AATCC is honored to announce the 2025 AATCC Technical Committee on Research Award recipients, Miranda Klaas and Alan Buttenhoff. Buttenhoff is recognized for his continuous service and leadership of RA57 Floor Covering Test Methods. Throughout his service as Chair for RA57, Buttenhoff has spearheaded the development of the laboratory procedure AATCC LP4 Lab Procedure for Synthetic Soil, the test methods AATCC TM196-2011 Test Method for Colorfastness to Sodium Hypochlorite of a Textile Floor Covering and AATCC TM205-2016 Test Method for Carpet: Liquid Penetration by Spillage, and the revision of AATCC TM189-2017e Test Method for Fluorine Content of Carpet Fibers. Klaas is recognized for her continuous service and leadership of RA59 Fibrous Test Materials Research Committee as Chair, and for her service as secretary for RA60 Colorfastness to Washing Test Methods. As Chair of RA59, she has led the development of M15-2025 Guidance on the Selection and Use of Multifiber Fabric, which seeks to provide the user’s guidance on proper use of multifiber within current AATCC standards. This monograph will be released in the 2026 AATCC Manual of International Test Methods and Procedures.
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Service, Accomplishments, & Careers
Alan Buttenhoff joined AATCC in 2003. He serves as the chair of RA57 Floor Covering Test Methods research committee and is active in RA50 Lightfastness and Weathering Test Methods research committee. He served as a member of the AATCC Board of Directors from 2010 to 2012. Since joining AATCC, Buttenhoff has established several work groups that improved the stain reference scale manufacturing process, developed a new vinyl for the vinyl staining test method, and improved documentation and detection limits of the TM189-2017e Test Method for Fluorine Content of Carpet Fibers. He is an active member of the Technical Committee on Research and is a voting member of the Materials Interest Group. Buttenhoff is currently a Senior Manager—Technical Services at Shaw Industries. Recently, he finished a 20-year leadership role as Senior Manager—Central Labs, which is an ISO17025 certified lab. He began his career at Shaw Industries in 1985. Buttenhoff has significantly contributed to the company’s growth and innovation in flooring and synthetic turf solutions, including tufting defect monitoring, a sidematch improvement system, and spectrophotometric measurement of carpet. During his time as Senior Manager—Central Labs, he led technical innovations in carpet wear, systems of predicting sunlight’s degradation of carpet fibers, and developed lab operations for inorganic and organic analysis. Before he became Senior Manager—Central Labs, Buttenhoff enjoyed a 20-year career in Manufacturing with Shaw Industries, with positions in plant management and corporate technical roles. Prior to joining Shaw Industries, Buttenhoff received a BS in Textile Technology and Management from Texas Tech University in 1983, and an MS in Textile Technology from the Institute of Textile Technology in 1985. Buttenhoff has several patents and published works, including a paper in the 2012 November/December edition of AATCC Review. He has worked with AATCC and ASTM to conduct joint meetings to bring together labs in the carpet business to keep AATCC and ASTM test methods up to date and relevant. With ASTM, he chairs the Subcommittee D13.21 on Pile Floor Coverings, is a member of Committee E5 on Fire Standards, Committee F8.65 on Sports Equipment, Playing Surfaces, and Facilities, and serves on the Executive Committee for Committee F6 on Resilient Floor Coverings. Additionally, Buttenhoff represents Shaw Industries with the Carpet and Rug Institute and the Resilient Floor Covering Association trade associations. 
Miranda Klaas joined AATCC in 2019. Since 2019, Klaas has served as chair of RA59 Fibrous Test Materials research committee and has served as secretary of RA60 Colorfastness to Washing Test Methods research committee. Klaas has attended several conferences, including the Textile Testing Training Conference, and is a part of various committees. She is a member of the Technical Committee on Research, the Materials Interest Group, and serves as the social media content creator for the Delaware Valley Section. Klaas is currently the Creative Director at Testfabrics Inc., guiding the company’s visual and brand direction for its quality testing material offerings. She is also responsible for the historical archives at Testfabrics Inc. Klaas has been with Testfabrics Inc. since 2006. She received a BA in Fine Arts and History from Wells College in 2004. In 2005, she served as the Visitor’s Services Coordinator at the Schweinfurth Memorial Art Center, and as the Tasting Room Manager and Painter for Advertisements at the Montezuma Winery from 2005 to 2006. In 2003, Klaas copied the painting of The Raft of the Medusa by Theodore Gericault at the Louvre in Paris, France. Klaas is also a published illustrator in several books and is a seasoned performer for several plays. Klaas states that she would not be the current chair of RA59 Fibrous Test Materials research committee if not for the help and guidance of former RA59 chairs, Shawn Meeks and John Crocker. She would like to thank them for all the knowledgeable input they continue to give her and the committee. She also has included this personal statement: “My dearest AATCC friends include the test materials themselves, as my own cartoon creations. In my social media posts, and marketing, the test materials have stolen the show. Together we hope to reflect the spirit of AATCC that is so inspiring to me; no one company or person can solve the world’s textile problems alone. Together, with the help of our friends and colleagues, we can compromise, and come up with good solutions, that work for everyone.” 
The Award
The Technical Committee on Research Service Award was established in 2008 to recognize those members who have contributed greatly to the AATCC organization in a technical capacity. Individual members of the Association with at least five years of continuous membership in AATCC, who have contributed outstanding technical service to the Association through activity in a research committee, are eligible. Selection is by unanimous choice of the TCR Service Award Committee composed of the current chair, vice chair, and secretary of the Technical Committee on Research, as well as the chair of the Executive Committee on Research. The Award consists of a plaque and an honorarium. The awards were presented November 11, 2025, during the Awards Reception at the Fall Research Committee Meetings held at the StateView Hotel in Raleigh, NC, USA. AATCC connects the global textile community to empower an innovative, informed, and sustainable future. Headquartered in the Research Triangle Park of North Carolina, AATCC has provided standards development, testing materials, educational resources, and professional networking to the global textile industry for more than a century.
Technical Contact: Erika Simmons; Technical Director; [email protected] Media Contact: Bhavani Jayaraman; Marketing Associate; [email protected] www.aatcc.org/tcr/