KEVIN MEAGHER ’95
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Written by RICH SMITH
when less is more
When chemists wrap up a research project, the result is usu- ally something bigger and better than what previously existed. When chemist Kevin Meagher ’95 finalizes a project, the result is usually something better but smaller. “The key now for manufacturers being competitive is do-
ing more with less, so that you end up with products that are lighter, thinner, stronger,” says Meagher, who today is the European sales director for the transportation and metals group at Germany-based Henkel Technologies. “In the past, manufac- turers used materials by the kilogram; now we’re striving to use them by the gram and milligram.”
“We’re changing the world with new raw materials and processes that result in finished products made more economically and environmentally sustainable.”
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and helps dramatically reduce the risk of human injury in indus- trial accidents.” Meagher—who at HMC made economics an area of con- centration within his major of chemistry—credits three of his instructors with starting him along the path of success. Gerald Van Hecke ’61 is one of them. “He was very tough, very de- manding,” says Meagher, “but he opened my eyes to how much farther I could go in the field of chemistry.” Another is Lisa Sullivan, economics history. “She challenged my thinking about how different cultures view trade and about how businesses and societies grow to become successful.” And then there is Hal Van Ryswyk. “Great lacrosse player. He taught that playing and work- ing as hard as you can leads to the greatest degree of satisfaction.” Upon completing his studies at HMC, Meagher advanced to
KEVIN MEAGHER
Princeton University for graduate schooling in physical chemis- try. There, he researched new methods of inhibiting oil well and pipeline corrosion. After Princeton, Meagher landed a job with Henkel at the
Making products using materials no longer measured by the
kilogram requires plenty of thinking outside the box, which is stan- dard operating procedure for Meagher and the team he oversees. “We do a considerable amount of innovating,” he says. “For example, my team not long ago developed an extremely efficient inorganic coating system based on non-toxic, non-regulated and benign materials that allows us to stop using heavy metal-con- taining processes and phosphorous-containing processes. This system is now in growing industrial use, and it’s replacing the coating systems for the appliance, beverage can, architectural, agricultural and automotive industries.” At present, Meagher is involved with the development and
rollout of nanometer material as an alternative to conventional chromium and heavy metal-based processes. “This new technology we’re working on uses no chromium and is totally pH neutral,” he says. “So not only is less material used, it also decreases the potential for harm to the environment
company’s Madison Heights, Mich., facility. “I started as a re- search chemist working in the field of metal pretreatment for steel and aluminum coil coatings,” he says, noting that, two years later, he was placed in charge of a product development team there and additionally assigned to lead an R&D team look- ing into zinc phosphate technology replacements. In 2005, Meagher relocated to Germany, where he lives
today. In 2008, he took charge of Henkel’s automotive product development group of 150 employees doing upward of one bil- lion euros per year in sales of adhesives, sealants, cleaners and more. In 2011, he hung up his lab coat in order to don a busi- ness suit for his current post with the company. Still, despite mainly working in a management capacity,
what excites the chemist in Meagher is, he says, “how we’re changing the world with new raw materials and processes that result in finished products made more economically and envi- ronmentally sustainable, and sustainable from the standpoint of human health and safety.”
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FALL/WINTER 2011 Har vey Mudd College
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