The Association for Materials Protection and Performance (AMPP) announced that Mike Massimino—former NASA astronaut, New York Times best-selling author, and professor of mechanical engineering at Columbia University—will headline the AMPP 2025 Annual Conference and Expo as a distinguished keynote speaker. The conference will take place April 6-10 at Music City Center in Nashville, Tennessee, and is set to bring together over 6,000 professionals in the materials protection industry.
Massimino will deliver a keynote titled “The Team’s Success Is Your Success: You Cannot Do This Alone—You Will Succeed or Fail as a Team” at 3:30 p.m. on Monday, April 7, during the conference. Drawing from his experiences as a NASA astronaut, an engineer, and a public figure, Massimino’s insights will focus on the importance of teamwork, resilience, and innovation—principles that resonate deeply within the materials protection and performance industry.
“We are privileged to have such a distinguished figure join us for our conference,” says AMPP CEO Alan Thomas in a prepared statement. “Massimino’s journey as an astronaut and his dedication to team success align perfectly with AMPP’s goals. His story reminds us that success is built together and reflects the resilience and innovation that drive our daily work. Our attendees are in for a memorable and impactful session.”
In addition to his career at NASA, where he flew on two shuttle missions to service the Hubble Space Telescope, Massimino has held roles in academia and made numerous appearances on television, including the CBS comedy “The Big Bang Theory.” He teaches at Columbia University and is a senior advisor for space programs at the Intrepid Museum in New York City. His bestselling book, “Spaceman: An Astronaut’s Unlikely Journey to Unlock the Secrets of the Universe,” chronicles his journey in space and his contributions to human space exploration.
The AMPP 2025 Annual Conference will kick off on April 6 and feature 600 hours of content, technical sessions led by industry pioneers, and the latest peer-reviewed research. AMPP’s U.S. offices are in Houston, Texas; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; and San Diego, California.
