Weldaloy Promotes Dr. Ram Canumalla to VP/CTO
Dr. Ramachandra Canumalla has been named Vice President and Chief Technology Officer of Weldaloy Specialty Forgings
Dr. Ram first joined Weldaloy in 2017, when the company was renowned for its forgings of copper alloys. He was instrumental in Weldaloy’s expansion to include titanium and superalloys, serving the need for custom forged parts in the rapidly growing aerospace industry. Weldaloy’s expertise in the aerospace industry is recognized globally, as the company supplies critical forgings for private and government space and aviation programs worldwide.
Dr. Ramachandra Canumalla has been named Vice President and Chief Technology Officer of Weldaloy Specialty Forgings. Dr. Ram first joined Weldaloy in 2017, when the company was renowned for its forgings of copper alloys. Dr. Ram was instrumental in Weldaloy’s expansion to include titanium and superalloys, serving the need for custom forged parts in the rapidly growing aerospace industry. Weldaloy’s expertise in the aerospace industry is recognized globally, as the company supplies critical forgings for private and government space and aviation programs worldwide.
Dr. Canumalla, known as “Dr. Ram,” has more than 36 years of metallurgical engineering experience, published over 90 academic papers and research reports. He is one of the leading metallurgists in the aeronautics industry and was honored as the Metallurgist of the Year in 1997 by the Ministry of Steel and Mines, India.
“Dr. Canumalla is a genuinely great man who values the research and the continued discovery and development in metallurgy and material sciences,” said Andrew Smith, Weldaloy’s VP & COO, “His accomplishments, including chief Metallurgist at major forge facilities, along with his time working at the raw material mills, gives him a complete perspective starting from the melting of the engineered alloys followed by thermomechanical processing aspects of the ingot to billet conversions and forging of the products, and thus unique ability to support Weldaloy’s customers.
Dr. Canumalla was Vice President of Technology at Weldaloy before COVID. His elevation to Vice President and CTO is a result of the growth the company has experienced as it continues to acquire more superalloy forgings.
“I am very excited to be taking up this new position at Weldaloy,” said Dr. Ram. “I believe Weldaloy is uniquely positioned to serve industries requiring specialty forged products in state-of-the-art and advanced materials.”
Dr. Canumalla provides R&D collaboration with Weldaloy’s customers on new parts, processes, and challenges and partners with raw material suppliers to support the commercialization of new alloys.
“Canumalla’s new role at Weldaloy bolsters our ability to add value to our customers,” said Smith. “His expertise in various titanium and superalloys and other engineered alloys provides unique solutions for our customers to help them overcome challenges in the development of products and processes.”
Dr. Canumalla received his BS Degree in Metallurgical Engineering from the National Institute of Technology Warangal, an MS in Materials Technology from the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, and his Ph.D. in Metallurgical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology (Banaras Hindu University), Varanasi. Dr. Canumalla had a three-year post-doctoral stint as Guest Scientist at the prestigious Helmholtz Zentrum Berlin (was Hahn-Meitner Institute for Nuclear Research), Berlin, Germany. He was an Exchange Scientist for about three years at the renowned NASA-CSU facilities, Cleveland, OH, USA.
“One person cannot know everything,” Dr. Ram said, “but someone that has a deep understanding of the fundamental principles can innovate and expand the cumulative knowledge of a field.”
Dr. Ram’s excitement for metallurgy began in high school in India when science studies were heavily pushed. So, Dr. Ram decided to study metallurgy, leading to an illustrious career in advancing the knowledge of metallurgy.
