Henry Cialone picked to head Edison Welding Institute

From Columbus Business First,

Henry J. Cialone, a senior researcher at Battelle Memorial Institute, has been named president and chief executive officer of the Edison Welding Institute, the state-established group that provides research, consulting and training to the welding industry.

Cialone replaces Don Caudy, who was named acting president of the Columbus-based organization in January, following the departure of CEO S. Theodore Ford, who left after nearly five years heading the group.

At Battelle, Cialone was vice president of the organization's commercial energy business, developing and managing its energy portfolio and fuel cell development efforts. During his 24 years at Battelle, he helped commercialize technologies - a skill he'll likely rely on in his new role.

"We believe that Henry Cialone's expertise in connecting complex technology with real world business opportunities makes him ideally suited to lead EWI toward greater growth and opportunity," Chairman Dennis Crockett said in a release.

Cialone takes over an organization that saw its annual sales increase to $30 million from $18 million under Ford, who left six months ago, saying a new top executive was needed to head EWI in its next stage of growth.

EWI was spun out of Ohio State University in 1984 and is the largest industrially driven engineering organization in North America dedicated to materials joining technology. Its staff of about 150 workers provides contract research, consulting services and training to companies that operate more than 3,300 plants in the U.S.