MURRAY HILL, N.J. (Feb. 28, 1998) -- Gardy Cadet, a process engineer at Bell Labs, the research and development arm of Lucent Technologies, has been named "Black Engineer of the Year" by U.S. Black Engineer magazine. He will be honored today, during the 12th Black Engineer of the Year Awards Conference, in Baltimore, Md.

Cadet will receive the "Outstanding Technical Contribution Award," which is given annually to individuals whose work has made a broad impact on society and industry, and whose qualifications place them among the nation's highest achievers.

Cadet in his lab at Murray Hill.

Selected for his exceptional work in the fields of process engineering and chemistry, Cadet is being recognized for developing high performance control methods for delivering chemical reagents used in optical fiber manufacturing. He is also known for co-developing the point-of-use arsine generator. This device is a safer way to produce chemical reagents, which are used in the manufacture of integrated circuits.

"Contributions that Cadet has made permit our fiber manufacturing plants to increase the capacity and reliability of its specialized products," said James Mitchell, director of Bell Labs' Materials, Reliability and Ecology Research Lab and 1993 Black Engineer of the Year. "This kind of engineering is needed by Lucent, and is an example of the excellence and high quality to be emulated by aspiring engineers."

Raised in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Cadet credits his parents for giving him the encouragement to pursue a career in science. He earned bachelor's and master's degrees in chemistry from Brooklyn College at the City University of New York, in 1982 and 1984, respectively, and a doctorate in nuclear chemistry at New York University, in 1987. He holds eight U.S. and five European patents.

Cadet began his career at Bell Labs in 1988. Today he is a Distinguished Member of Technical Staff for the Process and Chemical Engineering Department in Murray Hill, N.J. He is also a member of the following organizations for science professionals: the American Chemical Society; the American Society of Nondestructive Testing; the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers; the National Organization for the Professional Advancement of Black Chemists and Chemical Engineers; and the International Society of Optical Engineers.

Cadet resides in Orange, N.J. with his wife, Carmelite, and two daughters.

The Black Engineer of the Year Awards is a national program created by U.S. Black Engineer magazine to pay tribute to outstanding African-Americans for their contributions in science, engineering, education and technology, and to showcase these achievements as an inspiration to young African-American men and women.

This information is based on a press release written by Patrice J. Edwards of Bell Labs Media Relations.