This award has been constituted for embalming the memory of dear Assoc. Prof. Dr. Fahrettin Can who was a faculty member of METU Chemical Engineering Department between 1964 and 1993. With his outstanding insight of service, Prof. Can also conducted duties including General Secretariat and some other administrative functions. He was the only person that came to one's mind when "Chemical Engineering Economics" and "Management" courses are the subjects.

Fahrettin Can was born in Balıkesir at 1926. He received his bachelor degree in Chemical Engineering from Ohio State University between the years of 1946 - 1952. He returned to Turkey and started working for Sümerbank Paper Mill in İzmir. He served in different positions in Sümerbank from Planning and Organization Manager to General Director as well as Personnel Management in Turkish Petroleum Corporation. Dr. Can served as a faculty in METU Chemical Engineering Department, but this was not his only role in METU as he also served as the General Secretary. Before his retirement from METU, Dr. Can worked in the Institute of Marine Sciences located in Mersin, Erdemli. He retired in 1993 and passed away in 2002.