Renouard Lecture: David Leach on Composite Materials

Carbon fiber composites have been part of the aerospace industry for decades. David Leach discussed some of the thermoplastic composites produced in the Inland Northwest at a Renouard Lecture on Nov. 16, 2022.

Leach is director of business development for ATC Manufacturing, located in Post Falls, Idaho. He has spent most of his career advancing thermoplastic composites for high-performance applications, such as aircraft.

He also touched on the challenge of introducing new technologies into the market. New products and technologies may offer substantial long-term benefits but must overcome near-term challenges to gain customer acceptance and to implement into production.

Several students in the Engineering Management program also enjoyed a lunchtime discussion with Leach.

Leach's experience includes materials and process research, applications development, operations, new product introduction and business development. He has authored over 40 technical papers and two book chapters. He is a Fellow of the UK Institute of Materials and the US Society for the Advancement of Materials and Process Engineering.