WARRENDALE, Pa., Jan. 10, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- SAE International's voting membership elected Donald G. Hillebrand, PhD, as its President. Dr. Hillebrand is Director of Argonne National Laboratory's Energy Systems Division.

In his position with Argonne National Laboratory, Dr. Hillebrand leads transportation and energy research activities including vehicle systems and hybrid vehicle development, and engine and emissions research. Prior to joining Argonne, Dr. Hillebrand worked for Daimler Forschung and Technologie in Stuttgart, Germany. While there, he was responsible for Daimler's research and technology liaison with the European Commission in Brussels, and interacting with European research organizations and business groups.

Dr. Hillebrand also worked in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, Technology Division (1996-98) where he served as Senior Policy Advisor.

Dr. Hillebrand has earned several awards and distinctions throughout his career, including SAE International Distinguished Younger Member, 2000 and SAE International Outstanding Young Engineer, 1999. In July 2011, Dr. Hillebrand was named by Automotive News as one of the 100 most influential people bringing about the electrification of the automobile.

A member of SAE International since the age of 18, Dr. Hillebrand served on the SAE International Board of Directors from 2001-2003. In addition, he served as the General Chairman of the 1999 SAE International Government/Industry Meeting. He was selected for a one-year period as an SAE Fellow through the AAAS Washington Fellow Program.

Dr. Hillebrand earned a bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, a master's degree in Mechanical Engineering, and a PhD in Mechanical Systems Engineering from Oakland University.

He will begin his presidential term in January 2013.

SAE International is a global association of more than 133,000 engineers and related technical experts in the aerospace, automotive and commercial-vehicle industries. SAE International's core competencies are life-long learning and voluntary consensus standards development. SAE International's charitable arm is the SAE Foundation, which supports many programs, including A World In Motion® and the Collegiate Design Series.

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Contact: Shawn Andreassi, SAE International, at pr@sae.org or 1-724-772-8522.

SOURCE SAE International