:: Chris Twigge-Molecey Receives Most Prestigious Award in Canadian Metallurgy

CIM past president Chris Twigge-Molecey is this year's recipient of the Airey Award, the most prestigious award in Canadian metallurgy, which will be presented by the Metallurgy and Materials Society (MetSoc) of CIM on Aug. 25, 2015. The Airey Award is given to industry leaders for outstanding individual contribution based on at least 15 years of input, including research and development, process development, technology or industrial leadership.

Twigge-Molecey, who is currently a senior advisor at Hatch, is being recognized for his diverse body of work for 43 years at Hatch, including roles as the managing director responsible for China, Latin America, and technologies. “I’ve had four or five different careers at Hatch,” said Twigge-Molecey, who has a PhD in mechanical engineering. “The first 20 years were very technical, when all my patents were generated and I was deeply involved in project work. Then I got into the management side, building international business operations primarily in Russia, South America, and China.” That included his extensive involvement in the Canada-China Business Council. He is the third Hatch employee to receive the Airey Award. Founder Gerry Hatch received it in 1986, and executive director Bert Wasmund did a decade later. "I am honoured to be in such esteemed company as the previous Airey recipients – giants in the metallurgical industry," said Twigge-Molecey. Reflecting on his career highlights, he noted that "I am most proud of my arsenic removal patent" developed earlier in his career. Today, he and other Hatch engineers are in the process of evolving that patent into an upgraded arsenic fixation technology for such applications as South American copper deposits where arsenic needs to be stabilized.

Chris Twigge-Molecey

Sina Mostaghel, award chair, Non-Ferrous Pyrometallurgy executive committee, MetSoc, nominated Twigge-Molecey for the Airey Award. "As a firm believer in technology transfer, training and mentoring of young professionals, Chris has worked as an adjunct professor of mechanical engineering and has published more than 40 papers and edited six books,” most recently, Metallurgical Plant Design.

The Airey Award will be presented at the MetSoc awards banquet and reception as part of the Conference of Metallurgists (COM 2015) hosted by CIM.

Twigge-Molecey will also give a talk at COM 2015 on “50 Years of Evolution of Metallurgical Engineering Companies in Canada” – one of 20 Hatch experts who presented there, including Nils Voermann, global managing director of technologies.