The Association of Public Radio Engineers last week presented its Engineering Achievement Award to David Layer, vice president, advanced engineering for the National Association of Broadcasters.
The award is for a person who has “made outstanding contributions to the art and/or science of radio engineering that has made a significant impact on, or improvement in the state of the public radio industry.”
Outgoing APRE President Victoria St. John said in the announcement: “In the midst of the dramatic changes in our industry over the past several years, David has been a great and supportive colleague to the public radio engineering community. David’s service to all broadcasters has been exemplary.”
Layer studied electrical engineering at the University of Maryland and Purdue University, then worked as a hardware designer for COMSAT Laboratories, working with technology for geosynchronous satellite systems.
In the 1990s NAB brought him aboard to work in testing and standardization of broadcast radio technologies. “As an administrator of the National Radio Systems Committee (NRSC, co-sponsored by NAB and the Consumer Technology Association), David participated in the evaluation of the HD Radio system which would be adopted by the FCC in 2002 as the digital radio standard for the U.S.,” APRE wrote.
Layer received Radio World’s Excellence in Engineering Award in 2015 and has received numerous other honors from organizations including the Consumer Electronics Association, IEEE BTS and Radio Ink. He is involved in NAB’s technical conference planning and technical publication activities and has been published in numerous technical contexts.
Past recipients of the APRE award or related honors are Rich Parker, Jeff Welton, Bruce Wahl, Dan Mansergh, Ralph Hogan, Ralph Woods, Bud Aiello, Gray Frierson Haertig, Michael LeClair, Mike Starling, Roger Karwoski, Donald Creighton, Richard Cassidy, Wayne Hetrich, Chuck Leavens, Marty Bloss, Don Danko, John Kean, Jim McEachern, Mike Pappas, Doug Vernier, Chuck Mellone, and Dennis L. Haarsager.
