Questek Press Room

QuesTek Hires New Chief Executive Officer Aziz Asphahani

EVANSTON, IL, June 18, 2013

QuesTek Innovations LLC is pleased to announce Dr. Aziz Asphahani is joining the organization as the new Chief Executive Officer effective July 1, 2013. He will be leading the company’s efforts in growth and business development.

QuesTek designs, develops, and commercializes new high performance materials, such as Ferrium^® S53™, which was designed for the US Air Force as a more corrosion resistant alternative to incumbent ultra high strength steels that require toxic cadmium coatings. Its Ferrium^® C61™ and C64™ alloys are being evaluated under Army-funded programs as next generation rotor shaft and transmission gear steels by Boeing and by Bell Helicopter.

“We are extremely fortunate that Aziz is joining the QuesTek team as our Chief Executive Officer. He brings a wealth of experience along with a history of strong leadership. As our materials design technology continues to mature and we move into newer and more advanced design programs, his guidance will prove invaluable to our continued success,” said Mr. Raymond Genellie, Jr. (Co-founder & VP of Operations) and concurred by Dr. Greg Olson (Co-founder & Chief Science Officer).

Dr. Asphahani has an extensive background in both metallurgy and business, having acted as Director of Technology / R&D at Cabot Corporation, Vice President of Sales and Marketing at Haynes International, and President at both CABVAL and CARUS Chemical Company.

He has also been very active in a number of professional organizations including having served as President of ASM International, ASM Foundation Chairman, Director of NACE and member of the American Chemistry Council Board of Directors.

Dr. Asphahani holds a Diplome Ingenieur – Physics from Ecole Centrale de Paris and a Ph.D. in Materials Science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He is an expert in alloy development and metallic corrosion, has been awarded 8 patents and has authored more than 65 papers on high alloys and corrosion control throughout his career.

“I am truly excited about joining this talented team of scientists and engineers, focused on innovations and rapid implementation of advanced materials design, through their expertise and experience in integrated computational materials engineering,” says Aziz.

ABOUT QUESTEK

QuesTek Innovations LLC (www.questek.com) is a global leader in integrated computational materials engineering (ICME), serving commercial and governmental clients. QuesTek specializes in the design and development of advanced materials such as steels, superalloys, aluminum, copper and other alloys through the use of its proprietary Materials by Design^® technology, allowing for the rapid design of new and improved materials for energy, medical, aerospace, automotive, defense and environmental applications. QuesTek’s design methodology is proven effective in the development of manufacturing processes using predictable software models and materials databases. For more information, contact Jeff Grabowski at 1-847-425-8241 or jgrabowski@questek.com.

QuesTek's Chief Science Officer Inducted Into American Academy of Arts and Sciences

EVANSTON, IL, November 6, 2012 – Dr. Gregory P. Olson, Sc.D., QuesTek Innovation LLC’s Chief Science Officer and company co-founder, was inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Sciences on October 6, 2012. Of the 220 inductees inducted into the Academy in 2012, he was one of only nine within the Engineering Sciences and Technologies section. Greg is also a Walter P. Murphy Professor of Materials Science and Engineering at Northwestern University, where he teaches, leads an active group researching computational materials design, and directs the Materials Technology Laboratory/Steel Research Group.

The Academy cited Dr. Olson as the “father of materials design” and for his many achievements: pioneering the field of computational design of materials as dynamic multiscale systems (integrating the disciplines of materials science, applied mechanics, and quantum physics); co-founding QuesTek in 1997 in order to commercialize materials design services and computationally-designed materials; founding the Steel Research Group research consortium in 1985; creating the first undergraduate course in computational materials design; and co-founding many initiatives in design education at undergraduate and graduate levels.

The application of integrated computational, experimental and digital data tools has been identified as a key element of the Materials Genome Initiative, part of the Advanced Manufacturing Partnership announced by U.S. President Obama on June 24, 2011. More information about the field of integrated computational materials engineering (or ICME) is available at http://www.questek.com/technology.html.

Greg commented “Rapidly designing valuable new materials accelerates our ability to address society’s greatest needs, challenges and opportunities. I’m honored that the Academy recognized my efforts to establish this field, working with colleagues at QuesTek, industry, government and academia. This recognition comes at an exciting time at QuesTek, as I take a one-year entrepreneurial sabbatical leave from my academic work to further advance QuesTek’s industry leadership.”

ABOUT QUESTEK

QuesTek Innovations LLC (www.questek.com) is a global leader in integrated computational materials engineering, serving commercial and governmental clients. QuesTek uses its proprietary Materials by Design^® technology and expertise to rapidly develop new materials that reduce capital, processing, operating or maintenance costs, or improve environmental protection, competitive supply or competitive advantage. QuesTek has commercially introduced four new alloys via its licensees, has more than 10 new alloys in its design and development pipeline, and has more than 30 patents awarded or pending worldwide.

QuesTek's Ferrium® S53® Steel Validated in T-38 Landing Gear Field Service Evaluation

EVANSTON, IL, September 26, 2012 – A field service evaluation conducted by the U.S. Air Force was successfully completed on two main landing gear pistons made from corrosion-resistant, ultra high strength Ferrium® S53® steel that were only primed and painted and were not plated with cadmium. The S53 main landing gear pistons were in service for 19 months on a T-38 aircraft that operated in the U.S. Gulf Coast and experienced more than 500 landings. Each piston is approximately 39 inches long and two inches in diameter at a typical cross section.

The T-38 field service evaluation showed that primed and painted S53 pistons without cadmium plating performed at least as well as the baseline cadmium-plated, primed and painted 4340 pistons. No defects were found in the S53 pistons after conclusion of the field service evaluation when inspected using both magnetic particle and ultrasonic methods. No rust was visually observed in threaded areas or within the internal bore. Some small chips in the paint system were observed and the exposed base metal showed no rust with unaided visual inspection. Under magnification a few very small corrosion pits of approximately 0.01 inch or less in width were observed; the frequency of these pits was comparable to or less than those pits observed on cadmium-plated, primed and painted 4340 pistons. After the paint removal for inspection, both S53 pistons were cleaned using only a mild abrasive pad. Both S53 pistons are expected to return to T-38 flight service after re-painting.

Conventional 4340 or 300M steels are plated with cadmium in order to limit corrosion in landing gear service. In addition to providing general corrosion resistance without cadmium plating, S53 provides greater resistance to stress corrosion cracking (SCC), fatigue, corrosion fatigue, and grinding burn damage than 4340 or 300M steels provide. Successful fatigue testing of an identical S53 T-38 main landing gear piston in a laboratory rig demonstrated more than ten life-cycles, far exceeding the requirement to achieve four life-cycles.

S53 was computationally designed by QuesTek with support from the Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program (SERDP) and the Environmental Security and Technology Certification Program (ESTCP), which are led by the U.S. Department of Defense. S53 is commercially produced and sold by Latrobe Specialty Metals Co. and Carpenter Technology Corp., under license from QuesTek. S53 is covered by SAE AMS 5922 and is included in the MMPDS handbook. For more information about S53 see http://www.questek.com/ferrium-s53.html or about the field service evaluation results (including photographs) contact QuesTek’s Jeff Grabowski at 1-847-425-8241 or jgrabowski@questek.com.

ABOUT QUESTEK

QuesTek Innovations LLC (www.questek.com) is a global leader in integrated computational materials engineering (ICME), serving commercial and governmental clients. QuesTek uses its proprietary Materials by Design^® technology and expertise to rapidly develop new materials that reduce capital, processing, operating or maintenance costs, or improve environmental protection, competitive supply or competitive advantage. QuesTek has commercially introduced four new alloys via its licensees, has more than 10 new alloys in its design and development pipeline, and has more than 30 patents awarded or pending worldwide.

QuesTek Wins SBIR Phase II Award to Demonstrate Ferrium® M54™ Steel for Navy Aircraft Tailhooks

EVANSTON, IL, July 2, 2012 - QuesTek Innovations LLC has been awarded a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project from the U.S. Navy Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) to fabricate and experimentally test aircraft tailhooks made from QuesTek’s new economical, high strength, high toughness Ferrium^® M54^™ steel. Relevant laboratory tests of M54 are expected to be performed, as well as a cost-benefit analysis. The 2-year contract is valued at $749,991, and is a collaborative effort between the Navy, QuesTek, OEM manufacturers, and testing laboratories.

The advantages of M54 over the incumbent steel often used for tailhooks are expected to include superior strength, toughness, stress corrosion cracking (SCC) resistance, surface hardness and thermal resistance (due to M54’s higher final tempering temperature), which may eliminate the need for thermal/wear resistance coatings currently in use today.

QuesTek computationally designed and developed M54 under earlier Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I and II projects awarded by NAVAIR. M54 is currently being evaluated, tested or used in oil and gas, racing, naval aircraft landing gear and other product applications. Latrobe Specialty Steel Co. of Latrobe, PA, USA commercially produces and sells M54 under their license from QuesTek.

Charlie Kuehmann, President and CEO of QuesTek, commented: “We thank NAVAIR for this award and the opportunity to demonstrate the benefits of Ferrium^® M54^™ in this highly demanding and safety critical product application. This project provides another illustration of QuesTek’s integrated, applied approach to computational materials design, in which we work closely with clients from concept through design and then application of materials to improve product performance.”

Additional information about M54 is available at www.questek.com/ferrium-m54.html and www.latrobesteel.com/assets/documents/datasheets/Ferrium_M54.pdf.

ABOUT QUESTEK

QuesTek Innovations LLC (www.questek.com) is a global leader in integrated computational materials engineering (ICME), serving commercial and governmental clients. QuesTek uses its proprietary Materials by Design^® technology and expertise to rapidly design new materials that reduce capital, processing, operating or maintenance costs, or improve environmental protection, competitive supply or competitive advantage. QuesTek has commercially introduced four new alloys via its licensees, has more than 10 new alloys in its design and development pipeline, and has more than 30 patents awarded or pending worldwide. For more information, contact Jeff Grabowski at 1-847-425-8241 or jgrabowski@questek.com.

QuesTek's Ferrium® C64™ Alloy Achieves SAE AMS 6509 Specification

EVANSTON, IL, June 5, 2012 – SAE International has issued Aerospace Material Specification 6509 for Ferrium^® C64^™, a high-hardness, high-strength, high-temperature-resistant, carburizing-grade steel that was computationally designed by QuesTek Innovations LLC, and is commercially produced and sold by Latrobe Specialty Metals, a Carpenter Company, of Latrobe, PA, USA. SAE AMS 6509 covers the procurement of bars, forgings and forging stock of C64 as a double-vacuum-melted (i.e., VIM/VAR) aircraft-quality alloy, defining chemistry, thermal processing, minimum properties and other material requirements.

The case of C64 can be carburized up to 62-64 Rockwell C hardness, while the core is more than 28 percent stronger (in typical properties) than conventional premium steels such as AISI 9310 or Pyrowear^® 53. This combination of high case hardness and high core strength was designed to yield lighter, more durable transmissions, gears, integrally-geared shafts, actuators, parts, and assemblies that better resist bending fatigue, contact fatigue and abrasive particulate exposure. C64 may also provide much greater performance in scoring and high-temperature service (either during normal operation or emergency “oil-out” conditions) since C64’s tempering temperature of 925°F is approximately 625°F higher than that of 9310.

Applications of C64 in service or evaluation include racing, munitions, energy and aerospace products, including helicopter gears under the Future Advanced Rotorcraft Drive System (FARDS) program cooperative agreement between Bell Helicopter and the U.S. Army, and the Enhanced Rotorcraft Drive System (ERDS) program cooperative agreement between The Boeing Company and the U.S. Army.

Processes to carburize C64 are covered by SAE AMS 2759/7. QuesTek designed C64 to have high hardenability so that it can efficiently use modern, clean, low-pressure (i.e., vacuum) carburizing processes with a mild gas quench to produce hardened parts with very low distortion and which require less final machining.

For more information see http://www.sae.org/technical/standards/AMS6509, www.questek.com/ferrium-c64.html or www.latrobesteel.com/assets/documents/datasheets/Ferrium_C64.pdf.

ABOUT QUESTEK

QuesTek Innovations LLC (www.questek.com) is a global leader in integrated computational materials engineering (ICME), serving commercial and governmental clients. QuesTek uses its proprietary Materials by Design^® technology and expertise to rapidly design new materials that reduce capital, processing, operating or maintenance costs, or improve environmental protection, competitive supply or competitive advantage. QuesTek has commercially introduced four new alloys via its licensees, has more than 10 new alloys in its design and development pipeline, and has more than 30 patents awarded or pending worldwide. For more information, contact Jeff Grabowski at 1-847-425-8241 or jgrabowski@questek.com.

QuesTek Wins SBIR Phase II Award to Demonstrate Ferrium® S53® Alloy in MH-60S Helicopter Rotor Shaft

EVANSTON, IL, April 24, 2012 - QuesTek Innovations LLC has been awarded a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project from the U.S. Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division (NAWCAD) to demonstrate QuesTek-designed Ferrium^® S53^® as an improved steel for Navy helicopter rotor shafts (i.e. masts), and specifically on the MH-60S helicopter designed and manufactured by Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation. Prototype MH-60S helicopter rotor shafts will be fabricated from S53 in a cooperative effort by the Navy, Sikorsky, QuesTek and key industry suppliers. The 2-year contract is valued at $749,832.

The overall objective of this project is to reduce life-cycle and maintenance costs of Navy helicopter rotor shafts by increasing fatigue life and reducing corrosion. Alloys currently used for Navy helicopter rotor shafts such as 4340 provide high strength but offer limited resistance to corrosion, which may result in corrosion condemnations during overhaul and repair. S53 provides greater strength and fatigue resistance than 4340, and also significant resistance to general corrosion and stress corrosion cracking (SCC).

Applications for S53 beyond helicopter rotor shafts include landing gear, pins, rotary actuators, drive shafts, and other power transmission components in high-performance, corrosion-sensitive applications.

Two commercial suppliers, Latrobe Specialty Metals Co. and Carpenter Technology Corp., produce and sell S53 under license agreements with QuesTek. S53 has received extensive industry certifications including SAE AMS 5922 and a listing in the Metallic Material Properties Development and Standardization (MMPDS) Handbook.

Charlie Kuehmann, President and CEO of QuesTek, commented: “We thank the Navy for this Phase II award, and the opportunity to further demonstrate how Ferrium S53 can reduce operating and life cycle costs, enhance reliability, and reduce environmental impact. We also thank our project partners for their active participation applying new materials to help improve the performance, capacity and durability of critical products and platforms such as the MH-60S helicopter.”

ABOUT QUESTEK

QuesTek Innovations LLC (www.questek.com) is a global leader in computational materials design, serving commercial and governmental clients. QuesTek uses its proprietary Materials by Design^® expertise to rapidly develop new materials that reduce capital, processing, operating or maintenance costs, or improve environmental protection or competitive supply. QuesTek has been highlighted in many leading business and technical publications, and has more than 30 patents awarded or pending worldwide. For more information, contact Jeff Grabowski at 1-847-425-8241 or jgrabowski@questek.com.

QuesTek Wins SBIR Phase II Award to Design and Develop a High-Strength, Thermally-Stable Aluminum Alloy

EVANSTON, IL, Apr. 17, 2012 - QuesTek Innovations LLC has been awarded a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project from the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) to apply QuesTek’s Materials by Design^® technology to design and develop a new high-strength, thermally-stable aluminum alloy. The 2-year contract is valued at $746,981.

The key objectives of this project are to design and develop a new alloy with greater strength than alloy 2014 at both room temperature and after high temperature exposure, in combination with corrosion and fatigue resistance, and also with manufacturing and raw material costs similar to incumbent alloy 2014. Although competing alloy 2040 offers higher strength than alloy 2014, it is sole-sourced and can be more expensive due in part to raw material costs associated with silver additions.

QuesTek will computationally design the new alloy for economy by using conventional aluminum alloying additions and processing techniques. In addition, QuesTek intends to eventually license intellectual property for the new alloy to multiple alloy producers in order to develop a robust supply base.

The new alloy is expected to reduce component weight, improve component durability and reduce operating costs. The culmination of this project will be the production of full-scale, die-forged prototype parts in order to demonstrate improvements in key material properties versus alloy 2014.

Potential applications of QuesTek’s new aluminum alloy include aerospace wheel and brake assemblies as well as other aluminum products fabricated from forgings, such as structural components used in aerospace, commercial, racing and off-road vehicles.

Charlie Kuehmann, President and CEO of QuesTek, commented: “We thank the Air Force for this SBIR Phase II award, to further use our materials design tools and expertise to improve equipment durability and reduce costs. This project builds upon our past successes such as Ferrium^® C61^™, C64^™, M54^™ and S53^® alloys, developed in part with Department of Defense funding and now sold to commercial, industrial and governmental customers by U.S.-based alloy producers under their licenses from QuesTek.”

ABOUT QUESTEK

QuesTek Innovations LLC (www.questek.com) is a global leader in integrated computational materials engineering (ICME), serving commercial and governmental clients. QuesTek uses its proprietary Materials by Design^® technology and expertise to rapidly design new materials that reduce capital, processing, operating or maintenance costs, or improve environmental protection, competitive supply or competitive advantage. QuesTek has commercially introduced four new alloys via its licensees, has more than 10 new alloys in its design and development pipeline, and has more than 30 patents awarded or pending worldwide. For more information, contact Jeff Grabowski at 1-847-425-8241 or jgrabowski@questek.com.

QuesTek Wins SBIR Phase II Award to Develop Tools and Design Molybdenum-based Alloys

EVANSTON, IL, Jan. 25, 2012 - QuesTek Innovations LLC has been awarded a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to apply QuesTek’s Materials by Design^® technology to develop tools to computationally design molybdenum-based alloys with greater ductility, oxidation resistance, and creep resistance for use above 1,300°C (2,372°F). Process-structure and structure-property models based on custom multi-component thermodynamic and mobility databases will also be developed. In addition, QuesTek will utilize these tools and models to design advanced molybdenum-based alloys that can be manufactured using conventional processes. The two-year contract was issued by the U.S. Army and is valued at $749,892.

Applications for improved molybdenum-based alloys can include components of next-generation rockets and aerospace or land-based turbines, as well as parts of x-ray rotary anodes, high-intensity discharge lamps, and forging dies. Superior molybdenum-based alloys are expected to increase equipment energy efficiencies and/or durability by tolerating significantly higher operating temperatures than existing nickel-based superalloys (due in part to molybdenum’s much higher melting point).

Charlie Kuehmann, President and CEO of QuesTek, commented: “We thank DARPA for this SBIR Phase II award, and the opportunity to design and develop new, transformative molybdenum-based alloys as well as tools to accelerate the practical application of integrated computational materials engineering (ICME). We’ll rapidly apply these novel design tools and models by leveraging our expertise in D3D digital structure modeling and Accelerated Insertion of Materials (AIM), both of which were developed under prior funding from DARPA and others.”

ABOUT QUESTEK

QuesTek Innovations LLC (www.questek.com) is a global leader in computational materials design, serving commercial and governmental clients. QuesTek uses its proprietary Materials by Design^® technology and expertise to rapidly develop new materials that reduce capital, processing, operating or maintenance costs, or improve environmental protection or competitive supply. QuesTek has more than 30 patents awarded or pending worldwide for new, computationally-designed materials. For more information, contact Jeff Grabowski at 1-847-425-8241 or jgrabowski@questek.com.

Thermo-Calc Software and QuesTek Develop New TC-PRISMA Material Precipitation Modeling Software

STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN and EVANSTON, IL, USA, Jan. 9, 2012 - Thermo-Calc Software AB and QuesTek Innovations LLC have jointly developed TC-PRISMA, a powerful new user-friendly software package available from Thermo-Calc Software AB for modeling precipitation in multi-component and multi-phase systems, which is used in conjunction with well-established Thermo-Calc and DICTRA software. TC-PRISMA evaluates concurrent nucleation, growth and coarsening, and incorporates key models and algorithms from QuesTek’s PrecipiCalc^® precipitation simulation software, which QuesTek has used as part of its Materials by Design^® technology to computationally design novel new alloys such as Ferrium^® M54^™, S53^®, C61^™ and C64^™ for use in aerospace, defense, energy, racing and other industries.

Dr. Charlie Kuehmann, QuesTek’s President and CEO, commented that “The launch of TC-PRISMA software is very timely given President Obama’s recent establishment of the Materials Genome Initiative, since TC-PRISMA is an important new tool for materials design engineers to computationally design materials. We’re excited to have partnered with Thermo-Calc Software, a premier leader in scientific software and databases that involve computational thermodynamics and diffusion-controlled simulations, to accelerate the adoption of integrated computational materials engineering (i.e., ICME) tools.”

Dr. Anders Engström, Thermo-Calc Software’s President, added that “TC-PRISMA is new, robust, precipitation modeling software built by two globally-recognized leaders in computational modeling, analysis and material design, which significantly enhances Thermo-Calc and DICTRA. To develop TC-PRISMA we’re pleased to have partnered with QuesTek and incorporated key aspects of their PrecipiCalc^® software, since QuesTek is well-known for their application of computational materials engineering, software and databases to rapidly design new materials that meet user-defined needs.”

More information about TC-PRISMA is available at http://www.thermocalc.com/TC-PRISMA.htm

ABOUT THERMO-CALC SOFTWARE AB

Thermo-Calc Software AB (www.thermocalc.com) of Stockholm, Sweden is a global leader in computational thermodynamics software tools within the area of material science. Its flagship software tool Thermo-Calc has been used for more than 25 years by leading industrial, governmental and academic researchers and engineers to create multi-component thermodynamic and phase diagram calculations, and more than 1,000 licenses of Thermo-Calc software are currently in place. Its diffusion simulation tool DICTRA, which uses Thermo-Calc as its engine, has been widely utilized since its introduction more than 14 years ago. Thermo-Calc Software AB was founded as an independent company in 1997 as an off-spring from the Royal Institute of Technology (KTH), Department of Materials Science, in Stockholm, Sweden. For more information, contact Therese Gustafsson at +46-8-545-959-74 or: info@thermocalc.com.

ABOUT QUESTEK

QuesTek Innovations LLC (www.questek.com) of Evanston, IL, USA is a global leader in computational materials design, serving commercial and governmental clients. QuesTek uses its proprietary Materials by Design technology and expertise to rapidly develop new materials that reduce capital, processing, operating or maintenance costs, or improve environmental protection, competitive supply or competitive advantage. QuesTek has been highlighted in many leading business and technical publications, and has more than 30 patents awarded or pending worldwide for new, computationally-designed materials. For more information, contact Jeff Grabowski at 1-847-425-8241 or jgrabowski@questek.com.

QuesTek's Ferrium® M54™ Alloy Achieves SAE AMS 6516 Specification

EVANSTON, IL, August 3, 2011 – SAE International has issued Aerospace Material Specification 6516 for Ferrium^® M54^™, an ultra-high-strength, high-toughness steel designed by QuesTek Innovations LLC that is also highly resistant to Stress Corrosion Cracking (SCC). SAE AMS 6516 covers the procurement of bars, forgings and forging stock of M54 as a double-vacuum-melted (i.e., VIM/VAR) aircraft-quality alloy, and defines chemistry, thermal processing, properties and other material requirements.

QuesTek designed and developed M54 to be a lower-cost, drop-in replacement for AerMet^® 100 (AMS 6532) under Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I and II projects sponsored by the U.S. Navy Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR). The rapid results of QuesTek’s Materials by Design^® approach to computationally design, develop and qualify new materials are illustrated in SAE’s issuance of AMS 6516 less than 48 months after the specific material property design goals were set under the Phase I project. Under their license from QuesTek, Latrobe Specialty Steel Company began commercially producing and selling M54 less than 32 months after the material design goals were set.

The S-basis procurement minimums for M54 are: 240 ksi yield strength; 285 ksi tensile strength; and 100 ksi-√in fracture toughness. M54 has also demonstrated superior resistance to SCC than competing steels such AerMet 100 and 300M. For economy, M54 contains about 50 percent less cobalt than AerMet 100.

Applications for M54 can include aircraft landing gear, aircraft arresting tailhooks and components, power transmission driveshafts, jet engine shafts and shrouds, drilling equipment, actuators, fasteners, blast tolerant containers, ordnance, sporting goods and other demanding products.

Charlie Kuehmann, President and CEO of QuesTek, commented: “The issuance of SAE AMS 6516 represents an important industry milestone for aerospace applications of Ferrium M54, accelerating the adoption of M54 to reduce costs and improve performance. We thank NAVAIR for their support of M54, and thank SAE’s committee and council members for their diligent efforts to issue specifications for new high-performance, engineered materials such as M54.”

For more information see http://standards.sae.org/ams6516/, www.questek.com/ferrium-m54.html or www.latrobesteel.com/assets/documents/datasheets/Ferrium_M54.pdf.

ABOUT QUESTEK

QuesTek Supports Materials Genome Initiative

EVANSTON, IL, June 26, 2011 - QuesTek Innovations LLC supports the creation of the Materials Genome Initiative announced Friday by President Obama, and the further application of computational methods, tools and fundamental databases to rapidly design, develop and commercialize superior new materials.

QuesTek’s pioneering role in the field of computational materials design has been recognized by the National Research Council of the National Academies, and other leading organizations. QuesTek gratefully acknowledges the past contracts that it has received from many U.S. governmental agencies (such as the Department of Energy, Department of Defense, DARPA, NASA, NSF, and others) to develop and apply its Materials by Design^® computational material design technology and its Accelerated Insertion of Materials (AIM) capabilities. This has resulted in four new computationally-designed, high-performance materials now produced and sold by leading U.S.-based specialty steel producers, more than ten other new materials in QuesTek’s design and development pipeline, and numerous material design tools and databases being developed and practically applied.

QuesTek’s record of rapid, efficient material design and development is illustrated for example in ultra-tough, ultra-high-strength Ferrium^® M54^™ steel, which was successfully produced in a full-scale ingot less than 24 months after the material property and performance design goals were set, and also in corrosion-resistant, ultra-high-strength Ferrium S53^® steel, which is in service in aircraft landing gear systems and other applications without toxic cadmium plating (typically required to reduce corrosion on conventionally-used 300M steel). QuesTek designed S53 in part with funding from SERDP, a DoD environmental science and technology program that is executed in partnership with DOE and EPA. SERDP has estimated that QuesTek’s design and development of S53 saved approximately $50 million.

Charlie Kuehmann, President and CEO of QuesTek, commented: “We support the Materials Genome Initiative and efforts to further address end-user-driven needs with rapid integrated computational materials design^™ capabilities. This initiative can build upon past successes such as Ferrium^® C61^™, C64^™, M54^™ and S53^® alloys, now sold to customers worldwide by U.S.-based alloy producers under their licenses from QuesTek.”

The full text of the President’s address can be found at: http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2011/06/24/remarks-president-carnegie-mellon-universitys-national-robotics-engineer

ABOUT QUESTEK

QuesTek Wins SBIR Phase II Award to Design and Develop a Tuned Low-Voltage Sacrificial Anode Aluminum Alloy

EVANSTON, IL, May 11, 2011 - QuesTek Innovations LLC has been awarded a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project from the U.S. Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) to apply QuesTek’s Materials by Design^® technology to design and develop a new low-voltage sacrificial anode alloy. The 2-year contract is valued at $598,794.

During this project QuesTek will computationally design a sacrificial anode aluminum alloy to have an open circuit potential (OCP) tuned to about -0.8V (relative to Ag/AgCl reference electrode), provide high current-carrying capacity, and use economical manufacturing processes. Production of the alloy will be demonstrated at commercial-scale levels, and long-term performance tests in seawater will be performed. It is also anticipated that an initial domestic producer of this alloy will be established and qualified, and that performance data generated during this project will be sufficient to include the new alloy in the MIL-DTL-24779 specification.

While the use of sacrificial anodes to reduce general corrosion in steel ships and structures is widespread, most conventional aluminum- or zinc-based sacrificial anodes provide an OCP of about -1.0V (relative to Ag/AgCl). By being tuned to an OCP of about -0.8V, QuesTek’s new alloy is expected to reduce hydrogen charging, hydrogen embrittlement (HE) and stress corrosion cracking (SCC) in high-strength steels used in some ships and structures, thus reducing equipment maintenance costs. In addition, this SBIR project is expected to increase U.S. manufacturing output of sacrificial anode materials.

Potential applications for QuesTek’s new low-voltage sacrificial anode aluminum alloy beyond Navy ships may include vessels, structures and devices that expose high-strength steels to marine or corrosive environments, such as off-shore drilling platforms, pipelines and process equipment.

Charlie Kuehmann, President and CEO of QuesTek, commented: “We thank the Navy for this SBIR Phase II award, and the opportunity to meet this important need by rapidly designing and developing a new tuned sacrificial anode. This project builds upon our past successes such as Ferrium^® C61^™, C64^™, M54^™ and S53^® alloys, developed in part with Department of Defense funding and now sold to commercial, industrial and governmental customers worldwide by U.S.-based alloy producers under their licenses from QuesTek.”

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QuesTek's Ferrium® C61™ Alloy Achieves SAE AMS 6517 Specification

EVANSTON, IL, Apr. 12, 2011 – SAE International has issued Aerospace Material Specification 6517 for Ferrium^® C61^™, a high-strength, high-toughness, high-temperature-resistant, carburizing-grade steel that was computationally designed by QuesTek Innovations LLC, and is commercially produced and sold by Latrobe Specialty Steel Company of Latrobe, PA, USA. SAE AMS 6517 covers the procurement of bars, forgings and forging stock of C61 as a double-vacuum-melted (i.e., VIM/VAR) aircraft-quality alloy, defining chemistry, thermal processing, minimum properties and other material requirements.

The core of C61 is more than 30 percent stronger and more than 50 percent tougher than conventional premium steels such as AISI 9310 (in typical properties) with a corresponding improvement in axial fatigue resistance, enabling high performance shafting with integral gears. The case can be carburized up to 60-62 Rockwell C hardness and was designed to have higher resistance to bending fatigue than conventional gear steel alloys, resulting in lighter, more durable transmissions and gearbox assemblies. C61 also offers improved resistance to high-temperature service (either during normal operation or emergency “oil-out” conditions) since C61’s tempering temperature is 900°F (approximately 600 °F higher than that of 9310).

Processes to carburize C61 are covered by SAE AMS 2759/7. QuesTek designed C61 to have high hardenability so that it can efficiently use modern, clean, low-pressure (i.e., vacuum) carburizing processes with a mild gas quench to produce hardened parts with very low distortion which require less final machining.

Charlie Kuehmann, President and CEO of QuesTek, commented: “The issuance of SAE AMS 6517 represents an important industry milestone for aerospace applications of Ferrium^® C61^™, and provides additional information and data for users in racing, defense, energy, industrial and other power transmission industry sectors. We thank SAE’s committee and council members for their diligent efforts to issue specifications for new high-performance, engineered materials such as C61.”

For more information see http://standards.sae.org/ams6517/, www.questek.com/ferrium-c61.html or www.latrobesteel.com/assets/documents/datasheets/Ferrium_C61.pdf.

ABOUT QUESTEK

QuesTek's Ferrium® C64™ Alloy to be Applied by Bell Helicopter in U.S. Army FARDS Program

EVANSTON, IL, Mar. 15, 2011 - QuesTek Innovations LLC has been awarded a subcontract from Bell Helicopter, a Textron Company, to jointly evaluate the application of QuesTek-designed Ferrium^® C64^™ steel for helicopter gears. This subcontract is part of the $30 million Technology Investment Agreement awarded to Bell by the U.S. Army Aviation Applied Technology Directorate to develop state-of-the-art drive system technology under the Army’s Future Advanced Rotorcraft Drive System (FARDS) program, as announced by Bell on November 8, 2010.

The FARDS program is targeting a 55 percent improvement in power-to-weight ratio, a 35 percent reduction in production, operating and support costs, and other improvements in drive systems for the U.S. Army’s Current/Future fleet of rotorcraft and for commercial rotorcraft. The application of C64 can contribute to these goals because its ultimate tensile strength is about 35 percent greater than that of incumbent alloy Pyrowear^® 53 (“X53”). C64 is also able to be case hardened up to about 64 Rockwell C, leading to improved durability. The combination of increased strength and high hardness of C64 can improve gearbox life and power-to-weight ratio. The high thermal stability of C64 is also expected to improve “oil-out” survivability, and may reduce the size and weight of auxiliary gearbox cooling systems.

QuesTek will work closely with Bell to further develop the thermal processing and finishing processes of C64 to optimize the combination of strength and hardness in the gear case and core. Manufacturing cost savings will also be assessed, since manufacturing processes for C64 can be significantly simplified over incumbent options.

Latrobe Specialty Steel Company of Latrobe, PA, USA produces and sells C64 under license from QuesTek. Applications for C64 beyond rotorcraft gear assemblies include integral drive shafts and power transmission components in high-temperature, high-performance, or weight/space-sensitive applications.

Charlie Kuehmann, President and CEO of QuesTek, commented: “We thank Bell Helicopter and the Army for this opportunity to apply Ferrium C64 to improve the performance, economy, capacity and durability of demanding rotorcraft platforms. We also thank NAVAIR, the U.S. Navy’s Naval Air Systems Command, for their guidance and financial support during earlier STTR Phase I and Phase II projects under which we computationally designed C64.”

This research was partially funded by the Government under Agreement No. W911W6-10-2-0007. The U.S. Government is authorized to reproduce and distribute reprints for Government purposes notwithstanding any copyright notation thereon. The views and conclusions contained in this document are those of the authors and should not be interpreted as representing the official policies, either expressed or implied, of the Aviation Applied Technology Directorate or the U.S. Government.

ABOUT QUESTEK

QuesTek Innovations LLC (www.questek.com) is a global leader in computational materials design. QuesTek uses its proprietary Materials by Design® expertise to rapidly develop new materials that reduce capital, processing, operating or maintenance costs, or improve environmental protection or competitive supply. QuesTek has been highlighted in many leading business and technical publications, and has more than 30 patents awarded or pending worldwide. For more information, contact Jeff Grabowski at 1-847-425-8241 or jgrabowski@questek.com.

QuesTek Wins SBIR Phase II Award to Demonstrate Ferrium® C61™ Alloy in CH-47 Chinook Helicopter Forward Rotor Shaft

EVANSTON, IL, Nov. 18, 2010 - QuesTek Innovations LLC has been awarded a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project from the U.S. Army to demonstrate the application of QuesTek-designed Ferrium^® C61^™ steel to the forward rotor shaft of the CH-47 Chinook helicopter. The 2-year contract is valued at $729,958.

Working in conjunction with the Army, Boeing and key industry suppliers, the forward rotor shaft will be re-designed to be made of C61 and one or more prototype shafts will be produced. It is expected that the weight of this large shaft can be reduced by 15-25%, because the fatigue strength and key static mechanical properties of C61 core material are more than 30% greater than those of incumbent alloy 9310. C61 can also tolerate much higher operating temperatures (such as may occur in an emergency “oil-out” situation) because its tempering temperature is 600°F greater than that of 9310.

Manufacturing operations such as forging, thermal processing, and machining will be optimized for this part during this project. Total thermal processing and manufacturing operations are expected to be simplified because C61 was specifically designed to use modern vacuum carburizing technology and combine the carburization and austenization steps, thus eliminating numerous manufacturing steps. The very high hardenability of C61 also permits a mild gas quench, thus reducing part distortion and allowing less grind stock and subsequent machining. C61 is also highly resistant to grinding burn damage during production, due to its high tempering temperature.

QuesTek’s initial production and sales licensee for C61 is Latrobe Specialty Steel Company of Latrobe, PA, as announced on Nov. 20, 2009. QuesTek anticipates awarding additional production and sales licensees for C61 as market demand builds. Applications for C61 beyond helicopter rotor shafts can include other integral drive shafts, gear assemblies, and power transmission components in high-temperature, high-performance, or weight- or space-sensitive applications, such as aerospace, racing, off-road, commercial and military vehicles.

Charlie Kuehmann, President and CEO of QuesTek, commented: “We thank the Army for this Phase II award, and the opportunity to further demonstrate how our integrated, applied approach to computational materials design rapidly generates and inserts valuable new materials. We also thank our project partners for their active participation applying new materials to help improve the performance, capacity and durability of critical products and platforms such as the CH-47 Chinook helicopter.”

ABOUT QUESTEK

QuesTek Innovations LLC (www.questek.com) is a global leader in computational materials design. QuesTek uses its proprietary Materials by Design^® expertise to rapidly develop new materials that reduce capital, processing, operating or maintenance costs, or improve environmental protection or competitive supply. QuesTek has been highlighted in many leading business and technical publications, and has more than 30 patents awarded or pending worldwide. For more information, contact Jeff Grabowski at 1-847-425-8241 or jgrabowski@questek.com.

QuesTek Wins STTR Phase II Award to Further Design and Develop a High-Strength, Soft Magnetic Alloy

EVANSTON, IL, July 16, 2010 - QuesTek Innovations LLC has been awarded a Small Business Technology Transfer Research (STTR) Phase II project from the U.S. Air Force Office of Scientific Research to apply QuesTek’s Materials by Design^® technology to the final design and development of a new high-strength, soft magnetic alloy. The 2-year contract is valued at $749,604.

QuesTek’s new alloy targets significant improvements in strength and magnetic operating performance over existing iron-cobalt soft magnetic materials such as Supermendur, Hiperco^® 27, or Hiperco 50. A principal application for the new alloy is expected to be rotor and stator laminations used in motors, generators, transformers or actuators on aerospace vehicle platforms, in order to improve reliability, increase operating frequency, or reduce component weight and size. Other potential applications may include magnetic bearings, flywheels, sensors, or transducers used in industries such as racing/transportation, or in controllable catheter medical devices.

In this Phase II project, QuesTek will design, produce, process and test an improved alloy design first at intermediate scale, then at full industrial scale, and ultimately in final product form of rolled metal strip. QuesTek will leverage its insights and principles to design materials for properties such as saturation magnetization, magnetic hysteresis losses, temperature performance, electrical resistivity and mechanical strength.

Charlie Kuehmann, President and CEO of QuesTek, commented: “We appreciate this award from the Air Force to develop a new high-performance soft magnetic alloy that can directly address Air Force needs, yet also apply to commercial and industrial market needs. This Phase II award further demonstrates how QuesTek’s Materials by Design technology applies to designing materials to deliver specific electrical and magnetic properties as well as mechanical, thermodynamic and other properties. This program builds upon our past successes such as Ferrium^® C61^™, C64^™, M54^™ and S53^® alloys, which were developed in part with Department of Defense funding and are now available for commercial, industrial and governmental use from U.S.-based alloy producers under QuesTek’s licenses.”

ABOUT QUESTEK

QuesTek Innovations LLC (www.questek.com) is a global leader in computational materials design. QuesTek uses its proprietary Materials by Design^® expertise to rapidly develop new materials with specific properties in order to reduce capital, processing, operating or maintenance costs, or improve equipment performance, environmental protection or competitive supply. QuesTek has been highlighted in many leading business and technical publications, and has more than 30 patents awarded or pending worldwide. For more information, contact Jeff Grabowski at 1-847-425-8241 or jgrabowski@questek.com.

QuesTek Awards First Production License of Ferrium® M54™ to Latrobe Specialty Steel Company

LATROBE, PA and EVANSTON, IL, April 5, 2010 - QuesTek Innovations LLC has awarded a license to Latrobe Specialty Steel Company to produce and sell Ferrium^® M54^™. This is the first license awarded to produce commercially and sell this alloy using QuesTek’s compositions, processing expertise and intellectual property. Terms of the multi-year agreement were not disclosed.

Ferrium M54 is a premium-quality steel that offers ultra high strength and toughness, having an ultimate tensile strength of 294 ksi, yield strength of 250 ksi, and fracture toughness of 110 ksi square root inch as typical properties. QuesTek computationally designed and developed M54 to be a cost-effective alternative to alloys such as AerMet® 100 (in part by limiting high-cost alloying elements such as cobalt), while meeting or exceeding all key properties. Applications of this class of alloys can include aircraft landing gear and arresting tailhooks, shock struts, tow bars, drive shafts, actuators, blast containment devices, fasteners, golf club face inserts and other highly-loaded components.

QuesTek received funding and direction from the U.S. Navy Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) to computationally design and develop M54, under both an earlier Phase I and a current Phase II Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) project. NAVAIR also recently awarded QuesTek a Phase I SBIR project to evaluate and test M54 and other materials for arresting tailhook applications.

QuesTek’s design, development and licensing of M54 builds upon its earlier design, development and licensing of Ferrium S53®, another commercially-available ultra high strength steel. While M54 has significantly greater yield strength and fracture toughness than S53, the resistance of S53 to general corrosion is far greater than that of M54.

Scott A. Balliett, Latrobe Specialty Steel’s Director of Technology and Quality, said: “We’re pleased to further build our relationship with QuesTek and offer our global customers another valuable new premium-quality VIM VAR steel. Ferrium M54 VIM VAR should help our customers reduce costs and improve the performance and durability of their products for vital defense, energy, commercial and other industrial applications. We produce this alloy and many other premium alloys in our state-of-the-art vacuum melting (VIM) and vacuum remelting (VAR) facilities, including the recent VIM and VAR expansion to our Latrobe, PA facility.”

Charlie Kuehmann, QuesTek’s President and CEO, said: “We’re pleased to award this license to Latrobe. The commercial introduction of Ferrium M54 further demonstrates how our Materials by Design® technology and expertise can simultaneously reduce costs and improve the performance of materials. We look forward to working with Latrobe and with customers and design engineers worldwide to identify product applications that can benefit from using M54 as well as our other licensed alloys Ferrium S53, C61™ and C64™.”

ABOUT LATROBE SPECIALTY STEEL COMPANY

Latrobe Specialty Steel, headquartered in Latrobe, PA, has been in operation since 1913. Since 1958, Latrobe Specialty Steel has been a leading supplier of premium vacuum melted alloys to the aerospace and defense sectors. The firm employs approximately 800 people. Find additional information about Latrobe Specialty Steel at www.latrobesteel.com or contact Lisa Pierce at 724-532-6324 (lisa.pierce@latrobesteel.com).

ABOUT QUESTEK

QuesTek Innovations LLC (www.questek.com) is a global leader in computational materials design. QuesTek uses its proprietary Materials by Design technology and expertise to rapidly design and develop new materials that reduce capital, processing, operating or maintenance costs, or improve environmental protection, competitive supply or competitive advantage. QuesTek has been highlighted in many leading business and technical publications, and has more than 30 patents awarded or pending worldwide. For more information, contact Jeff Grabowski at 1-847-425-8213 or jgrabowski@questek.com.

Thermo-Calc Software AB And QuesTek Innovations LLC Agree To Cooperatively Develop New Precipitation Modeling Software

STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN and EVANSTON, IL, USA, March 9, 2010 - Thermo-Calc Software AB and QuesTek Innovations LLC have entered into an agreement to cooperatively develop new precipitation modeling software. The goal of the cooperation is to jointly develop a new, sophisticated, powerful and user-friendly software tool for modeling precipitation in multi-component systems. The software tool developed from the collaboration will be released by Thermo-Calc Software.

The agreement teams two recognized global leaders in computational modeling, analysis and material design. The firms will utilize their experience in software development, fundamental understanding of computational thermodynamics and the practical application of computational materials design as a foundation to develop new robust software to model precipitation.

Thermo-Calc Software will leverage its more than 10 years of experience developing, improving and supporting its widely-used modeling and simulation software tools such as Thermo-Calc and DICTRA, as well as its extensive suite of related thermodynamic and mobility databases. Thermo-Calc Software will also leverage its global sales and distribution network, and its experience in licensing and distribution of software tools. The vast experience of practical use of Thermo-Calc and DICTRA will also be applied.

QuesTek will leverage its more than 10 years of experience developing, improving and supporting its PrecipiCalc® simulation software, as well as its experience applying PrecipiCalc and other modeling software in its Materials by Design® programs. QuesTek has licensed PrecipiCalc to leading global researchers and engineers, and will continue to support current and future licensees until a new precipitation modeling software tool is introduced and a orderly transition can be completed.

ABOUT THERMO-CALC SOFTWARE

Thermo-Calc Software AB (www.thermocalc.com) of Stockholm, Sweden is a global leader in computational thermodynamics software tools within the area of material science. Its flagship software tool Thermo-Calc has been in use for more than 25 years by leading industrial, governmental and academic researchers and engineers to create multi-component thermodynamic and phase diagram calculations in more than 60 countries around the world. Its diffusion simulation tool DICTRA, which uses Thermo-Calc as its engine, has been widely utilized since its introduction more than 15 years ago. Thermo-Calc Software was founded as an independent company in 1997 as an off-spring from the Royal Institute of Technology (KTH), Department of Materials Science, in Stockholm, Sweden. For more information, contact Carl Lindqvist: info@thermocalc.se.

ABOUT QUESTEK

QuesTek Innovations LLC (www.questek.com) of Evanston, IL, USA is a global leader in computational materials design. QuesTek uses its proprietary Materials by Design technology and expertise to rapidly develop new materials that reduce capital, processing, operating or maintenance costs, or improve environmental protection, competitive supply or competitive advantage. QuesTek has been highlighted in many leading business and technical publications, and has more than 30 patents awarded or pending worldwide for new, computationally-designed materials. For more information, contact Jeff Grabowski at 1-847-425-8241 or jgrabowski@questek.com.

Questek Wins Three SBIR Phase I Awards To Design And Develop Alloys

QuesTek will Design and Develop Three New Alloys to Address Compelling Energy, Aerospace, Environmental and Operational Needs

EVANSTON, IL, Dec. 8, 2009 - QuesTek Innovations LLC was recently awarded three Phase I Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) projects to design and develop new alloys for the U.S. Department of Energy and the Office of Naval Research. The awards expand QuesTek’s on-going record of innovation for governmental and commercial entities. The three recent project awards are:

1. “Computational Design of Oxidation- and Creep-Resistant Niobium Superalloys for High Temperature Turbine Applications” awarded by the U.S. Department of Energy. QuesTek will design and develop oxidation- and creep-resistant niobium-based superalloys to enable high temperature turbines to operate with metal temperatures of 1,300°C (2,372°F) and above. Land-based turbines operating at these high temperatures could achieve far higher efficiencies and lower CO2 emissions than current equipment, and could further the development of Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle (IGCC) hydrogen-fueled, very- low-emission gas turbines and ultra-high-temperature steam turbines. Commercial and military aerospace turbine engines using these superalloys could also achieve significant gains in efficiency and performance output at these high operating temperatures. This is a nine-month, $99,967 SBIR program.

2. “Computational Design of Cost-Effective, Oxidation- and Creep-Resistant Alloys for Coal-Fired Power Plants” awarded by the U.S. Department of Energy. QuesTek will design and develop novel, cost- effective alloys for advanced ultra-supercritical power plants with steam temperatures of 760°C (1,400°F). QuesTek will investigate and assess three novel new microstructural concepts by: using robust, proprietary computational models to design novel new compositions; manufacturing prototype ingots of select materials at an intermediate scale; and performing physical tests to demonstrate the ability of the new materials to address creep strength, thermal fatigue, oxidation resistance and other properties. Increasing the steam temperature of advanced ultra-supercritical boilers can raise the operating efficiency of next-generation coal-fired power plants and address compelling environmental issues. This is a nine- month, $99,936 SBIR program.

3. “Computational Design of High-Strength, Anodize-Free Stainless Aluminum Alloys for Aerospace Applications” awarded by the U.S. Office of Naval Research and solicited by the Office of the Secretary of Defense. QuesTek will design and develop a new high-strength, anodize-free stainless aluminum alloy that will have intrinsic corrosion behavior similar to anodized 7xxx alloys and mechanical properties equivalent to non-anodized 7075-T6 alloy. Most aerospace aluminum alloys are anodized in order to enhance corrosion resistance, but anodization can reduce fatigue strength by as much as 40% and typically generates a hazardous waste stream. QuesTek will use its state-of-the-art computational design tools, custom thermodynamic and kinetic databases, microstructural evolution models, physics-based strength models, solidification process simulations, and stress-corrosion cracking models. Naval aerospace, commercial aviation, marine structures and other applications are expected to benefit from this new alloy. This is a six-month, $99,995 SBIR program.

Charlie Kuehmann, President and CEO of QuesTek, commented: “We appreciate these awards from the DOE, the ONR and the OSD to design and develop next-generation, high-performance materials. These projects build upon our record of material design successes for energy, aerospace and other industries, such as our Ferrium® C61™ and Ferrium C64™ alloys for applications such as high-power-density, high-durability power transmission and our Ferrium S53® ultra-high-strength, corrosion-resistant alloy for applications such as aircraft landing gear.”

ABOUT QUESTEK

QuesTek Innovations LLC is a global leader in computational materials design. QuesTek uses its proprietary Materials by Design^® expertise to quickly develop new materials that reduce capital, processing, operating or maintenance costs, or improve environmental protection, competitive supply or competitive advantage. QuesTek has been highlighted in many leading business and technical publications, and has more than 30 patents awarded or pending worldwide. For more information, contact Jeff Grabowski at 1-847-425-8241 or jgrabowski@questek.com.

QuesTek Wins SBIR Phase II Award To Further Design And Develop A Low-Cost, Castable Titanium Alloy

EVANSTON, IL, Nov. 30, 2009 - QuesTek Innovations LLC was recently awarded a Phase II Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) project from the U.S. Army to continue to apply QuesTek’s Materials by Design® technology to the design and development of a new castable titanium alloy for Army applications.

The aim of the project is to develop new castable titanium alloy compositions, by exploring designs that incorporate lower cost alloying components and processing steps. Alloy design activities will include minimizing sensitivity to elevated impurity levels (e.g. oxygen and iron) encountered in non-aerospace- grade stock materials. The final composition will first be produced (i.e. cast) and characterized using simplified test geometries, and then at final scale into specific Army components. The design property goals will consider cast titanium alloy Ti-6Al-4V (one of the mostly widely used titanium alloys) as one baseline.

A new low-cost titanium alloy with improved castability could see widespread adoption across many Army and Department of Defense platforms, where the exceptional strength-to-weight and corrosion resistance properties of titanium can be combined with the cost savings of near-net-shape processing (i.e. casting). The new alloy has significant potential application in energy, chemical processing, marine, transportation and other commercial and industrial sectors. Benefits of the new alloy will likely include reduced machining costs, less material waste, lower part count, faster speed-to-market, greater equipment durability, and lighter, more efficient equipment.

The 2-year SBIR Phase II contract is valued at up to $729,964.77, with $364,505.00 of initial funding authorized for FY2009. Earlier the Army also awarded QuesTek a $49,998.00, 4-month Option as part of a preceding Phase I SBIR award. Charlie Kuehmann, President and CEO of QuesTek, commented: “We appreciate this award from the Department of Defense to develop a low-cost castable titanium alloy that can directly address Army needs, and also meet broad commercial and industrial market requirements. This Phase II award builds on our past successes such as Ferrium S53®, our ultra-high-strength, corrosion-resistant steel for aircraft landing gear and other applications. Ferrium S53 was developed in part with Department of Defense funding and is now available for commercial, industrial and governmental use from multiple U.S.-based alloy producers under QuesTek’s licenses.”

ABOUT QUESTEK

QuesTek Innovations LLC (www.questek.com) is a global leader in computational materials design. QuesTek uses its proprietary Materials by Design® expertise to quickly develop new materials that reduce capital, processing, operating or maintenance costs, or improve environmental protection, competitive supply or competitive advantage. QuesTek has been highlighted in many leading business and technical publications, and has more than 30 patents awarded or pending worldwide. For more information, contact Jeff Grabowski at 1-847-425-8241 or jgrabowski@questek.com.

QuesTek Awards First Production Licenses Of Ferrium® C61™ And C64™ To Latrobe Specialty Steel Company

LATROBE, PA and EVANSTON, IL, Nov. 20, 2009 - QuesTek Innovations LLC has awarded licenses to Latrobe Specialty Steel Company to produce and sell Ferrium® C61™ and C64™ alloys. These are the first licenses granted by QuesTek to make commercially and market these two alloys using QuesTek’s compositions, processing expertise and intellectual property. Terms of the multi-year agreement were not disclosed.

Ferrium C61 and C64 are premium-quality carburizing steels that offer high core strength, high fatigue strength, high temperature resistance and high surface (i.e. case) hardenability. Ferrium C61 can achieve case hardness of 60-62 Rockwell “C” hardness (HRC), while Ferrium C64 can achieve case hardness of 62-64 HRC. The alloys were designed to permit gas quenching and to use conventional low-pressure carburization technology in order to minimize distortion, to reduce manufacturing times, and to give “dial-in” carburized case hardness profiles. The 900-950°F tempering temperature of these alloys provides a 400-600°F increase in thermal stability relative to incumbent alloys, yielding superior oil-out survivability.

These alloys are expected to benefit product applications where weight savings, compactness, high surface fatigue resistance, durability and high temperature resistance are valued, such as helicopter transmissions, racing car differentials, power transmission couplings, and similar demanding applications in aerospace, energy, racing, off-road vehicles, mission-critical systems, manufacturing equipment and other industries. Applications that combine structural loads with integral gearing, such as main power transmission shafts with integral gearing, can especially benefit.

Ferrium C64 was computationally designed and developed by QuesTek under an earlier Phase I and a current Phase II Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) project awarded by the U.S. Navy Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR). QuesTek designed, invented and achieved successful results from the first commercial production heat of Ferrium C64 in less than 24 months after the property design goals were established for the new alloy. Ferrium C61 has been previously available only directly through QuesTek, and is currently used in product applications such as off-road racing vehicles and process machinery.

Scott A. Balliett, Latrobe Specialty Steel’s Director Technology and Quality, said, “We sell these premium quality, high-hardness carburizing steels to customers worldwide to boost the performance and durability of their products. These alloys are produced in our state-of-the-art vacuum melting (VIM) and vacuum remelting (VAR) facilities which include the recently completed VIM and VAR expansion to our Latrobe, PA facility. Working with QuesTek, we accelerate introducing premium alloys to customers for vital defense and commercial applications.”

Charlie Kuehmann, President and CEO of QuesTek, commented: “We’re pleased to award these licenses to Latrobe. These licenses build upon our earlier license to Latrobe of Ferrium S53®, our ultra-high- strength, corrosion-resistant steel used for aircraft landing gear and other applications. We look forward to working further with Latrobe, their customers and design engineers worldwide to identify valuable product applications of Ferrium C61, C64 and S53.”

ABOUT QUESTEK

QuesTek Innovations LLC (www.questek.com) is a global leader in computational materials design. QuesTek uses its proprietary Materials by Design^® expertise to quickly develop new materials that reduce capital, processing, operating or maintenance costs, or improve environmental protection, competitive supply or competitive advantage. QuesTek has been highlighted in many leading business and technical publications, and has more than 30 patents awarded or pending worldwide. For more information, contact Jeff Grabowski at 1-847-425-8241 or jgrabowski@questek.com.

ABOUT LATROBE SPECIALTY STEEL COMPANY

Latrobe Specialty Steel, headquartered in Latrobe, PA, has been in continual business in the same location since 1913 and supplying the aerospace and defense sectors since 1958. The firm employs approximately 800 people. Find additional information about Latrobe Specialty Steel at www.latrobesteel.com or contact Lisa Pierce at 724-532-6324 (lisa.pierce@latrobesteel.com).

QUESTEK WINS THREE SBIR AWARDS TO DESIGN AND DEVELOP THREE ALLOYS

EVANSTON, IL, Dec. 16, 2008 - QuesTek Innovations LLC was recently awarded three Phase I Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) projects to develop new metal alloys for the U.S. Army and Air Force. The awards expand QuesTek’s on-going record of innovation for governmental and commercial entities. The three recent project awards are:

1. “Design and Development of a New Titanium Alloy with Improved Near-Net-Shape Formability” awarded by the U.S. Army. QuesTek will apply its Materials by Design® technology to the design and development of a new castable titanium alloy. Microstructural concepts for the alloy design will focus on improved castability (near-net-shape formability), improved mechanical strength (including fatigue strength), and lower cost relative to the existing aerospace-grade Ti-6Al-4V alloy. QuesTek intends to complete the design and demonstrate the alloy at prototype casting scale. Titanium alloys with improved castability could see widespread adoption across a myriad of Department of Defense platforms, where the exceptional strength-to-weight and corrosion resistance properties of titanium could be combined with the reduced cost potential of near-net-shape processing.

2. “Design of New Soft Magnetic Alloys with Improved Strength, Magnetization, and Temperature Performance” awarded by the U.S. Air Force. QuesTek will apply its Materials by Design technology to the design and development of a new high performance soft magnetic material. QuesTek will identify the critical performance criteria for a new high performance soft magnetic material, including saturation magnetization, mechanical strength, alloy cost, magnetic hysteresis losses, temperature performance, and electrical resistivity. A series of prototype alloys that explore different aspects of QuesTek’s modeling- and microstructural concept-spaces will be designed, produced, and tested for mechanical and magnetic performance. The need for high performance soft magnetic alloys with improved strength, magnetization, and temperature capabilities is prevalent in numerous electrical motor and actuator applications, in aerospace and otherwise. This project also received $49,979.00 of additional matching funding by the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity.

3. “Main Rotor Weight Reduction and Performance Enhancement via the Use of Carburized, High-Strength, Secondary Hardening Steel” awarded by the U.S. Army. Main rotor shafts, specifically those used on the CH-47, are among the largest, heaviest, and highly loaded single components on rotorcraft. QuesTek’s Materials by Design technology has been used to design Ferrium® C61, which has a high-strength/high-toughness core to allow for weight reduction or increased power density. This alloy may represent a substantial weight-savings opportunity for the main rotor shaft on the CH-47 without requiring significant changes in the production process of the component. Successful demonstration of C61 in aerospace applications will allow for advancement of a new family of carburizing high-strength steels.

Charlie Kuehmann, President and CEO of QuesTek, commented: “We appreciate these awards from the Department of Defense to develop next-generation materials that directly address governmental needs, yet also have broad commercial and societal benefits. These new projects build on our past successes such as Ferrium S53®, our ultra-high-strength, corrosion-resistant steel for aircraft landing gear and other applications. The development of Ferrium S53 began from a program within the Department of Defense which addressed environmental issues. Ferrium S53 is now available for both commercial and governmental use from multiple U.S.-based alloy producers under our licenses.”

ABOUT QUESTEK
QuesTek Innovations LLC (www.questek.com) is a global leader in computational materials design. QuesTek uses its proprietary Materials by Design^® expertise to quickly develop new materials that reduce capital, processing, operating or maintenance costs, or improve environmental protection or competitive supply. QuesTek has been highlighted in many leading business and technical publications, and has more than 25 patents awarded or pending worldwide. For more information, contact Jeff Grabowski at 1-847-425-8241 or jgrabowski@questek.com.

QuesTek’s high-strength, corrosion resistant steel “Ferrium S53®” receives approval of A and B basis minimums for inclusion in the aerospace industry’s MMPDS Handbook

Evanston, IL, May 9, 2008 – QuesTek Innovations LLC is pleased to announce that its patented high- strength, corrosion resistant alloy Ferrium S53 has received formal approval for inclusion in the aerospace industry’s Metallic Materials Properties Development & Standardization (MMPDS) Handbook. This follows the approval of an Aerospace Material Specification for S53 (AMS 5922) earlier this year. QuesTek designed Ferrium S53 to be a drop-in replacement for 300M steel, which is commonly used today in military and commercial aviation for landing gear components.

The Handbook minimums demonstrate that S53 matches the ultimate tensile strength of 300M. With vastly improved corrosion resistance compared to 300M, S53 will extend the life of landing gear components and should eliminate the need for toxic cadmium coatings. Coupled with the Aerospace Material Specification, engineers can now design components with S53 and procure material for use on flight critical components. The design allowables will first appear in published form in “MMPDS-05.”

This unique alloy was developed through the application of Materials by Design^®, QuesTek’s computational materials systems-design methodology. Charles Kuehmann, QuesTek’s President and CEO, stated “Obtaining approval of MMPDS minimums is another significant milestone in the development of Ferrium S53. Industry approval for the design minimums signifies the alloy is now ready for use in numerous aerospace applications and provides designers validated properties to evaluate S53 in flight critical applications. QuesTek is working with the US Air Force to qualify various landing gear components and anticipates broad implementation of this new alloy.”

Carpenter Technology Corporation and Latrobe Specialty Steel produce and distribute Ferrium S53 under license from QuesTek. Commercial and test quantities of S53 (AMS 5922) are available from Carpenter today. Latrobe licensed the alloy in December 2007 and anticipates commercial availability later this year.

For more information, contact: Jeff Grabowski, Manager - Applications Development, QuesTek Innovations LLC, 1820 Ridge Avenue, Evanston, IL 60201; tel: 847.328.5800; e-mail: jgrabowski@questek.com. For a copy of AMS 5922, visit www.sae.org. For a copy of the MMPDS minimums, contact Jason Sebastian: jsebastian@questek.com.

$1.6 Million to QuesTek Innovations LLC Congresswoman Schakowsky Helps Fund New Ultrahigh-strength Corrosion Resistant Steel

Evanston, IL, March 6, 2008 – Today, QuesTek Innovations LLC, a materials solutions company with a focus in aerospace applications, announced that Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky has secured $1.6 million in federal funding for a new alloy, Ferrium® S53, which has corrosion resistant properties that eliminate the need for toxic cadmium plating currently used in landing gear.

“We are very thankful to Ms. Schakowsky,” said Dr. Charles Kuehmann, President and Chief Executive Officer of QuesTek Innovations. “Ferrium S53 significantly improves the reliability of aircraft landing gear while reducing their environmental impact and without her support the DoD and commercial aviation would not realize these benefits for many years to come.”

Steels used in numerous aerospace applications, specifically landing gear, are not corrosion resistant and therefore require protective cadmium plating. Cadmium, a known carcinogen, represents significant environmental risks in both primary aerospace manufacture and at overhaul and repair facilities. Ferrium S53 is an ultrahigh-strength corrosion resistant steel with mechanical properties better than conventional steels and eliminates the need for toxic metal plating.

“I’m proud that I was able to help secure $1.6 million federal funding to replace toxic metal plated landing gear with a new, corrosion resistant steel”, U.S. Representative Jan Schakowsky (D-IL). “Not only will this new steel improve the safety of our Air Force fleet, but it will also protect the health of engineers, manufacturers and the environment by eliminating the use of toxic cadmium. QuesTek Innovations is a leader in developing new, innovative technologies that will improve the efficiency of our military while protecting the health and safety of workers. While the military will be the first to use this material, the new corrosion resistant steel could eventually improve the safety of the commercial airline industry.”

QuesTek Innovations LLC is an innovative materials solutions company that designs and develops new materials, including high-performance steels and other alloys, in less time and cost than traditional empirical methods. They achieve dramatically reduced design and development times and cost through their proprietary Materials by Design^® technology which integrates powerful computer design tools with proprietary material structure and processing models. QuesTek is currently working with the Department of Defense and leading aerospace companies to accelerate the insertion of new materials into advanced aerospace components. Information about QuesTek can be found on the Internet at www.questek.com or contact Jeff Grabowski at 847-425-8241, jgrabowski@questek.com

QuesTek to present progress on design of new Cuprium™ alloy to replace toxic copper-beryllium in bushing applications

Evanston, IL, February 28, 2008 – As part of a U.S. Navy Phase II SBIR program with NAVAIR, QuesTek Innovations LLC is using its computational materials design technology to develop the Cuprium™ class of beryllium-free copper alloys for replacement of AMS 4533 Cu-Be alloy. Existing copper-berryllium alloys achieve high strengths (>140 ksi yield strength) that are not possible in other copper-based alloys and have widespread Department of Defense application; especially in aerospace bushings. However, beryllium is highly toxic in certain forms and requires great care during machining and other production processes. OSHA is calling for further reductions in beryllium exposure limits, causing product designers to avoid Cu-Be alloys in key applications. As a result, a number of aerospace companies are actively seeking beryllium-free bushing technologies.

QuesTek’s new Cuprium alloy will be the only suitable “drop-in” replacement for existing Cu-Be alloys, meeting all key performance criteria. The new alloy will eliminate the health hazards associated with toxic beryllium and, as a drop-in replacement, minimize product re-design costs. QuesTek plans to present the latest developments of the Cuprium alloy at the Navy Opportunity Forum to be held at Crystal City, VA from June 2nd-4th, 2008.

For more information, contact: Jeff Grabowski, Manager- Applications Development, QuesTek Innovations LLC, 1820 Ridge Avenue, Evanston, IL 60201; tel: 847.328.5800; e-mail: jgrabowski@questek.com.

QuesTek’s high-strength, corrosion resistant steel “Ferrium® S53” receives formal Aerospace Material Specification- SAE issues AMS 5922

Evanston, IL, January 29, 2008 – Earlier this month SAE International approved an Aerospace Material Specification for QuesTek’s new alloy Ferrium S53. QuesTek designed Ferrium S53 to be a drop-in replacement for 300M steel, which is commonly used today in military and commercial aviation for landing gear. S53 meets the ultimate tensile strength of 300M and has the added benefit of corrosion resistance, eliminating the need for toxic cadmium coatings and extending the life of landing gear components.

AMS 5922 covers the procurement of bars and forgings of S53 as a double vacuum melted (VIM/VAR) aerospace grade. SAE Committee F on corrosion and heat resistant alloys approved the specification for S53 premium aircraft-quality alloy steel. The specification itself covers material chemistry, processing, heat-treatment, and minimum property requirements.

The alloy was developed through the application of Materials by Design®, QuesTek’s computational materials systems-design methodology. Charles Kuehmann, QuesTek’s President and CEO, stated “Obtaining AMS 5922 is a significant milestone in the development of Ferrium S53. It demonstrates a high level of technical maturity for the alloy. We are also working towards the publication of minimum properties in the MMPDS handbook later this year to complement the Aerospace Material Specification.”

QuesTek has licensed Carpenter Technology Corporation and Latrobe Specialty Steel to produce and distribute Ferrium S53. Commercial and test quantities of S53 compliant with AMS 5922 are available from Carpenter today. Latrobe, a recent licensee, anticipates commercial availability later in 2008.

For more information, contact: Jeff Grabowski, Manager - Applications Development, QuesTek Innovations LLC, 1820 Ridge Avenue, Evanston, IL 60201; tel: 847.328.5800; e-mail: jgrabowski@questek.com. For a copy of Aerospace Material Specification 5922, visit www.sae.org/

Latrobe Specialty Steel Licenses Corrosion-Resistant Landing Gear Alloy

Evanston, IL, December 5, 2007 - QuesTek Innovations licensed the production and distribution of their Ferrium S53® alloy to Latrobe Specialty Steel. Ferrium S53® is a high strength, high toughness, corrosion-resistant alloy. Most importantly, landing gears made of Ferrium S53 no longer need cadmium coating. “This gives our customers one more way to succeed by using engineered, vacuum remelted steels from Latrobe,” stated Hans J. Sack, President and CEO of Latrobe Specialty Steel.

QuesTek designed Ferrium S53® to meet the U.S. Air Force’s requirements for landing gears that eliminate the need for toxic cadmium coatings. Dr. Charles Kuehmann, President and CEO of QuesTek said, “Ferrium S53® significantly benefits the environment as well as the reliability of commercial and military aircraft. With their capabilities and experience in aerospace, Latrobe will expand Ferrium S53® penetration of the market.”

Latrobe Specialty Steel’s metallurgical and aerospace engineers foresee many other defense and aerospace applications beyond landing gears for Ferrium S53®. Latrobe will bring many new high performance materials to the market in the coming years. “Our cooperation with QuesTek helps Latrobe Specialty Steel to commercialize materials sooner. That means our customers can offer innovative products faster,” explained Latrobe’s Director of Technology and Quality Systems, Scott Balliett.

Latrobe Specialty Steel Company, headquartered in Latrobe, PA, manufactures and distributes precision-engineered specialty alloys for customers globally. Airframe and defense systems manufacturers specify other grades of Latrobe’s high-performance, vacuum melted and vacuum remelted alloys for jet engine bearings, helicopter rotor shafts, fighting vehicle torsion bars and spacecraft components. Latrobe Specialty Steel offers a wide variety of solutions for the most demanding industry requirements. In business continuously since 1913, Latrobe Specialty Steel employs approximately 900 people in ten locations throughout North America and Europe. Find additional information about Latrobe Specialty Steel at latrobesteel.com or contact Lisa Pierce at 724-539-0139 or lisa.pierce@latrobesteel.com.

QuesTek Innovations LLC, based in Evanston, IL, computationally designs alloys to customer specifications and licenses the use and/or production of these alloys to appropriate partners. Information about QuesTek can be found on the Internet at www.questek.com or contact Brian Tufts at 847-425-8241, btufts@questek.com

CARPENTER TECHNOLOGY LICENSES FERRIUM® S53 ALLOY

EVANSTON, IL, (February 7, 2007) – QuesTek Innovations LLC and Carpenter Technology Corporation (NYSE: CRS) have entered into a license agreement whereby Carpenter will produce and market QuesTek’s Ferrium S53 ultrahigh-strength corrosion resistant stainless alloy.

QuesTek applied its Materials by Design^® technology to create the alloy meeting US Air Force specifications for use in aircraft landing gear. Carpenter’s Vice President Business Development and Chief Technology Officer Sunil Widge stated “Carpenter is excited to add Ferrium S53 to our portfolio of specialty alloys. By supplementing our existing product offering, which includes Carpenter’s proprietary Custom 465® stainless and AerMet® alloys, we are able to expand our offerings to the aerospace structural market. QuesTek’s innovative materials design methodology has resulted in a unique alloy and promising product for Carpenter.”

Ferrium S53 is an alternative to 300M and other high-strength alloys that have been used in landing gear components when there is desire for environmental and performance reasons to eliminate cadmium coatings. This ultrahigh-strength corrosion resistant material may also be considered for other aerospace applications including rotary gear actuators, fasteners, and other structural components.

On the collaboration with Carpenter, QuesTek President and Chief Executive Officer Charles Kuehmann remarked, “QuesTek is excited to join forces with Carpenter to bring our Ferrium S53 steel to market. Carpenter’s excellent reputation for quality and strong presence in the aerospace community makes this alliance a great match.”

Carpenter has licensed relevant trademarks and will market the alloy under the Ferrium S53 alloy name. An AMS specification for this material is anticipated later this year.

Carpenter produces and distributes specialty alloys, including stainless steels, titanium alloys and superalloys, and various engineered products. Information about Carpenter can be found on the Internet at www.cartech.com. For product information and material availability, contact Steve Heffner at 610-208-3331 or Customer Service at 1-800-654-6543.

QuesTek Innovations LLC, based in Evanston, IL, computationally designs alloys per customer specifications and licenses the use and/or production of these alloys to appropriate partners. Information about QuesTek can be found on the Internet at www.questek.com or contact Brian Tufts at 847-425-8241, btufts@questek.com

QuesTek Leads D3D Computational Materials Design Consortium

Evanston, IL, October 10, 2005 – QuesTek Innovations LLC announced that it has received a major multi-year contract from the Office of Naval Research and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency to lead a multi-university/government/industry consortium that will create and disseminate a suite of next generation, science-based, 3-dimensional computational materials design engineering tools.

Members of the “D3D Digital Structure” Design Consortium include Northwestern University, the Colorado School of Mines, Georgia Tech Research Institute, the University of Michigan, and MIT. The goal of this 5-year initiative is to provide high-fidelity 3D simulation of the dynamic evolution of microstructures in materials processing in support of the accelerated design, development and qualification of new materials. Validation of the computational materials design models will employ 3D microstructural reconstruction through a combination of state-of-the-art Local Electrode Atom-Probe (LEAP) analysis and Femtosecond Laser Tomography, in addition to enhanced quantum physics and chemistry-based software tools. Demonstration cases of the enhanced 3D computational design tools will be drawn from U.S. Navy applications requiring new high performance ferrous alloys. Scientific Forming Technologies Corporation, who is also a Team member, will facilitate the commercial dissemination of these next generation 3D design tools.

QuesTek Innovations Named A Fortune 500 Breakout Company For 2005

Evanston, IL, May 16, 2005 – QuesTek Innovations LLC was named one of Fortune magazine’s 25 Breakout Companies for 2005 in this week’s issue. This was the 13th year of the annual search to “cull truly innovative companies.” QuesTek was recognized for its Materials By Design^®technology and its development of Ferrium^® S53, a structural stainless steel that was created for the Department of Defense for use in landing gear and other aerospace components.

Currently, landing gear is manufactured from non-stainless alloys that require a cadmium plating process to prevent corrosion. Eliminating this environmentally hazardous process was one of the primary objectives of a DoD Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program initiative and for which QuesTek received the 2002 DoD SERDP Pollution Prevention Project of the Year award. Ferrium^® S53, a structural stainless alloy that achieves a unique combination of properties via a nano-scale carbide distribution, is now in full-scale production under an Environmental Science and Technology Certification Program that is being conducted at Hill AFB in Utah. Ferrium^® S53 parts will follow the same production path as current landing gear steels, and components will begin flight testing in 2006.

QuesTek Innovations is accelerating the creation, development and insertion of new and enabling materials using its advanced Materials By Design^® technology in aerospace, automotive, medical and industrial applications and has applied its technology to the development of steels (non-stainless and stainless) aluminum, copper, nickel-based superalloys, shape memory alloys and ceramic materials. For more information on QuesTek Innovations and its Materials By Design technology, visit the Company’s website at www.questek.com.

Naval Air Warfare Center Awards Phase I SBIR

Evanston, IL, April 24, 2005 – QuesTek Innovations LLC announced that it has received a Phase I Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) contract from the U.S. Naval Air Warfare Center to utilize its Materials By Design^® technology to create an alternative material for beryllium copper alloys (BeCu) in aerospace applications. Beryllium is extremely lightweight, strong and a good conductor of electricity, and when used as an alloying element, it can dramatically affect the properties of several base metals. However, beryllium is a highly toxic metal. To address this serious health and environmental hazard, the Naval Air Warfare Center has awarded QuesTek a Phase I SBIR to computationally design and deliver a prototype alloy alternative to BeCu. An environmentally benign material solution would immediately benefit all BeCu alloy producers, secondary processors, component manufacturers and end users by mitigating the hazards associated with the handling and disposal of beryllium. BeCu

QuesTek Innovations is accelerating the creation, development and insertion of new and enabling materials using its advanced Materials By Design^® technology in aerospace, automotive, medical and industrial applications. For more information on QuesTek Innovations and its Materials by Design technology, visit the company’s website at www.questek.com.

New Alloy For U.S. Army Motar

Evanston, IL, April 20, 2005 – QuesTek Innovations LLC announced that it has received a contract from the U.S. Army to create a unique high strength, high temperature alloy for mortar barrel applications. A new alloy, with better yield strength stability at elevated temperature, can potentially remove the need for cooling fins and reduce barrel thickness, providing a reduction in both weight and machining cost. The objective of this proposed work is to utilize QuesTek’s Materials By Design^® technology for the development of a high strength high temperature alloy for dismounted mortar barrels.

QuesTek Innovations is accelerating the creation, development and insertion of new and enabling materials using its advanced Materials By Design^® technology in aerospace, automotive, medical and industrial applications. For more information on QuesTek Innovations and its Materials by Design technology, visit the company’s website at www.questek.com.

U.S. Marine Corps Awards Questek A Phase II SBIR

Evanston, IL, March 28, 2005 – QuesTek Innovations LLC is pleased to announce that it has been awarded a Phase II Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) contract by the U.S. Marine Corps to employ its proprietary Materials By Design^® technology to custom- design a unique stainless marine steel for the Marine Corps Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle (EFV) that operates in severe corrosive seawater and abrasive sand environments.

QuesTek Innovations is accelerating the creation, development and insertion of new and enabling materials using its advanced Materials By Design^® technology in aerospace, automotive, medical and industrial applications. For more information on QuesTek Innovations and its Materials by Design technology, visit the company’s website at www.questek.com.

QuesTek Innovations Receives International Award

Evanston, IL, October 30, 2004 – Charles J. Kuehmann, Ph.D., President/CEO of QuesTek Innovations LLC, was presented the Alloy Phase Diagram International Commission’s 2004 Industrial Award at the Advanced Materials & Processes Materials Solution Conference and Exposition in Columbus, OH on October 20, 2004. The APDIC Industrial Award acknowledges eminent achievements reached by industries, raising the awareness of the economic, societal and technical importance of applied knowledge in phase diagrams and highlights the cutting edge technology of the company receiving the award.

The award was presented to QuesTek by APDIC’s Chairman, Tetsuo Mohri, for the Company’s “pioneering the Materials By Design® method, integrating thermodynamics, phase diagrams and kinetics, in a systems engineering framework,” which has resulted in QuesTek’s design of a “number of “Best in Class” materials . . ., including Ferrium® C61 for high performance gears and Ferrium® S53 stainless alloy as a replacement for cadmium coated 300M, which is used in landing gear.” Supporting criteria for the award include:

economic impact, such as reduced time to market, energy savings, cost reduction by materials substitution and processing, etc.
socio-economic impact, making use of human resources, competence and know-how prior to, or instead of, trial and error investments.
technological impact by achieving step-performance increase in materials properties, application regimes, setting standards, etc.
global coherence impact, by employing global networking, facility sharing and targeted cooperation across national boundaries.

The computational design of materials, particularly at nanoscale levels, is an emerging technology, and QuesTek is one of the foremost leaders in this exciting new field. QuesTek has worked extensively for the Department of Defense and other federal agencies designing advanced, high performance materials for aerospace, land-, sea- and space-based applications and has recently begun to introduce modified versions of these materials for commercial application. For more information on QuesTek Innovations and its Materials by Design technology, visit the company’s website at www.questek.com.

Greg Olson Receives Distinguished Scientist/Engineer Award

Evanston, IL, March 24, 2004 – Gregory B. Olson, Sc.D., Chief Science Officer of QuesTek Innovations LLC, has received the Structural Materials Division Distinguished Scientist/Engineer Award from The Minerals, Metals & Materials Society (TMS) for “Advances in the physical metallurgy of steel, as well as the development of the science of Materials by Design^® and its application to industrial practice.” The award, established in 1996, recognizes an individual who has made a long-standing contribution to the fundamental understanding of microstructure, properties, and performance of structural materials for industrial applications.

Gregory Olson, is the Wilson-Cook Professor of Engineering Design at Northwestern University. His career accomplishments include: founder and director of Northwestern’s Steel Research Group and Materials Technology Laboratory; associate director, Institute for Design Engineering & Applications; and a founder and Chief Science Officer, QuesTek Innovations LLC—the first Computational Materials Design Company. An author of over 200 publications, Prof. Olson’s honors include: fellow of TMS and ASM, and ASM Alpha Sigma Mu Lecturer. His awards include the ISS-AIME Tennenbaum Award, the Department of Defense’s SERDP Pollution Prevention Award for the computational design and development of Ferrium® S53, and the Sun-Times Chicago Innovation Award for QuesTek Innovations. In accepting the award, Prof. Olson stated that “It is a privilege to aid TMS in the transmutation of our discipline from engineering science to scientific engineering.”

The computational design of materials, particularly at nanoscale levels, is an emerging technology, and Prof. Olson’s research has made QuesTek Innovations one of the foremost leaders in the exciting new field. For more information on QuesTek Innovations and its Materials by Design technology, visit the company’s website at www.questek.com.

QuesTek To Develop New Stainless Marine Steel

Evanston, IL, March 8, 2004 – QuesTek Innovations LLC announced the award of a contract by the U.S. Marine Corp Systems Command to employ its Materials by Design^® technology to design and rapidly develop a low-cost, nanostructured high-strength, high-toughness stainless steel for components of the Marine Corps Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle (EFV). Formerly known as the Advanced Amphibious Assault Vehicle (AAAV), the EFV operates in severe corrosive and abrasive environments, including seawater and sand. To perform successfully, the material from which structural EFV components are fabricated must have a balance of properties, including high-strength, high-toughness, good wear resistance, and good corrosion resistance.

The result of this program will be a new class of cost effective, robust stainless alloys for demanding applications, such as the EFV. Currently, the EFV uses a significant amount of titanium, which has acceptable mechanical properties and good corrosion resistance, but adds significant cost. James Wright, Principal Investigator for the program said, “Titanium is expensive as a raw material, and both costly and difficult to manufacture. The development of a high-strength, high-toughness steel alloy with enhanced resistance to corrosion in marine environments would substantially decrease the overall vehicle costs of the EFV”. An additional benefit associated with an optimally designed stainless steel alloy, would be improved load carrying capacity. Dr. Wright further stated “The successful development of a stainless steel specifically created for marine applications, which would be designed to comply with environmental regulations and requirements, would also have dual-use potential for a number commercial market segments including marine boating and offshore drilling”.

QuesTek Innovations is a leader in the emerging field of computational materials design. Using its proprietary Materials by Design^® technology, QuesTek develops and licenses unique materials designed to enable new products, reduce or eliminate long-term environmental impact, enhance the performance of existing products or reduce the cost of materials processing. QuesTek’s clients come from both the public and private sectors, including leading Fortune 50 companies.

QuesTek Introduces New Stainless Blade Steel

Evanston, IL, February 24, 2004 – QuesTek Innovations announced today the introduction of its newest stainless steel, Ferrium^® M60S. The steel was developed specifically for the sporting knife market and other blade applications.

Ferrium M60S is part of a family of patented nanocarbide strengthened monolithic stainless steels. This approach provides a number of advantages. Utilizing carbides that are only .003 um in size, Ferrium M60S has an exceptional combination of properties, with excellent corrosion resistance (average pitting potential of >400 mV), temperature resistance of >500 degrees C and toughness of >20 measured by Charpy C-Notch. Additionally, Ferrium M60S recorded one of the highest scores ever achieved for a stainless steel when tested for edge retention (TCC) by the Cutlery Allied Trade Research Association (CATRA) in Sheffield, England.

Charlie Kuehmann, President and CEO of QuesTek said, “Our proprietary nanometer carbide technology has allowed us to design a steel with a balance of qualities that knife makers have long desired. We are confident that Ferrium M60S will help improve the utility and desirability of the knives in which it is used.” Commercial quantities of Ferrium M60S will be available on April 1st.

QuesTek Receives Phase I Army SBIR

Evanston, IL, December 17, 2003 – QuesTek Innovations LLC has been awarded a Phase I SBIR from the U.S. Army entitiled “High Strength, Affordable Helicopter Gears.” The objective of this program is to utilize advances in gear steel technology to demonstrate the potential for improvement in bending fatigue strength and contact fatigue strength of gear alloys to enable an increase in the power capability to main helicopter gearboxes with little or no weight increase. Transmission gears are key components to helicopter performance and reliability. High power-density transmission systems in helicipters and other aerospace platforms represent a significant amount of the weight of these vehicles, and their failure typically results in a catastrophic event.

Many improved alloys and processes for helicopter gears have been attempted using traditional “trial and error” methods. These efforts typically result in only marginal improvements in performance, and often involve very complex processing schedules, limiting their reliability and relegating them to expensive niche applications. Working with Bell Helicopter, QuesTek will evaluate alternative processing surface treatments for conventional helicopter gear alloys, which will then be compared to QuesTek’s advanced gear steels Ferrium^® C61 and Ferrium^® C69.

QuesTek Innovations is a leader in the emerging field of computational materials design. Using its proprietary Materials by Design^® technology, QuesTek develops and licenses unique materials designed to enable new products, reduce or eliminate long-term environmental impact, enhance the performance of existing products or reduce the cost of materials processing. QuesTek’s clients come from both the public and private sectors and include leading Fortune 50 companies. For more information, visit our website at www.questek.com or contact Dr. Frode Stavehaug, Director of Application Engineering, at 847.425.8214.

QuesTek's Ferrium C61 Scores in the Baja 1000

Evanston, IL, December 15, 2003 – The Deco Motorsports team, running a developmental ring and pinion using QuesTek’s Ferrium^® C61 high-performance gear steel, placed 3rd in their class in the 2003 SCORE International Baja 1000, held on November 18th through the 22nd in Ensenada, Baja California. This was the second race trial for the new ring and pinion designed to meet the harsh demands of the 1/2-1600 Class off-road vehicles. The team finished just 11 minutes behind the race leader. This 3rd place showing followed Deco’s 5th place finish in the SCORE Primm 300, the first trial for C61. Steve Roberts, owner of Deco Motorsports stated that the transmission, prepped by Dave Folts, was flawless in both races. Based on these results, QuesTek is working closely with Deco Motorsports and Dave Folts to introduce Ferrium^® C61 to the demanding SCORE International Circuit.

QuesTek Innovations is a leader in the emerging field of computational materials design. Using its proprietary Materials by Design^® technology, QuesTek develops and licenses unique materials designed to enable new products, reduce or eliminate long-term environmental impact, enhance the performance of existing products or reduce the cost of materials processing. QuesTek’s clients come from both the public and private sectors and include leading Fortune 50 companies. For more information, contact Dr. Charlie Kuehmann at 847.425.8222.

U.S. Naval Air Warfare Center Award Nanostructured Structural Stainless Steel

Evanston, IL, August 18, 2003 – QuesTek Innovations LLC announced that it has been awarded a Phase II Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) grant from the U.S. Naval Air Warfare Center for a program entitled “Computational Design of High-Strength, High-Toughness Stainless Steel for Carrier-Based Aircraft Components.”

QuesTek applied its novel computational materials design approach to demonstrate the feasibility for the development of a nanostructured high-strength, high-toughness stainless steel to meet the stringent mechanical properties for carrier-based aircraft components. Dr. Charles J. Kuehmann, Principal Investigator for this project stated that “300M and the higher performance AerMet® 100 are currently used for critical aerospace components, but both alloys are nonstainless and highly susceptible to corrosion and hydrogen embrittlement. As a result, a number of aircraft components, such as landing gear, require a costly cadmium coating process to protect against corrosion.” Cadmium is a known carcinogen and represents significant environmental risks in both primary manufacture, and at Department of Defense overhaul and repair facilities.

QuesTek Materials by Design® technology will be used to develop a series of microstructural toughening strategies to devise novel stainless steel compositions that will match or exceed the more rigid mechanical strength and toughness properties of AerMet® 100 steel, thus eliminating the need for cadmium coating. Kuehmann noted that “a new high strength, high toughness stainless alloy would benefit the environment and have dual-use application potential for commercial aircraft and other commercial markets such as marine equipment.”

QuesTek Ferrium® S53 Enters DoD Certification Program

Evanston, IL, July 15, 2003 – The Department of Defense’s Environmental Security Technology Certification Program, a corporate Department of Defense program that promotes innovative, cost-effective environmental technologies through demonstration and validation at DoD sites, has authorized funding for the development and certification of QuesTek’s Ferrium® S53 for use in landing gear.

In December, 2002 a nationally recognized technical symposium and workshop that focused on important and timely environmental issues was held in Washington DC. The two and one-half day event opened with a Plenary Session featuring distinguished speakers from the Bush Administration, the Armed Forces, and an environmental advocacy group. At the conclusion of the Plenary Session, Dr. Charles Kuehmann, President & CEO, and Dr. Gregory Olson, Chief Science Officer of QuesTek Innovations, were recognized for leading the development of Ferrium S53, a new superior stainless structural steel that combines mechanical properties equivalent to current ultrahigh-strength steels with the anti-corrosive properties that virtually eliminate the need for toxic metal plating.

Dr. Herb Ward, Chair of DoD’s Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program’s Scientific Advisory Board, stated that QuesTek’s computational design methodology reduced the development time from over a decade to just a few years at roughly five percent of the normal development cost. Ferrium S53 was developed with only five prototypes over a two-year period resulting in a development cost savings of approximately $50 million. As a result, a multi-year program has been initiated under ESTCP sponsorship to fully qualify Ferrium S53 for DoD aircraft landing gear components.

QuesTek Innovations is a leader in the emerging field of computational materials design. Using its proprietary Materials by Design® technology, QuesTek develops and licenses unique materials designed to enable new products, reduce or eliminate long-term environmental impact, enhance the performance of existing products or reduce the cost of materials processing. QuesTek’s clients come from both the public and private sectors and include leading Fortune 50 companies. For more information, visit our website at www.questek.com or contact Dr. Frode Stavehaug, Director of Applications Engineering, at 847.425.8214.

QuesTek to Introduce New Nanostructured Stainless Steel at the ASM Aeromet 2003 Conference

Evanston, IL, May 7, 2003 – Advanced Materials & Processes, in its May 2003 edition, formally announced in the following article, QuesTek’s new ultrahigh-strength structural stainless steel that was computationally designed to replace non-stainless 300M for use in landing gear and other aerospace components.

Ultrahigh-Strength Steel Offers High Corrosion Resistance

An ultrahigh-strength, corrosion resistant structural steel with mechanical properties equivalent to those of 300M will be discussed by Frode Stavehaug of QuesTek Innovations LLC, Evanston, IL, at the ASM Aeromat 2003 conference in Dayton, Ohio, June 9-12. In addition to high structural strength, the alloy has general corrosion resistance similar to that of PH 15-5. The presentation will cover mechanical properties, Charpy impact energy, fracture toughness, and stress-corrosion cracking.

The alloy was developed through the application of Materials by Design^®, QuesTek’s computational materials systems-design method. One goal of the new alloy design was to eliminate the use of cadmium at rework, maintenance, and manufacturing facilities where ultrahigh-strength steels are applied in structures such as landing gear.

Material design strategies incorporated into the alloy will enable accelerated selection because of the inherent predictability of a designed alloy, control of property variation within expected process limits, and the modeling of process scale-up.

For more information: Frode Stavehaug, Director of Applications Engineering, QuesTek Innovations LLC, 1820 Ridge Avenue, Evanston, IL 60201; tel: 847/328-5800; e-mail: fstavehaug@questek.com. For more information about the ASM Aeromat 2003 conference or to register, visit www.asminternational.org/Aeromat.

National Science Foundation Award Shape Memory Alloy Development

Evanston, IL, January 5, 2003 – QuesTek Innovations LLC announced that it has been awarded a Phase I Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) grant from the National Science Foundation for a program entitled “Computational Design of Nanostructured High-Performance Shape Memory Alloys.”

Dr. Weijia Tang, Principal Investigator for the program stated that “the term “shape memory alloys” (SMAs) is applied to certain novel metallic materials that demonstrate the unique ability to return to an originally defined shape or size when subjected to thermal or mechanical processes. The characteristics of shape memory is exhibited in a wide variety of alloys, but only those that are able to recover substantial amounts of strain or that generate significant force upon changing shape, such as nickel titanium (NiTi) alloys and copper-base alloys, have achieved any level of commercial success.”

Recently, there has been an increasing demand for the development of size efficient microactuators in micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS). In addition, for medical application, extensive research has been conducted in an attempt to improve cyclic lifetime to enhance robustness of vascular stents, medical guidewires and guidepins. According to Dr. Tang, “to improve the output force and the cyclic lifetime of NiTi SMAs, the strength of the alloy must be improved, but historical “trial and error” methods of discovery have limited SMA development and their true economic potential has yet to be realized.”

Raymond P. Genellie, QuesTek’s Vice President – Operations stated that QuesTek’s expertise in the computational design of nanostructured high performance materials, has led to this innovative SBIR grant and the goal of achieving higher strength SMAs will be the primary focus of this Phase I program. The combination of QuesTek’s newly developed capability of simulating nanoscale precipitation microstructure and the well-established thermodynamic and mechanistic strength modeling of its Materials by Design® technology, makes the design of nanostructured high performance SMAs feasible and promises to lead to important scientific research and commercial applications.

QuesTek Innovations Awarded DoD 2002 Project of the Year

Evanston, IL, December 16, 2002 – QuesTek Innovations LLC was awarded the Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program’s (SERDP) 2002 Pollution Prevention Project of the Year award. SERDP is a Department of Defense R&D program whose primary mission is to minimize or remove major negative environmental impacts on DoD’s ability to maintain military readiness for national defense. The program is responsible for over $50 million in annual research activity among over 100 participants and is planned and executed in full partnership with the Department of Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency.

Dr. Charles J. Kuehmann, President and CEO of QuesTek, accepted the award, which was presented by Dr. C.H. Ward, Chair of SERDP’s Scientific Advisory Board, at the 2002 “Partners in Environmental Technology” symposium. The award recognizes QuesTek’s development of a nanostructured stainless steel alloy for landing gear and other structural aircraft components as a replacement for current steels that require hazardous cadmium plating for corrosion protection. QuesTek’s new alloy, Ferrium® S53, was designed and developed in a fraction of the time and cost typical of such alloys using its advanced computational Materials by Design® technology. Dr. Kuehmann stated that “the development of an ultrahigh-strength stainless alloy that possesses corrosion resistance and strength to meet the requirements for landing gear has been the focus of traditional empirical materials development efforts for many years without success.” The greatest benefit of Ferrium® S53 will be the reduction of life-cycle cost and toxic waste in DoD squadrons and maintenance depots. Dr. Kuehmann further noted that “derivatives of this unique alloy will also be valuable for sustainment of aging aircraft systems and is being targeted for several ultrahigh-strength commercial applications requiring corrosion resistance.”

QuesTek Innovations is a leader in the emerging field of computational materials design. Using its proprietary Materials by Design® technology, QuesTek develops and licenses unique materials designed to enable new products, reduce or eliminate long-term environmental impact, enhance the performance of existing products or reduce the cost of materials processing. QuesTek’s clients come from both the public and private sectors and include leading Fortune 50 companies. For more information, contact Dr. Frode Stavehaug, Director of Applications Engineering, at 847.425.8214.

U.S. Navy Award Nanostructured Structural Stainless Steel

Evanston, IL, December 2, 2002 – QuesTek Innovations LLC announced that it has been awarded a Phase I Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) grant from the U.S. Navy for a program entitled “Computational Design of High-Strength, High-Toughness Stainless Steel for Carrier-Based Aircraft Components.”

QuesTek will utilize a novel computational materials design approach to demonstrate the feasibility for the development of a nanostructured high-strength, high-toughness stainless steel that meets the stringent mechanical properties for carrier-based aircraft components. Dr. Charles J. Kuehmann, Principal Investigator for this project stated that “300M and the higher performance AerMet^® 100 are currently used for critical aerospace components, but both alloys are nonstainless and highly susceptible to corrosion and hydrogen embrittlement. As a result, a number of aircraft components, such as landing gear, require a costly cadmium coating process to protect against corrosion.” Cadmium is a known carcinogen and represents significant environmental risks in both primary manufacture, and at Department of Defense overhaul and repair facilities.

QuesTek Materials by Design^® technology will be used to develop a series of microstructural toughening strategies to devise novel stainless steel compositions that will match or exceed the more rigid mechanical strength and toughness properties of AerMet^® 100 steel, thus eliminating the need for cadmium coating. Kuehmann noted that “a new high strength, high toughness stainless alloy would benefit the environment and have dual-use application potential for commercial aircraft and other commercial markets such as marine equipment.”

QuesTek Innovations Receives 2002 Chicago Innovation Award

Evanston, IL, October 8, 2002 – QuesTek Innovation’s Materials by Design^® was chosen by the Chicago Sun Times and Kuczmarski & Associates as one of 10 top innovations for 2002. The honorees were selected from a broad range of industries and the judging was based upon successfully developing a product or service that either created a whole new technology, triggered a “me-too” competitive response, changed customer or consumer expectations, solved unmet needs, and/or generated profits.

The award recognizes QuesTek’s development of Materials by Design, a pioneering computer-based method of designing materials at the atomic and subatomic levels. Historically, materials have been discovered by chance or through the costly and time consuming method of “trial and error,” and after the properties of these materials were determined, those that did not meet the need were discarded. In recognition of this fact, the President’s Office of Science and Technology, in 2000, stated that the move to complex structural materials requires a new paradigm – computational design that allows for the creation of materials having specific desired characteristics.

QuesTek has been at the forefront of this emerging and highly disruptive technology shift. Working primarily with government agencies such as DARPA, DoD, DOE and NSF, and with large commercial business, QuesTek has applied its Materials by Design technology to the development of steels, both non-stainless and stainless, aluminum-based and nickel-based superalloys, shape memory alloys and ceramic materials. QuesTek’s development of an ultrastrong stainless steel for aircraft landing gear replacement, under sponsorship of DoD’s Strategic Environmental Research and Development program, is the most recent example of the power of this emerging technology. Charles Kuehmann, President and CEO of QuesTek, in accepting the award, stated “Using the computational materials design approach, we will see new materials brought to market in a few years, as opposed to decades, and at substantially lower costs.”

For more information, contact Dr. Frode Stavehaug, Director of Applications Engineering, at 847.425.8214.

QuesTek Modeling Key to Accelerated Materials Development

Evanston, IL, January 4, 2002 – Under funding from the DARPA Accelerated Insertion of Materials initiative, QuesTek is working with Pratt & Whitney to utilize its Materials by Design® technology to create a novel alloys for aerospace rotor component applications.

Currently, the development of a designer knowledge base, which incorporates design allowables, reliability, manufacturing, reproducibility, and other essential information, is a time-consuming and costly endeavor. Consequently, new material insertion into production hardware is extremely difficult, typically taking 15-20 years (if it is successful at all). Emerging efforts in materials modeling are leading to incremental improvements in specific areas (e.g., materials processing and mechanical behavior). DARPA believes that the time-scale between the development of a new material and its implementation into production can be significantly shortened only through a revolutionary change in materials development methodologies. The goal of the Accelerated Insertion of Materials program is to create and validate new approaches, such as QuesTek’s Materials by Design technology, for materials development that will accelerate the insertion of materials into production hardware. Critical to this effort will be understanding how to effectively use materials models, how to link them across various length and time scales, and how to couple them with an optimized series of experiments to yield the appropriate information for the designer. Validation of the developed approaches will focus on material systems of interest to the DoD.

QuesTek Innovations is a leader in the emerging field of computational materials design. Using its proprietary Materials by Design® technology, QuesTek develops and licenses unique materials designed to enable new products, reduce or eliminate long-term environmental impact, enhance the performance of existing products or reduce the cost of materials processing. QuesTek’s clients come from both the public and private sectors and include leading Fortune 50 companies. For more information, visit our website at www.questek.com or contact Dr. Frode Stavehaug, Director of Applications Engineering, at 847.425.8214.