2002 Honorary Degree

Thomas J Malott Doctor Of Engineering (EDITOR'S NOTE: no period after J) Thomas J Malott has earned highest respect for his innovative leadership, his ability to integrate people of diverse backgrounds into successful global enterprises and his generous service to higher education. Thomas J Malott Mr. Malott has risen to the highest levels of management in three technology-based corporations. As president and chief executive officer of Siemens Energy and Automation, he led a doubling of sales through innovative programs to enhance product quality, improve service to customers, recognize employee performance and impact better workplace skills through apprenticeship programs. Born in Attica, Ind., and raised in South Bend, Ind., Mr. Malott earned a bachelor’s degree from Purdue University in 1962 and a master’s degree from Western Michigan University in 1969. He went into his first management position with Parker-Hannifin Corp., in Cleveland, Ohio. He spent 12 years in five different positions, the last of which was vice president of operations for the fluid power group, which accounted for $110 million in annual revenue. In 1981, Mr. Malott moved to Indianapolis and became group vice president of domestic operations for Ransburg Corporation, specializing in factory automation machinery and systems. He eventually became president and chief operating officer as the company experienced substantial business growth, nearly doubling its annual revenue to $244 million in five years. Mr. Malott resigned his position at Ransburg in 1986 to eventually become president and chief executive officer of Siemens Energy and Automation Inc., in Atlanta, Ga. Under his leadership, SEA completed several strategic programs that resulted in greater operating efficiencies and more rapid response to changing market needs. SEA, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Siemens Corporation, is a producer of electrical products and systems with nearly 12,000 employees at 28 manufacturing, assembly and distribution facilities, as well as 100 sales offices in the United States and Mexico. SEA more than doubled its annual sales in the decade of the 1990s, earning $2.13 billion in 2000. Mr. Malott retired from SEA in 2000 and served until June 2001 as interim president of Siemens Building Technologies, which is one of the world’s leading suppliers of safety, security and energy efficiency technologies for commercial buildings. He has kept his ties with Purdue as a member of several councils and committees.