SPE Foundation Establishes Memorial Scholarship for Materials Guru Sepe

The Society of the Plastics Engineers’ Foundation has established a scholarship fund in memory of Mike Sepe, the legendary polymer guru who unexpectedly passed away in April at the age of 71.

Sepe was a long-time member of SPE and gave numerous presentations at ANTEC and various other technical programs, often focusing on materials and more specifically doing deep dives on why plastic parts failed. His career in the industry started in 1975 at Stelle Plastics in the Chicago area, then moved to Dickten and Masch in Nashotah, Wisconsin, where he held the position as technical director.

Sepe left Dickten and Masch in 2006 to start his own company, Michael P. Sepe LLC, in Sedona, Arizona, where he provided consulting services, published articles (including 140 in Plastics Technology, dubbed Materials Know How) and gave presentations on material selection and failure analysis until the end of his life. He also taught courses in various capacities, including as part of the American Injection Molding Institute team, which he joined in 2015. His courses and presentations took him to many different parts of the country and to many countries around the world.  

Eve Vitale, the foundation’s chief executive, has set a scholarship goal of $50,000, which would enable the foundation to award the first Michael P. Sepe Memorial Scholarship by Oct. 1.

Anyone interested in donating can do so here.