Matt Chipman, Senior Regional Sales Manager, EDAX
The seasons are changing here in the mountains of Utah. Autumn is at least one of my four favorites! I have made my home here, largely because of the drastic seasonal changes in climate and the ability to participate in gravity fed activities, like skiing and mountain biking. My personal life has become a game of maximizing my time in the mountains within the confines of what the weather and other commitments allow. Do I ride my bike at 5,000 feet elevation or 9,000 feet elevation? Do I pull out the skis or the fat tire bike for riding on the snow? Do I have to ride early in the morning when the ground is frozen to avoid the mud? Maybe I just escape to the desert for a weekend. No matter what the weather decides to throw at me, I have an answer. If I ever get bored, then mother nature will change things up for me soon enough. I have learned to adapt and enjoy the constant change.
Figure 1. A perfect autumn day on the trail.
Figure 2. Escaping to the desert. Maybe I will see Dr. Stuart Wright there.
Figure 3. Not enough powder for skiing? No problem.
Recently in my professional life, I have had to apply some of the same attitudes toward change. After spending my entire career with TSL, then EDAX, then AMETEK; I decided to leave and work for Gatan about five years ago. I was just shy of my 20-year anniversary with EDAX. It was a nice change of pace and scenery. I really enjoyed learning new products and getting in touch with cutting edge Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM) research applications that Gatan is involved with. Then the climate changed and AMETEK acquired Gatan! Things had come full circle, just like the seasons. Fortunately for me, selling EDS and EBSD is like riding a bike (pun intended)! I now get to associate with some old friends again and sell both Gatan and EDAX products. I’m trying to convince myself that there are never too many products to sell, just like you can never have too much snow. However, sometimes I wish there was more time in the day.
Figure 4. It’s impossible to have too much snow!
I am looking forward to the constant change that will come with the combined power of EDAX and Gatan products. Can we offer Gatan sample preparation equipment to EDAX Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) users? We sure can! Check out the latest EDAX Insight newsletter to see an example. Can we offer heating stages to EDAX SEM users? Absolutely! Can we leverage the power of Electron Energy Loss Spectroscopy (EELS) and Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS) together with diffraction for the ultimate microanalysis experience for TEM users? I hope so! It will take some work, but like climbing mountains, it will be so worth it!
Figure 5. You can’t enjoy the descent without the hard work of climbing.
I am looking forward to being able to offer my customers more solutions to their research problems. No matter which way the wind blows; I expect to have the answer in the form of the combined EDAX and Gatan product portfolio. What research problems are you trying to solve? Let’s see what we can do together. See you out there!