May 4, 2017
Joseph Colucci shares SAE Arnold W. Siegel Humanitarian Award
A 1958 mechanical engineering graduate of the Michigan State University College of Engineering was among those presented with the SAE Arnold W. Siegel Humanitarian Award during the SAE World Congress in Detroit in April 2017.
Joseph M. Colucci and the GM Fuels and Lubricants team were recognized by SAE for their pioneering research in improving engine efficiency, and reducing engine knock and exhaust emissions.
Colucci is president of Automotive Fuels Consulting, Inc. He was executive director, Materials Research at GM R&D. Prior to that he had been department head, Fuels and Lubricants, leading GM's efforts to improve commercial fuel and lubricant quality for better vehicle performance and reduced vehicle emissions.
He is a member of the National Academy of Engineering and received the College of Engineering's Claud R. Erickson Award in 2003. He served on the college’s alumni board for many years, retiring in 2012.
SAE International Honors GM Team for Pioneering Research in Fuels and Lubricant Technology with Arnold W. Siegel Humanitarian Award
WARRENDALE, Pa. (April 17, 2017) – During the WCX 17: SAE World Congress Experience Awards Ceremony on Tuesday, April 4, SAE International honored members of the General Motors Fuels and Lubricants Department with the 2016 SAE Arnold W. Siegel Humanitarian Award.
The team was recognized for its many significant contributions made to automotive technology through their pioneering research to improve engine combustion efficiency, understand engine knock, and define and reduce engine exhaust emissions.
Established in 2014, the Arnold W. Siegel Humanitarian Award is made possible by a generous gift from Arnold and Stephanie Siegel. The award proudly represents members and non-members of SAE International whose mobility industry contributions have made a lasting social benefit on humanity. The award honors individuals, teams, organizations or entities, both domestic and internationally, whose mobility industry contributions - research or practical application - have made a significant, positive, multi-generational impact on the world such as, but not limited to: mobility safety or the environment, creating a safer, healthier world.
The GM Fuels and Lubricants team also was instrumental in the development of the exhaust catalytic converter, they supplied the data to substantiate the need for unleaded gasoline, defined the properties of clean (“reformulated”) gasoline and promoted its use and they solved the major engine port fuel injector problem which was a prevalent issue plaguing the auto industry in the mid-1980’s. The positive impact made by this team, throughout their 50 years, to improve fuel and lubricant quality in the United States and around the globe, has resulted in rigorous engine, automatic transmission, axle testing that has become the standard for performance-based specifications for automotive lubricants and has resulted in reduced maintenance costs and increased life for engine engines and drivetrains.
Team members include:
- William G. Agnew (Retired)
- John Caplan (Deceased)
- Joseph M. Colucci (Retired)
- W. DeWayne France, Jr. (Retired)
- Nicholas E. Gallopoulos (Retired)
- Norman A. Hunstad (Retired)
- James A. Spearot, President, Mountain Ridgeline Consulting, LLC
- Charles Tuesday (Deceased)
SAE International is a global association committed to being the ultimate knowledge source for 127,000 in the engineering profession. www.sae.org
