Haavind receives Crain Award for

04/01/1998

1998 CRAIN AWARD

Haavind receives Crain Award for "editorial excellence"

Bob Haavind

The American Business Press has presented its 1998 Crain Award to Bob Haavind, Solid State Technology`s editor in chief. Bob accepted the award, given "for outstanding career contributions to the development of editorial excellence in the business press," at a ceremony on March 10 in New York City.

Attending the ceremonies were Adam Japko, PennWell`s Electronics Group vice president, Becky McAdams, publisher of Solid State Technology, and PennWell`s president, Joe Wolking, who noted that "Bob`s achievements in high technology publishing are unparalleled. We are indeed proud to see Bob honored with such a prestigious award."

This year marks the 30th presentation of the Crain Award, named for G.D. Crain Jr., a distinguished business publication editor and the founder of Business Marketing and Advertising Age. In 1984, the Crain Award was won by Sam Marshall, the founding editor of Solid State Technology.

Each of the Crain Award winners has had a career dedicated to the principle of editorial excellence. Bob`s distinguished career spans almost 40 years, from the inception of semiconductors and computers to present-day microelectronics technology. Bob is no stranger to these ceremonies, having won two Neal Awards earlier in his career.

Bob`s high technology editorial career began in the late 1950s, when he was a section editor at Electronic News. He then became chief news editor and managing editor at Hayden Publishing`s Electronic Design and chief editor (and ultimately publisher) of Computer Decisions. I have been fortunate to work with Bob at several points in my own publishing career. I`ve had many pages of copy returned to me covered with Bob`s incisive comments.

After leaving Hayden Publishing, Bob then broadened his editorial perspective into the industrial arena, serving for six years as editorial director of Cahners` Purchasing magazine. Subsequently, a major event in Bob`s career was his role as founding editor of High Technology magazine, first with Cox Broadcasting and then with the Goldhirsh Group. His position at High Technology gave Bob a commanding view of all major developments in advanced technology.

Based on this extraordinarily broad background, Bob became an advisor to the M.I.T. Commission on Industrial Productivity, where he made a major contribution to the field by editing the Commission`s report, published as the book, Made in America. He then edited another important book, The Road to the Baldrige Award, which provided many of the principles implemented in America`s resurgence to world leadership in technology and manufacturing.

The editor in chief of Solid State Technology from 1993 to 1996, Bob returns to that post from his position as editor in chief of PennWell`s Computer Design. He is also the editorial director of PennWell`s Electronics Group in Nashua, NH.

Bob`s tenure in these positions has been characterized by unremitting attention to detail and accuracy, drawing out the full implications of technical advances, and providing a broad vision of future developments and potentialities. Bob`s love of technology and its productive uses in American industry, and his contributions on behalf of that vision are unmatched. But above all, his integrity and dedication to editorial excellence represent an outstanding example to editors everywhere.

- Jeffrey Bairstow, Editorial Director,

PennWell`s Optoelectronics Group