National
Development Agency

For the higher moral appreciation of professionals creating outstanding intellectual property and putting new knowledge into practice Novofer Foundation has established an award to acknowledge individuals successfully participating in the innovation process in a broader sense. The Award was named after Dennis Gabor, the scientist who was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1971 and stands as an example to be recognized and followed by all professionals working in the technical field. The primary objective of the Dennis Gabor Award is to recognize the innovative conduct symbolized by the career of the namesake.

With the support of the National Development Agency the Dennis Gabor Award in 2012 was granted to Dr. Tamás János Katona, Thermophysical Engineer. The Doctor of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences and Scientific Advisor to the MVM Paks Nuclear Power Plant Limited Liability Company for his creative contribution provided during the review of the seismic safety of the power plant, the development of the implementation concept and the methodology, furthermore during the practical implementation, for the supervision of the construction unprecedented in the international practice, furthermore for the initiative and preparation of the strategic decision about the extension of the working life of the power plant and for his outstanding creative activity during the elaboration of the programme.

Dr. Tamás János Katona was born on 8th August 1948 in Báta. He graduated from the Moscow Power Engineering Institute in 1973 with a Master’s degree in Nuclear Engineering, in 1984 he completed his Ph.D. and in 2012 he received the Doctor of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences title.
Between 1973 and 1983 he was a Research Officer at the Research Institute for Atomic Energy, between 1983 and 1995 he was working for the Paks Nuclear Power Plant Ltd. in different technical positions, where he became a Scientific Advisor in 1995 and a Senior Research Associate for the University of Pécs. He is the Vice President of the Pécs Regional Committee of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences and the member of the Hungarian Academy of Engineering. Under his supervision and based on his scientific findings the seismic safety of the Paks Nuclear Power Plant was enhanced. He was the first to initiate the extension of the working life of the power plant and supervised the preparation works. His fields of research include the questions of the safety of nuclear power plants related to their structural integrity. He is the author of 180 articles, lectures and five book chapters.
In 1974 he received the Hungarian Higher Education Award and in 1981 he was presented the Jánossy Award. In 1999 he was granted the Scientific Organization Award of the Pécs Academic Committee, in 2009 the Zsolnai Award, in 2011 the Creativity Award of the Tolna County Chamber of Engineers and the Innovation Award of the South-Transdanubian Regional Innovation Agency. 

Besides Dr. Tamás János Katona 9 other people received the Award named after Dennis Gabor in 2012: Dr. Mária Imecs and Dr. András Dán - Electrical Engineers, Ernő Duda Jr. - Manager, Dr. István Peták - Doctor of Medicine, Dr. Magdolna Tóth - Horticultural Engineer, Dr László Vígh - Chemical Scientist, Dániel Rátai - Computer Scientist and Inventor, Dr. Péter Csermely - Biochemist and Dávid Sik - Electrical Engineering Student.