial flow compressor
" U.S. Patent No. 2.548,886. April 17, 1951. * Alan, Howard, and Bruce O. Buckland.
Power plant frame structure having air-cooling means for turbine rotors and exhaust frame struts
" U.S. Patent No. 2,591,399. 1 Apr. 1952.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Howard, Alan 1905 births 1966 deaths American electrical engineers 20th-century American businesspeople Purdue University College of Engineering alumni People from Washington, D.C. ASME Medal recipients 20th-century American engineers