Laymon Miller—An exemplary acoustical consultant

Laymon Miller was a “Consultant’s consultant.” He embodied a wonderful example of how to conduct oneself in the engineering consulting business, providing leadership in defining the functions and responsibilities of acoustical consultants. As a leader of our profession, Laymon was also a great friend to the National Council of Acoustical Consultants (NCAC). Former NCAC Newsletter Editor Bill Cavanaugh asked Laymon if he would serve as a guest editor for a continuing series tentatively titled “War stories … from the Consulting Veteran’s files.” Laymon answered the call, and this series continued for many years, capturing the “priceless gems” from which all of us, at all experience levels, can learn about the problems faced by consultants, and importantly about the solutions as applied in the field. Laymon was a talented and generous teacher, in print and in person, of those inside and outside of acoustical consulting. His experiences, related with insight and humor, have provided guidance to generations of those in general industry and to acoustical consulting practitioners alike. Laymon was elected an Honorary Member of NCAC in 1993, received the NCAC C. Paul Boner Award in 2007 and was presented the Institute of Noise Control Engineering (INCE) Outstanding Educator Award in 2008.