SME — Decades of Manufacturing Industry Knowledge
Ashwani Muppasani served most recently as the vice president of operations and quality for TE Connectivity’s Automotive Division of the Americas in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. In this position, he helped boost efficiency and increase growth for the auto products manufacturer. Over the course of his career in major automotive industry positions, Ashwani Muppasani’s professional memberships have included SME (Society of Manufacturing Engineers), a nearly 100-year-old trade organization.
Founded as the American Society of Tool Engineers (ASTE) in 1932, SME continues to serve as a repository of industry knowledge, continuing education, and networking for professionals in the field and the general public. In the depths of the Great Depression, a few dozen tool engineers in Detroit established ASTE. Six years later, members held its first show in the city’s Convention Hall.
In 1948, ASTE released its first publication, The Tool Engineers Handbook, which became a standard in the field. Expanding in the 1960s, ASTE held its inaugural Western Metal and Tool Exposition and Conference in Los Angeles in 1964. In 1969, the organization changed its name to the Society of Manufacturing Engineers.
By the 1970s, the organization had established the SME Education Foundation to provide support and enhanced education in manufacturing at colleges and universities. In 1981, SME joined with the Fabricators & Manufacturers Association to sponsor the FABTECH International Exposition and Conference.
Since then, SME has developed a three-day show and conference for the rapid prototyping industry and 3D printing industry, now called RAPID + TCT. SME has also acquired the training system Tooling U and announced a major partnership with the Association for Manufacturing Technology to create a series of regional expositions.
