Story ID: 
EMAS Developers Get Sperry Award
By: AIN Staff
Caption: Six professional engineering societies jointly presented the Elmer A.
Word Count: 126
Six professional engineering societies jointly presented the Elmer A. Sperry Award to the developers of the EMAS (engineered material arresting system), which helps prevent injury after runway overruns by stopping aircraft in beds of specially engineered concrete. EMAS beds are typically used where normal runway safety areas are not available due to space constraints. The Sperry Award was given at the 29th Annual International Air Transport Conference to Peter Mahal, president of the EMAS division of Esco; Robert Cook, formerly of the University of Ohio-Dayton; Pam Phillips of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey; and James White of the FAA’s William J. Hughes Technical Center. Esco has installed EMAS at 22 airports, and during five overrun accidents there have been no serious injuries.