November 27, 2023 by SME Last year, I had the immense honor of becoming a member of the Class of 2022 SME Fellows. This really made me pause and reflect on the major influence that SME has had on my career as well as my development as a leader in the aerospace, defense, and manufacturing sectors. I still remember receiving the email of my first invite to submit an abstract to the AeroDef 2010 technical sessions and thinking, “This could be a great opportunity for me!” Then a young Manufacturing Technology (ManTech) engineer working at Northrop Grumman Aerospace Systems, little did I know how much my life and career were about to change for the better. I submitted an abstract, which was later selected and presented at the show on a new approach to Adaptive Machining. Having presented oodles of times all over the world at conferences and customer events, it’s second nature to me now, but I still remember how terrified I was right before I took the stage in front of industry leaders and peers. I got through that fear and having done so I wouldn’t be the same person I am today had I not presented that day. It was right about this point that I was introduced to the benefits of additive manufacturing (3D printing) for aerospace applications, through my mentor Eric Barnes (who also happened to be heavily involved in SME leadership). After formulating, proposing, and managing several Contractual Research and Development (CRAD) and Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) programs, I became hooked. I would go home from work and build printers on my own to improve upon features that were lacking in available off-the-shelf systems, or that I wished were available for home use. I’d play in my garage developing methods for printing materials that had up to that point been deemed “unprintable.” It’s also right about that time when I really adopted and decided to live Ronald Reagan’s mantra of “It can be done.” Having anyone tell me something that can’t be done just motivates me that much more to find a solution and prove it, in fact, can be done. Fast forward to today, and I moved to work for Boeing in St. Louis, having worked in everything from materials and process engineering, composites R&D, electromagnetic materials and process development (lightning strike materials, frequency shielding materials, etc.), additive manufacturing materials and process development (name it and I’ve probably at least dabbled in it), technical integration for the F/A-18 program, and now sustainment of aerospace platforms using AM and other advanced manufacturing technologies. I say this not to provide a history of who I am and what I’ve done, but because none of this would have happened without Eric Barnes….and SME. After fighting through my first AeroDef/public speaking experience, I started volunteering as a session chair in composites and ManTech-related sessions. I started presenting more and eventually was asked to take on a Technical Advisor role for AeroDef. Today I serve as a technical advisor to RAPID+TCT and the Smart Manufacturing conferences as well, and I am serving in my second year on the SME Member Council, serving as a voice of industry to the SME board of directors. Everything I stated above about my career trajectory and experiences was molded by SME and SME involvement in my professional career. Eric Barnes has also taught me the true importance of mentorship, and today I work to carry that same mentality forward to my mentees, helping them to understand what truly makes them excited to go to work each day. Best Regards, Dan Braley, FSME, CAM-T
