Three chief executives to give keynote presentations at 2004 Turbo Expo

John Varrasi
ASME Public Information

The three keynote speakers at the ASME Turbo Expo 2004 in Vienna, Austria, this June are drawn from the highest ranks of the gas turbine industry in Europe.

ASME Turbo Expo 2004, sponsored by ASME's International Gas Turbine Institute, will mark its 49th year in June. It will take place at the Austria Center Vienna from June 14-17.

Klaus Steffens, president and chief executive officer at MTU Aero Engines GmbH; August W. Henningsen, chairman of the executive board at Lufthansa Technik AG; and Hans-O.

Jeske, a member of the executive board at MAN Turbomaschinen AG, will open the proceedings of Turbo Expo on June 14.

The executives will address the keynote session's theme, "New Benchmarks for Operating Efficiency."

Steffens believes that operating efficiency will hinge on the development and application of new engine technologies. One such new technology is MTU Aero Engines' geared turbofan. It is built with fewer component parts than conventional gas turbines, thus reducing manufacturing costs and enabling significant weight reduction. MTU and its partners on the turbofan program believe the new system will provide reductions in noise, life-cycle costs and fuel consumption for gas turbine users.

"Fuel consumption continues to be a major cost factor in engine operation," said Steffens. He cited MTU's revolutionary new heat exchanger, a recuperator type that the company believes can reduce fuel consumption in aircraft engines by 20 percent, while also lowering harmful environmental emissions.

Steffens is a recognized leader in the gas turbine business and a recipient of the Taylor Medal from the International Institution for Production Engineering Research and the European Henry Ford Technology Award.

Like Steffens, Jeske of MAN Turbomaschinen also considers fuel consumption to be a dominating factor in total life-cycle costs for gas turbines.

In the coming years, according to Jeske, the gas turbine community could see significant strides in the effort to increase turbine inlet temperature, providing enhanced efficiency and lower fuel costs. Technical programs devoted to inlet temperature and pressure ratio, Jeske noted, will require "extensive engineering development work."

Engineers will also be challenged to develop robust new materials capable of withstanding high inlet temperature in the engine, Jeske said. He envisions further improvements and refinements in the technology of ceramics.

MAN Turbomaschinen manufactures compressors and turbines at four plants in Germany. In addition to the gas turbine business, MAN Turbomaschinen supplies products to refineries, the mining and pipeline industries, and electric power stations. In his keynote speech at Turbo Expo, Jeske will include remarks on the use of gas turbine systems in fertilization.

Henningsen of Lufthansa Technik, the testing and research and development arm of the large German airline company, will be the third keynoter at the session. He has been with Lufthansa Technik since 1979, where his responsibilities have included flight operations, structures and systems, and aircraft cabins.

To find out more, visit the Web site, www.asme.org/igti/events/te2004/index.html; call (404) 847-0072, or e-mail igti@asme.org.

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