Steve Yarbro heads Los Alamos Nuclear Materials Division

Contact: Jim Danneskiold, jdanneskiold@lanl.gov, (505) 667-1640 (03-096)

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LOS ALAMOS, N.M., July 18, 2003 -- Stephen L. Yarbro, a chemical engineer and 20-year Los Alamos National Laboratory veteran, is the new leader of the Laboratory's Nuclear Materials Technology Division.

As leader of the 800-person division, Yarbro will provide scientific and technical leadership in actinide materials science and manufacturing technology. He will also be responsible for operating the Laboratory's plutonium processing facility at Technical Area-55.

"Steve has expertise in actinide materials science and technology development as well as management experience at multiple levels at the Laboratory," said Rich Mah, associate director for Weapons Engineering and Manufacturing. "His combined technical expertise and management experience make him the ideal choice for this position."

During his career at Los Alamos, Yarbro has worked in actinide material recovery, process development, process technology and process chemistry. He has 14 years of management experience, including jobs as section leader for process development, team leader for advanced projects, project leader for technology development, deputy group leader for process technology and nitrate systems, and group leader for actinide process chemistry. Most recently, he served as NMT Division's deputy leader for plutonium science and technology. Yarbro began his career as a process engineer at the Hanford Plutonium Finishing Plant in Washington.

"I appreciate the opportunity to lead the Nuclear Materials Technology Division and help refocus NMT on its core missions of stockpile stewardship and actinide science. At the same time, I want to ensure we operate our facilities efficiently and implement the best business practices available," Yarbro said.

"My leadership philosophy is that people are our most valuable resource and I will carefully consider the perspectives of the individual, the division and the Laboratory in making decisions," he added. "I'm grateful for the tremendous support I've received from my co-workers in NMT and I will work hard to meet their expectations."

Yarbro is a registered professional engineer, a member of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers, and was honored as an 'Eminent Engineer' by the Tau Beta Pi Engineering Honor Society. He holds doctoral and bachelor's degrees from New Mexico State University and a master's degree from the University of New Mexico, all in chemical engineering.

"I want to thank John Straw for his service as acting division leader for the past several months," Mah said. "John provided the key direction for the division in the delivery of the W88 certifiable pit, Qual 1, which was a critical milestone for the Laboratory."

John Straw has served as acting NMT Division leader since Tim George stepped down from the position in December 2002. Straw will continue as Deputy Division Leader in NMT, with responsibility for program execution.

Los Alamos National Laboratory is operated by the University of California for the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) of the U.S. Department of Energy and works in partnership with NNSA's Sandia and Lawrence Livermore national laboratories to support NNSA in its mission.

Los Alamos enhances global security by ensuring the safety and reliability of the U.S. nuclear stockpile, developing technologies to reduce threats from weapons of mass destruction, and solving problems related to energy, environment, infrastructure, health and national security concerns.