PNNL gets new director

Steven Ashby will take over as director of the Energy Department's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory beginning April 1.

Ashby has been the lab's deputy director for science and technology since 2008. He will replace Mike Kluse, who is retiring after eight years as director, according to a March 11 statement from Battelle, which operates the lab for DOE's Office of Science.

Before joining PNNL, Ashby had been deputy principal associate director for science and technology at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and held several leadership roles at that lab's Computation directorate.

"Dr. Ashby's experience at the national laboratories will help drive innovation," said Undersecretary for Science and Energy Franklin Orr in a statement. He added that Ashby's familiarity with the breadth of PNNL's research programs and his experience with computational sciences and advanced computing made him well suited to his new role.