SPEAKER INTERVIEWS
Steve Sopher, Vice President, Technology, JSP
Published in 2025
Steve Sopher is Vice President of Technology at JSP and has over 30 years of experience in the plastics industry. He has held technical positions at Raytheon, Dow/United Technologies, ARCO Chemical, and JSP, contributing to key innovations in polymeric materials and foam technologies. He holds Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Mechanical Engineering from Northeastern University in Boston, MA. Steve will be speaking at Foam Expo North America, taking place June 24–26 in Novi, MI.
Cristina Saiz-Arroyo, Manager New Products and R&D, Cellmat Technologies
Published in 2024
Dr. Saiz-Arroyo graduated in Physics and received her PhD at the University of Valladolid, Spain. She has been working in the field of polymeric foams for more than 15 years. During these years she has been focused on the development and optimization of foaming processes and formulations for the production of advanced polymeric foams. Currently, she works as Manager of New Products and R&D in CellMat Technologies SL, which is a spin-off company of the CellMat Laboratory of the University of Valladolid. Since then, she has worked on more than 100 projects for companies involved in the plastic-producing and transformer sector. She will be speaking at Foam Expo on June 26.
Renata Massion, Sustainability Manager, Cruz Foam
Published in 2024
Dr. Massion spearheads Cruz Foam's initiatives in responsible sourcing, life cycle assessment, and environmentally conscious disposal strategies, and supports the development of cutting-edge packaging foam that embodies a new frontier in sustainable materials. She will be speaking at Foam Expo on June 25 during the conference session “Fostering Eco-friendly Supply Chains with the Implementation of Sustainable Packaging”.
Sarah Eckersley, VP R&D, Industrial Intermediates & Infrastructure, Dow
Published in 2024
Dr. Eckersley is the Vice President of R&D for Industrial Intermediates & Infrastructure (II&I) at Dow, which consists of three customer-oriented businesses of Polyurethanes & Construction Chemicals and Industrial Solutions. The II&I unit of Dow has over $16B in sales and provides specialty solutions in a wide range of markets such as consumer comfort, energy efficiency, transportation, and infrastructure. She will be speaking at Foam Expo on June 25 during the conference session “Harnessing AI and Automation for Material Discovery, Product Development Acceleration, and Performance Prediction”.
Javier Zarazúa Ruiz, Managing Partner, JL Nearshoring Mexico, LLC
Published in 2024
Dr. Zarazúa Ruiz, a prominent expert in Mexico's nearshoring, boasts 25 years of distinguished leadership in Manufacturing and Supply Chain operations within the Automotive, Heavy Machinery, Retail, and Remanufacturing industries. He will be speaking at Foam Expo on June 25 during the conference session “Racing to Mexico: the Business Pattern of Nearshoring”.
Mila Skokova, Deputy Sales Director, H & S Anlagentechnik GmbH
Published in 2023
In the run up to Foam Expo North America and Adhesives & Bonding Expo 2023 we caught up with Mila Skokova, H & S Anlagentechnik GmbH. Mila will be speaking at the conference in June and explains why polyurethane recycling such an important topic, what she thinks the most innovative technology is, and what item she would take with her if she were stuck on a desert island!
Jason Rolland, SVP, Materials, Carbon 3D
Published in 2023
In the run up to Foam Expo North America and Adhesives & Bonding Expo 2023 we caught up with Jason Rolland, SVP, Materials, Carbon 3D. Jason will be speaking at the conference in June and explains why resin lattices are such an important topic, what he thinks the most innovative technology is, and what item he would take with him if he were stuck on a desert island!
Leslie Wolschleger, Vice President of Research & Development, Sika Corporation
Published in 2022
In the run up to Adhesives & Bonding Expo and Foam Expo North America 2022 we caught up with Leslie Wolschleger the Vice President of Research & Development at Sika Corporation. Leslie will be speaking at the conference in June and was able to shed some light on her valuable work on structural material development for automotive applications as well her dream dinner guest.
Jake Staples, Technical Manager, Wausau Chemical
Published in 2022
In the run up to Foam Expo and Adhesives & Bonding Expo 2022 we caught up with Jake Staples the Technical Manager at Wausau Chemical. Jake will be speaking at the conference in June and was able to shed some light on his valuable work on supply chain management in the wake of COVID-19, his role within the industry and even his dream holiday destination.
Tony McConnell, Advanced Development Engineer, Coastal Automotive
Published in 2022
In the run up to Foam Expo and Adhesives & Bonding Expo 2022 we caught up with Tony McConnell, Advanced Development Engineer at Coastal Automotive. Tony will be speaking at the conference in June and was able to shed some light on his presentation topic, his role within the industry and even his favourite author.
Andres Bauer, Procurement & Logistics Manager, Masterfoam
Published in 2022
In the run up to Foam Expo and Adhesives & Bonding Expo 2022 we caught up with Andres Bauer, the Procurement and Logistics Manager at Masterfoam. Andres will be speaking at the conference in June and was able to shed some light on his valuable work on supply chain management in the wake of COVID-19, his role within the industry, and even his dream holiday destination.
Lee Polance, Vice President of Global Technology, Engineering Adhesives at H.B. Fuller
Published in 2021
Leading up to her participation in the plenary panel discussion at the Adhesives & Bonding Expo and Foam Expo conference we caught up with Lee Polance the Vice President of Global Technology, Engineering Adhesives at H.B. Fuller.
Fouad Mohammad, Principal Engineer – CFD & FEA at Bergstrom Inc.
Published in 2021
In the build up to Foam Expo North America and Adhesives & Bonding Expo 2021, we spoke with Fouad Mohammed who is Principal Engineer – CFD & FEA at Bergstrom Inc.
Garrett Getter, Product Manager - Saddles, Grips and Tapes, Specialized Bicycle Components Inc.
Published in 2021
In the build up to the Foam Expo North America and Adhesives & Bonding Expo 2021 we spoke with Garrett Getter who is Leader of Body Geometry and saddles, grips and tapes at Specialized Bicycle Components. Garrett is passionate about the user experience for cyclists and works to continually improve the materials and manufacturing techniques used for their products. Find out more about Garretts work below.
