The Herty Advanced Materials Development Center, Savannah, Ga., USA, has named Alexander Koukoulas, Ph.D., its president and CEO. Koukoulas, a well-known scientist and entrepreneur, previously served as managing director of ANL Consultants, a private consulting firm supporting the pulp and paper, biomaterials, and bioenergy industries. Koukoulas will begin his new role on November 1.
Herty's clients, which include global corporations as well as numerous Fortune 500 companies, are currently focused in the transportation, forest and paper related products, building materials, energy and the environment, and bio-products industries. In April 2012, Georgia Governor Nathan Deal transferred management of the Herty Advanced Materials Development Center to Georgia Southern University with a goal of enhancing economic and business development in the state of Georgia.
Prior to his role at ANL Consultants, Koukoulas served as VP and executive director of research and development at Albany International. Earlier in his career, he served in increasingly responsible leadership positions at International Paper, including chief scientist, where he directed research and was responsible for new product development and R&D supporting the company's pulp, paper, and packaging business units.
One of Koukoulas' primary goals will be to enable Herty's clients to achieve their R&D and financial goals while working to create an environment that cultivates opportunity for businesses to relocate or stay within Georgia. The result, according to Charles Patterson, Ph.D., VP for research and economic development at Georgia Southern University, and officials at Georgia Southern, will be more jobs and an expanded national reputation helping put Savannah on the map as a center for advanced materials innovation.
Koukoulas received his Bachelor of Science and Ph.D. degrees in Chemistry from McGill University. He is currently pursuing an Executive Certificate from the Sloan School of Management at M.I.T. He has published numerous presentations and publications and holds numerous U.S. patents. He is a scientific advisor and bioenergy expert.
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