Fellows of the Society of Plastics Engineering
The Flexible Packaging Division is proud of our members who have been honored by the Society of Plastics Engineering for outstanding contributions in the field of plastics engineering, science or technology or in the management of such activities.
2019 Fellows
Dr. Abdellah Ajji is a professor at the Chemical Engineering Department of Polytechnique Montréal Engineering University and holds an NSERC-Industry Research Chair on safe, smart and sustainable packaging (3SPack). His research interests are in polymer processing, blends and nanocomposites. Recently, his focus has been on applications involving multilayer films and nanofiber structures with functional polymers for active packaging, sensing and biomedical applications. He’s published more than 200 journal papers, 7 patents and applications and more than 200 conference proceedings. He is also an associate editor for the Journal of Polymer Engineering, member of the editorial board of the Journal of Plastic Films and Sheeting and a member of many professional societies including the Society of Plastics Engineers.
Donna S. Davis is a Sustainability and Advocacy Manager, Polyethylene, at ExxonMobil Chemical Company. Over her career at ExxonMobil, she has led New Product Development efforts such as the introduction of Exact™ plastomers and other specialty polymers. She entered the polymers world via process design, going back to ExxonMobil’s first gas-phase polyethylene plants in Texas, Saudi Arabia, and Canada. She has been heavily engaged in packaging markets and applications, particularly developing opportunities for ethylene- and propylene-copolymers. Ms. Davis has championed industry-wide technical interaction by organizing programming for Thermoplastic Materials and Foams, Flexible Packaging, Polyolefins, and Sustainability. She has also chaired SPE’s Technical Program Committees and General Operating Committees for SPE’s Annual Technical Conference. She was inducted into the Plastics Hall of Fame in 2018 and served as the 2003-2004 president of the Society of Plastics Engineers.
Dr. Ying (Lora) Liang is a Research Principal at global packaging core technology group in Mondelēz International, working on Research & Development and commercialization of enabling innovative technologies spanning multiple food package formats/categories. Dr. Liang earned her Ph.D. from Michigan State & MBA from DePaul University. With more than 20 years industry experience, she actively advocates industrial collaboration across the supply chain to deliver breakthrough innovations. Prior to Mondelēz, Dr. Liang worked 11 years at Nanocor, where she spearheaded nanocomposite technology development & commercialization. Dr. Liang’s patents range from polymer composite to barrier/sealant technologies. She is a frequent speaker at numerous conferences. Dr. Liang currently serves as treasurer for SPE Bioplastics & Renewable Technologies Division, and Board of Directors of the Flexible Packaging Division. She is also the editor for Plastic Film and Sheeting.
Dr. Maria del Pilar Noriega, Ph.D. is the current Director General of ICIPC, Rubber and Plastic Institute for Training and Research. She is a Chemical Engineer trained at the Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana, Colombia. She pursued graduate studies in polymer chemistry at the Technical University of Dresden, Germany and in thermoplastic extrusion at IKT, Institute for Plastics Technology, Stuttgart, Germany. She received a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She has co-authored 5 technical books and numerous technical papers in international journals. She is co-inventor of 4 granted patents in Colombia, 2 granted patents in the U.S., 4 international patent applications and 1 patent application in Colombia. She is a on the Board of Directors of the SPE Extrusion Division.
Past Fellows
| Carol Barry | – | 2018 |
| Daniel Falla | – | 2018 |
| Thomas Dunn | – | 2016 |
| Mridula Kapur | – | 2016 |
| Laurent Matuana | – | 2014 |
| Ashish Sukhadia | – | 2014 |
| Barry Morris | – | 2005 |
| Natarajan Ramesh | – | 2002 |
| Eldridge Mount | – | 2000 |
| John Wagner | – | 1989 |