our members of the Board of Directors are elected at the PSMA Annual Meeting held every year, usually held during the APEC conference. Each Director serves a three-year term and is eligible to be reelected for one additional term. In this issue we would like to introduce you to Brian Zahnstecher and George Slama.

Brian Zahnstecher

Brian Zahnstecher is a Sr. Member of the IEEE, Chair (Emeritus) of the IEEE SFBAC Power Electronics Society (PELS) awarded 2017 Best Chapter awards at the local/national/worldwide levels concurrently (an unprecedented achievement in all of IEEE), IEEE PELS North America Regional (R1-3) Chair, Chair PELS Sustainability Ad-hoc Committee, Power Sources Manufacturers Association (PSMA) Board of Directors and now Advisory Council, is Co-founder & Chair (Emeritus) of the PSMA Reliability Committee, Co-chair of the PSMA Energy Harvesting Committee, Co-founder & Co-chair of the EnerHarv workshop, and is the Principal of PowerRox, where he focuses on power design, integration, system applications, OEM market penetration, market research/analysis, and private seminars for power electronics.  He Co-chairs the IEEE Future Networks (formerly 5G) Technical Community webinar series and is a founding Co-chair of the IEEE International Network Generations Roadmap (INGR) Energy Efficiency Working Group, authored the Group's position paper, and has lectured on related power and sustainability topics at major industry conferences.  He sits on Advisory Boards of major conferences like Sensors Converge & DesignCon.  He has successfully handled assignments in system design/architecting, ac-dc front-end power, EMC/EMI design/debug, embedded dc-dc solutions, processor power, and digital power solutions for a variety of clients.  He previously held positions in power electronics with industry leaders Emerson Network Power (now Advanced Energy), Cisco, and Hewlett-Packard, where he advised on best practices, oversaw product development, managed international teams, created/enhanced optimal workflows and test procedures, and designed and optimized voltage regulators.  He has been a regular contributor to the industry as an invited keynote speaker, author, workshop participant, session host, roundtable moderator, and volunteer.  He has over 20 years of industry experience and holds Master of Engineering and Bachelor of Science degrees from Worcester Polytechnic Institute."

George Slama

Ever since my first encounter with electricity at age six, sparked by sticking something into the wall receptacle with its resulting flash of brilliance, all things electric, electronic and magnetic have captivated my interest. By fourth grade I had a shoebox of batteries, switches, wire and light bulbs to tinker with after finishing my school assignments. Fast forward to high school in my last year I traded my slide rule and $1106.59 (today's dollars) for a 'used' HP programmable calculator. University saw computer input change from punch cards to terminals connected to the time-shared mainframe housed in its own building on campus. At my first job designing transformers the goals were the same as today, make the smallest, lowest cost (60 Hz) transformer or inductor possible for the application. The tools evolved from calculator to teletype terminal to personal computers with ever more capable hardware/software. Switch mode power supplies came of age and quite literally transformed the industry. The advancement of active and passive components continues to this day with ever increasing application in our electrified digital world.

A lot has changed over 45 years and the PSMA has been there through it all. Having the privilege to serve as a director on the PSMA board and as a co-chair on the Magnetics Committee over the past several years has been a rewarding experience. I have met many great people. I would encourage all young people in the industry to join in and get involved. Networking with colleagues from across the industry broadens your perspective and gives you an appreciation of their challenges and contributions to your work. Working together, both corporate and academic institutions are advancing power electronics to new levels. The PSMA brings these various components together to serve all who are involved in power electronics.

If you or anyone in your company is interested in getting on the distribution list for future issues of PSMA UPDATE, please send e-mail to: power@psma.com. Be sure to include your name and the name of your company.