Celebrating Professor Emeritus John Lippold this month
The Department of Materials Science and Engineering celebrates Professor Emeritus John C. Lippold this month — the month of his birthday.
John came to Columbus in 1985 to join Edison Welding Institute and began as an adjunct professor at Ohio State in 1986, teaching courses in Welding Metallurgy and Weldability when there was a standalone Department of Welding Engineering. Dr. Lippold transitioned to a full-time faculty member nine years later -- shortly after The Department of Welding Engineering was absorbed into the newly created Department of Industrial, Welding and Systems Engineering.
In 2013, John became the Director of The Manufacturing and Materials Joining Innovation Center (Ma2JIC), which is led by Ohio State. Having launched in 2010, John was instrumental in establishing this NSF Industry and University Cooperative Research Center (IUCRC) dedicated to materials joining innovation in industries ranging from energy generation to aerospace, automotive and defense. Ma2JIC has grown to become the nation’s largest IUCRC based on membership revenue. It currently includes over 40 member organizations and five university partners who support nearly 60 faculty and students whose research focuses on materials joining, additive manufacturing, and other aspects of materials science.
Professor Lippold was awarded Emeritus status in 2016. His tenure at Ohio State included many research milestones, and his courses were taken by hundreds of future welding engineers. Among his many accomplishments, and one that he is most proud of, is the development of the graduate-level distance education program in Welding Engineering. It was launched during the 2003 academic year and is ranked among the nation’s best graduate programs.
A professor’s purpose is fulfilled when society benefits from the highly capable, industry-ready individuals trained by experts like Professor Emeritus Lippold. John’s legacy as a welding engineering educator is deeply rooted in his own academic pursuits which earned him a BS, MS and PhD from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. His passion for the welding engineering discipline is qualified by the sixty (+) graduate students he advised. He continues to advise several graduate students in the program and can be found teaching at Ohio State on a part-time basis.
Welding engineering still drives John to write. In addition to being the editor-in-chief of the international journal Welding in the World, he has authored several books, including a series on Welding Metallurgy. He is currently working on another book titled Welding Metallurgy and Weldability of Lightweight Alloys. In addition to his continued commitment to the Welding Engineering program, Dr. Lippold also serves as a consultant to a number of organizations.
When he is not focused on welding engineering, John enjoys participating in recreational activities like golf, cycling, walking and fitness. He has cycled up both Alpe d’Huez and Mont Ventoux, two of the toughest climbs in the Tour de France.
In 2018, inspired by the fact that both his grandfathers and a great uncle fought in WWI, he visited battle sites in northern France. He also had the opportunity to visit the D-day landing beaches of Normandy in 2019.
We wish Professor Emeritus John C. Lippold a very happy “birthmonth” and thank him for his dedication to the field of welding engineering.
