Energy Science and Technology Directorate researchers Brian Kaul and Vivek Sujan have been named recipients of the 2025 Society of Automotive Engineers, or SAE, McFarland Award. The award recognizes outstanding volunteer service and contributions to the planning, development and dissemination of technical information for SAE events, meetings and professional development programs.
Kaul, a senior researcher in Fuel Science and Engine Technologies, has been an active member of the Engine Combustion Committee for a decade. He has led the organization of technical sessions at both World Congress Experience, or WCX, and the Energy and Propulsion Conference. He also provides strategic input to improve SAE event organization and has served as a frequent peer reviewer for SAE papers.
Sujan, a distinguished researcher at the National Transportation Research Center, has been an active volunteer with SAE since 2016. Over the years, he has served as the rotational chairperson of the Buckendale Award Committee and has taken on roles with multiple other SAE committees, including J1939, Vehicle Safety and Automation, Vehicle Hardware and Software, and Vehicle Powertrain and Propulsion. Sujan organized and moderated several panels for the Commercial Vehicle Event’s Total Vehicle and Powertrain committees. He has also authored multiple SAE journal and conference papers.
Established in 1979, the McFarland Award honors Forest McFarland, a longtime SAE session organizer and committee leader who played a key role in shaping SAE’s technical programming.
