The 23^rd International Technical Conference on the Enhanced Safety of Vehicles (ESV), held last month in Seoul, Korea, was the setting for the U.S. Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) presentation of its prestigious Special Award of Appreciation to Automotive Safety Council (ASC) president, Douglas Campbell, in recognition of his contributions to highway safety throughout his 44-year career. Mr. Campbell was the only recipient of the award from North America. The ESV Conference, held every two years in a rotating venue between Asia, Europe and North America, presents the latest in auto safety technology over a 4-day event.

Mr. Campbell, one of the pioneers in airbag development, began his career as a college student with General Motors, where he began working on airbags in 1969 as a member of the 1000 car build team and the 1973 launch of the first production airbag on 1974-76 vehicles. After completing his Masters Degree, he continued his airbag involvement as manager of GM's crash test lab. He then joined Talley Automotive Products in Mesa, AZ as Engineering VP on the management start-up team and, when Talley was purchased by TRW in 1989, became TRW Engineering VP for Occupant Restraints in Michigan; subsequently adding Seat Belts, Safety Electronics, Steering Wheels, Tire Pressure Monitoring, Security Electronics and Lane-Keeping Technologies to his leadership responsibilities with TRW's Engineering Centers in 8 countries. Mr. Campbell was at the forefront of every auto safety advancement and traveled the world promoting automotive safety for over 20 years with TRW. He has been an advocate and a leader on advanced safety products his entire career; served as TRW's representative on the ASC Board of Directors and Technical Chairman for over 20 years; and became ASC President in 2008. In his current role, he continues to advance automotive safety as advocate for ASC member companies, is a sought-after speaker and recognized leader in the field of auto safety. The Automotive Safety Council (ASC) is a non-profit organization, founded in 1961, whose mission is to substantially reduce traffic accidents, injuries and fatalities. ASC is made up of most of the world's leading auto safety component suppliers and systems manufacturers.

Follow-up inquiries or more information about ASC may be directed to Jill Mulholland at info@automotivesafetycouncil.org or by calling (859) 269-4240.