Up, not out: The next chapter of CompositesWorld

CompositesWorld turns 30 this year, and for 17 of those years I have been editor-in-chief. This is the longest I’ve ever done any one thing.

I wrote my first editorial as editor-in-chief of CW for the January 2007 issue of High-Performance Composites, a progenitor of CW. At the time, Airbus had just announced a delay of the A380. The Boeing 787 and the Airbus A350 were still being developed and a few years away from their first flights and entry into service. I asked rhetorically, in that editorial, if Boeing might someday announce a cleansheet narrowbody to replace the 737.

Here we are, almost 17 years later. The A380 program has come and gone. The 787 endured a delivery delay of its own, finally entering service in October 2011. The A350 followed close behind in January 2015. And a cleansheet narrowbody to replace the 737? Although the aerospace supply chain would love for a new narrowbody to be announced, this, apparently, is still just a gleam in Boeing’s eye. 

For my part, what followed was another 200+ editorials spanning almost 17 years of growth and evolution in the composites industry. I tried to cover as much of the industry as I could with my commentary, discussing composites use not just in aerospace, but automotive, wind, marine, industrial and sporting goods. I addressed workforce development, education and even, obliquely, politics. I was often quasi-philosophical and frequently wrong. 

If ever you have the time and interest, you can read all of my editorials on the CW site, here. Some are better than others, and some got more reader attention than others. For example, according to CW website stats, the editorial most read by you, our audience, is this one from 2021 which asks why composites aren’t synonymous with infrastructure.

As I step into this new role with CW, I will vacate the editor’s chair for the first time since September 2006.

Do I have a favorite? I have several that I really enjoyed writing, but one of the most memorable for me was written not by me but by former technical editor Sara Black when she retired in 2019. You can find that here.

Regardless of the quantity or quality of my editorials, there remains one simple truth: This editorial is my last as editor-in-chief.

My 17 years of being embedded in the composites industry has, apparently, made me a good candidate to lead the overall management of the brand. Because of this, Gardner Business Media (GBM), which owns CW, has asked me to become the brand’s publisher, starting this month. 

As I step into this new role with CW, I will vacate the editor’s chair for the first time since September 2006. It’s not without hesitation that I make this change, but it represents a challenge I feel I cannot let pass. What makes this so much easier is the strong editorial team CW has in place. Senior technical editor Ginger Gardiner, technical editor Hannah Mason, managing editor Grace Nehls and digital editor Cara Decknadel, plus a strong network of contributors, have made CW what I think is the most reliable, best-researched source of information for the global composites manufacturing industry.

And to top it off, I am very pleased to announce that taking the editorial reins will be Scott Francis, who wrote and edited for CW from 2018-2020. He subsequently was promoted to editor-in-chief of another GBM media brand — Products Finishing — but was quick to raise his hand when given the chance to return to CW. Scott will continue his leadership of Products Finishing as he joins CW and his first editorial will appear here in the July issue and I hope you will join me in welcoming him back to the CW fold.

I hope to continue to chime in with occasional columns, offering my views on how composite materials, processes and markets are evolving. In any case, I’m not going anywhere and look forward to another 17 years in the composites industry. As always, I welcome your comments, feedback and suggestions: jeff@compositesworld.com.