Dr. Frank Liou, the Michael and Joyce Bytnar Professor and director of manufacturing engineering at Missouri S&T, has won the 2020 Frederick W. Taylor Research Medal from SME (formerly the Society of Manufacturing Engineers). The award honors significant published research leading to a better understanding of materials, facilities, principles and operations and their application to improve manufacturing processes. Liou’s research in hybrid additive manufacturing and advanced materials and the industrial impact of the research were the basis for the award, according to SME.

“This recognition for state-of-the-art additive manufacturing research would not have been possible without the top-notch colleagues and facilities I have at Missouri S&T,” Liou says. “I am honored to receive this recognition that is due in large part to our government-industry-academic collaborative ecosystem. To a large extent, my accomplishments reflect the feedback I have incorporated from various stakeholders.” 

Dr. Robert Landers, Curators’ Distinguished Professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at S&T, nominated Liou for the award.

“Frank has been the world’s leading researcher for the past two decades in the field of metal additive manufacturing, particularly blown metal powder processes, and the integration of metal additive manufacturing with machining,“ Landers says. “His truly pioneering contributions span the entire range of the field, from fundamental academic discovery to industrial implementation.”

Liou joined the Missouri S&T faculty in 1987. In addition to his work as director of the manufacturing engineering program, he is a senior research investigator with the Intelligent Systems Center and a faculty research investigator for both the Graduate Center for Materials Research and the Center for Research in Energy and Environment at S&T.

“Dr. Liou continues to exemplify outstanding leadership among his peers at Missouri S&T,” says Dr. Richard Wlezien, vice provost and dean of the College of Engineering and Computing. “The Taylor Research Medal recognizes Frank’s world-class contributions to our students and to the manufacturing industry. We are thrilled to have seen him grow his career while at S&T and are very fortunate to have him as a member of our team.”

Liou’s research interests include metal additive manufacturing process design, modeling, integration, monitoring and control, as well as computer aided design (CAD) and computer aided manufacturing (CAM). He is the author of Rapid Prototyping and Engineering Applications: A Toolbox for Prototype Development.