Idaho National Laboratory scientist receives Distinguished Service Award

Distinguished scientist and department manager Ron Boring has won the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society’s 2022 Arnold M. Small and Betty M. Sanders President’s Distinguished Service Award.

According to the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society, this award “recognizes individuals whose career-long contributions have brought honor to the profession and the Society.” The award was presented on Oct. 10 at the 66th HFES International Annual Meeting, a gathering Boring has chaired for four years.

“I was very surprised and humbled when I learned I would receive this award. It is the highest award offered in my field in the U.S. I’m honestly speechless,” Boring said. “I’m grateful to the many people who have worked with me over the years to make an impact.”

Human factors and ergonomics is a field of study that applies health and safety principles to the environment in which people work. It focuses on evaluating tasks, jobs, products and systems, and then making them as compatible with human function as possible.

“Ron is a passionate leader in human factors research and development,” said Jess Gehin, Idaho National Laboratory’s associate laboratory director for Nuclear Science and Technology. “He leads a team that is making a difference in the operation of our current nuclear plants and for future advanced reactors. I am very pleased that his efforts are being recognized through this prestigious award.”

Boring has led research for Human Unimodel for Nuclear Technology to Enhance Reliability (HUNTER), Guideline for Operator Nuclear Usability and Knowledge Elicitation (GONUKE), and Advanced Nuclear Interface Modeling Environment (ANIME), among others. He also established the Human Systems Simulation Laboratory. These software solutions, guidance tools and modeling environments have greatly contributed to the improvement of human-machine interfaces in the nuclear energy industry.

“Winning this award is gratifying, but it is not a capstone,” Boring said. “I believe the Human Factors and Reliability Department at INL is just getting started. The world is safer because of what we’re doing!”

Boring has worked at INL for over 17 years but took a two-year hiatus to work at Sandia National Laboratories and worked for a year at the Halden Reactor Project in Norway. He returned to INL and accepted his current position as manager of the Human Factors and Reliability Department in October 2019.

He previously received the Don Miller Award for lifetime achievement in human factors from the American Nuclear Society in 2021 and became a Fellow of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society in 2020.

About Idaho National Laboratory

Battelle Energy Alliance manages INL for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Nuclear Energy. INL is the nation’s center for nuclear energy research and development, and also performs research in each of DOE’s strategic goal areas: energy, national security, science and the environment. For more information, visit www.inl.gov.

Simplot Selects Dugdale to Lead New Global Food Effort

The J.R. Simplot Company has named Graham Dugdale president of its newly formed Global Foods business group. Dugdale previously led Simplot Australia and will now assume the role of merging that business group with Simplot International Food Group previously led by Mark McKellar, who is retiring later this year.

“With change comes opportunity, and we saw a unique opportunity to capitalize on a global structure that leverages the knowledge of our employees, the capabilities we have as an organization and, in particular, better aligns our global food manufacturing footprint,” said Garrett Lofto, Simplot president and CEO. “Graham is a strong, collaborative leader who has proven his value while leading our Simplot Australia division for several years and serving on our senior leadership team. His track record, strategic thinking and growth mindset make him the perfect choice to lead our employees and our global customer base into this exciting new phase.”

The creation of Simplot Global Foods comes after McKellar’s retirement following 27 successful years with the company, including the previous 12 as president of Food Group. Under McKellar’s leadership, Food Group expanded and enhanced a number of processing plants; built new, state-of-the art facilities in Idaho and Argentina; and expanded its vision of customer service at a global scale, putting in motion the opportunities now realized by the Company.

“Mark has been a transformational leader for Simplot,” Lofto said. “He helped us see the vision of what could be and put the structure in place to turn that vision into reality. His legacy with the J.R. Simplot Company will live long past his retirement.”

Dugdale has worked for Simplot for 18 years, including the past five as Managing Director of the Australia business group. He started his career in the Finance sector in London, UK, before embarking into the food business in South Africa, his home country.

“This is an exciting new phase in global foods for the J.R. Simplot Company, one with great promise to better serve a growing customer base with more efficient operations, global supply delivery and enhanced customer service,” Dugdale said. “I’m grateful for this opportunity and am committed to helping the Company, our employees and customers as we contribute to feeding our world.”

About Simplot

The J.R. Simplot Company is a family-owned, privately held global food and agriculture company headquartered in Boise. Its integrated portfolio includes food processing and food brands, phosphate mining, fertilizer manufacturing, farming, ranching and cattle production, and other enterprises related to agriculture. Simplot has major operations in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Argentina, Australia and China, with products and services available to customers worldwide. For more information, visit www.simplot.com.

Savage Appoints New Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer

Savage, a global provider of industry infrastructure and supply chain services, is pleased to announce the appointments of Jeff Roberts as executive vice president and chief operating officer and Tom Coler as executive vice president and chief financial officer. As CFO for the past six years, Roberts has steered Savage’s financial and acquisitive growth, helping transform the company through key acquisitions in the agriculture and environmental sectors. Coler joins Savage with extensive leadership experience in finance and business across multiple industries. Both appointments are effective Oct. 1.

“We’re excited to have Jeff Roberts step into a new role as COO, where his leadership abilities, enthusiasm and commitment to our culture and strategy will help drive ongoing growth and operational excellence across the company,” said Savage President and Chief Executive Officer Kirk Aubry. “We’re also pleased to welcome Tom Coler to Savage as our new CFO, to help sustain our growth trajectory and strengthen how we enable our Customers and Partners to Feed the World, Power Our Lives and Sustain the Planet.”

Roberts, who grew up in Pocatello, joined Savage in 2016. As COO, he’ll have overall responsibility for the operations of the company’s three sectors — Agriculture, Infrastructure and Environmental — working closely with the sector presidents in each area. He’ll also continue to lead Corporate Development and Information Technology while assuming responsibility for Safety, Health and Environment. Prior to joining Savage, Roberts served as CFO of Maxum Enterprises, where he led multiple departments and served as interim president. He previously served in numerous financial roles within the Pilot Flying J organization, including divisional CFO.

Prior to joining Savage, Coler served as vice president and CFO for the Health, Hygiene and Consumables business unit at H.B. Fuller Corporation, a public, multinational manufacturer and marketer of specialty chemical products based in Minneapolis. He has extensive experience in global, public companies and brings significant experience in corporate finance, acquisitions and integration, implementing IT solutions, driving cost and efficiency initiatives, and other finance related topics.

About Savage

In business for 76 years, Savage is a privately held, global provider of industry infrastructure and supply chain services, with approximately 4,000 Team Members in over 200 locations. Our Customers and Partners count on us to safely and sustainably move and manage what is essential to their business. In 2021 the company constructed and began operating the first intermodal rail terminal in the state of Idaho, located in Pocatello, which they’ve now been operating for more than a year.