His personal engineering expertise lies in the specification and development of the turbine module and his outstanding contributions to national defense and commercial aviation are unsurpassed. While at Pratt & Whitney and as Director of Advanced Turbines he was charged with designing the F119 engine for the F-22 advanced tactical fighter. He is also credited for designing the long-life, high-temperature turbine, Pratt & Whitney’s F100/220 “9-” Year Turbine, the first flight-worthy vectoring exhaust nozzle, and holds 45 patents associated with jet turbines.

The recipient of many honors, Mr. Auxier has received Pratt & Whitney’s F100 Turbine Cooling Technology Award, McAir F-15 STOL Technology Award, and Turbine Cooling Technology Award. Most prestigious of these awards, Mr. Auxier was the honored recipient of the 1995 American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics Air Breathing Propulsion Award. The award reads, “For pioneering leadership in the design of high-temperature cooled turbines with exceptional improvements in durability and performance.

Mr. Auxier was inducted into the University of Kentucky College of Engineering Hall of Distinction in 1996.

He and his wife, Sylvia reside in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, and have two sons, James II and Travis.

Don has over 35 years experience with industry and is currently the Director of Technical Excellence for PCC Airfoils LLC, who is a leading supplier of turbine castings for the Aerospace and Industrial Gas Turbine OEMs. Prior to this position, he was an independent consultant for PCC Airfoils LLC.  In this capacity, he provided technical expertise to the US Government and two independent contractors on a Forensics Aircraft Investigation.  In addition, he was responsible for designing and implementing a Design for Lean Enterprise Six Sigma (DFLES) training in support of a North American client base.

In Don’s earlier position, he was the General Director of Customer Satisfaction for the Delphi Electronics Group of Delphi.  He was responsible for all quality aspects throughout the Division’s Value Streams, with a “defect free” commitment to products and processes, as well as to services, and business practices that creates an attitude for customer enthusiasm.

Previous to this, he was the Director of Innovation and Continuous Improvement for the Delphi Automotive Corporation.  In this capacity, he was responsible for leading the corporate wide initiative to accelerate the development of a problem-solving competency with an emphasis on prevention. Don has over thirty-four years experience in these same areas across Aerospace, Automotive and the Chemical Industries.

Preceding his Delphi assignment, Don had led the Technical Excellence effort for the AlliedSignal (currently Honeywell) Corporation.  This involved defining and implementing life cycle product and process improvements, cost reduction efforts, and New Business Development to drive both bottom and top line growth (Lean Enterprise and Six Sigma activities).

Don received his Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from Purdue University, and began his career in 1976 at United Technology’s Pratt & Whitney (Government Engines and Space Propulsion) Engine Division in West Palm Beach, Florida.  Here, he led fundamental changes in technology and product and process development, covering the full life cycle (cradle to grave) of Military Aerospace Propulsion Systems (Lean Enterprise, Cost reduction, Variation Elimination).

Don earned his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering at Purdue University.