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Printer FriendlyRelease date: October 29, 1999
Contact: Greg Koller (509)
372-4864
Battelle names interim director, senior leadership changes at Pacific Northwest
RICHLAND, Wash. - Battelle has announced a series of senior leadership changes at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory following the Department of Energy's earlier-than-expected announcement that a partnership between Battelle and the University of Tennessee will manage Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee beginning early next year.
Adrian Roberts, who held several senior management positions at Pacific Northwest between 1985 and 1998, has been named interim director of the laboratory effective Nov. 1. Roberts will serve as interim director while Battelle continues its search for a permanent replacement for Dr. William Madia. Madia will leave immediately to begin transition activities at Oak Ridge.
At Pacific Northwest, Roberts served as deputy director of research between 1986 and 1989. In that position, he led the Molecular Sciences Research Center, which was to later become the William R. Wiley Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory. In 1995, Roberts was appointed as Pacific Northwest's director of economic development. Under his leadership, the laboratory's Economic Development Office developed a strong record in technology transfer and job creation in the Tri-Cities and Northwest.
In early 1998, Roberts was named associate laboratory director for applied science and technology at Brookhaven National Laboratory after a partnership between Battelle and State University of New York at Stony Brook was named to manage the lab in Upton, New York. At Brookhaven, Roberts managed 300 staff and oversaw an annual budget of $100 million. In May, Roberts retired from Battelle but has continued to serve as a senior consultant helping Battelle integrate work at the DOE laboratories it manages.
"The decision to appoint an interim director was made after DOE's earlier-than-expected announcement on the Oak Ridge contract," said Madia. "Originally, the Oak Ridge announcement was scheduled to be made in December and we anticipated transition to begin on Feb. 1, but the early announcement means we must begin transition activities sooner."
Battelle initiated its search for a director at Pacific Northwest early this year when Madia was named executive vice president at Battelle in charge of the company's DOE business, a job he will hold in conjunction with his Oak Ridge position.
The laboratory today also announced replacements for four other senior managers who soon will be leaving Pacific Northwest for Oak Ridge. The management changes announced today include:
- Don Boyd will replace Jeff Smith as deputy director for operations.
- John Lafemina will replace Kelly Beierschmitt as director of quality.
- Suzanne Davidson will replace Greg Turner as manager of business analysis.
- Juan Alvarez will replace Herb Debban as manager of facility operations.
- Battelle will search for a replacement for Steve Porter, manager of Pacific Northwest's Legal Office, who will become general counsel at Oak Ridge.
The effective date for these changes will depend on the transition schedule for each of the managers they are replacing. Currently, the transition at Oak Ridge is scheduled to begin in Jan. 2000.
Pacific Northwest is one of DOE's nine multiprogram national laboratories and conducts research in the fields of environment, energy, health sciences and national security. Battelle, based in Columbus, Ohio, has operated Pacific Northwest for DOE since 1965.
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