September
2008
SAMPE Dinner Meeting with Astronauts
– Wednesday, September 17th, 5:00 PM
The Seattle Chapter of the Society for the
Advancement of Material and Process Engineering (SAMPE)
is hosting a special October Dinner meeting featuring two
astronauts. Dr. Tammy Jernigan and Dr. Jeff Wisoff are married
and they have flown nine combined missions, but they have
never flown on the same mission together. Dr. Jernigan has
degrees in physics, engineering science and astronomy. Dr.
Wisoff has degrees in physics. They have been engaged in
interesting earth bound research after completing their
wide range of their Shuttle Mission Specialist assignments.
For more information visit the Seattle SAMPE
website at http://www.seattlesampe.org/
or see the event flyer at http://sampe.homestead.com/files/SAMPEflyerSept2008r3.pdf.
October
2008
North Puget Sound Community College
Mentor Night – Wednesday, October 8, 6:00 PM
Edmonds Community College and the Puget Sound
Engineering Council (PSEC) are hosting a North Puget Sound
Community College Engineering Career and Mentor Night on
Wednesday, October 8 at 6:00 PM at the Tryton Union Building
(TUB) Conference Room. The purpose of the Engineering Career
and Mentor Night is to provide an opportunity for community
college students from the North Puget Sound area, including
Edmonds, Everett, Shoreline, North Seattle, UW Bothell,
Cascadia, Skagit Valley, Peninsula, and Bellingham to interact
with practicing and professional engineers for career advice
and guidance.
Mentors are needed to spend 2 hours talking
to community college students about their field of expertise
and to give the students insight into their future career
choices. If you are interested in participating, please
email Art Louie and Crista Shaw (art.louie@snoco.org, crista.shaw@edcc.edu)
by this Friday, September 19. Please include your name,
employer, email address, telephone number, and industry.
The specific disciplines sought include Aerospace Manufacturing,
Aeronautical Engineering, Composite Materials Manufacturing,
Marine Engineering, Consumer Products Engineering, Software
Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Civil Engineering,
Environmental Engineering, Structural Engineering, Mechanical
Engineering, Computer Engineering, CADD Technology, Bio-Medical
Engineering, and Material Science.
On behalf of the community colleges in the
North Puget Sound area, thank you for volunteering your
time to help guide the career choices of our students.
Biofuels Industry Presentation Dinner
Meeting – Thursday, October 9th, 6:00 PM
Dan Parker of E3 Energy Partners will give
an overview of the biofuels industry. In 1991 Mr. Parker
formed Parker, Messana & Associates to develop energy
projects, and he has recently formed a new venture, E3 Energy
Partners, to specifically focus on biofuels process development
and plant construction. E3 Energy Partners is focused on
technology scale-up from laboratory to pilot plant to full-scale
production levels. Current projects include cellulosic ethanol
biorefineries, biodiesel, biogas, hydrogen storage, and
biomass cogeneration.
“The biofuels industry is experiencing
a period of major change. Increased petroleum prices have
resulted in increased demand for alternative fuels, but
have also increased biofuels costs to an even greater extent.
Production facilities are having difficulties staying profitable
and new facilities are not being built. From this turmoil
a new generation of biofuels plants are arising, that make
use of lower grade feedstocks, better integrate byproduct
and energy use, and are closer to being true biorefineries.
The current state of the technology in biofuels production
will be reviewed, and where biofuels production for the
US and the world appears to be heading will be discussed.”
Daniel Parker, P.E. received a B.S. in chemistry
from the University of Illinois and a B.S. in electrical
engineering from the University of Wisconsin. He has over
thirty years experience as a consulting engineer for the
design and construction of biomass derived fuel and energy
production facilities. He has over 50 professional publications
and 3 patents. He was appointed by Governor Locke in 2004
to the Washington State Board of Registration for Professional
Engineers and Land Surveyors.
The meeting will be held at the Old Spaghetti
Factory, 2801 Elliott Avenue (Elliott Avenue at Broad Street),
in downtown Seattle, across Alaskan Way from Pier 70. The
meeting will begin with a social hour at 6:00 PM, dinner
will be served at 6:30, and the presentation will begin
at 7:00. To register, visit http://www.evite.com/app/publicUrl/DPLXGENRJYPVRULBDPFQ/biofuels081009.
Seattle University and Seattle Pacific
University Mentor Night – Tuesday, October 21st, 6:00
PM
If you are interested in being a mentor for
a night for college students, the Puget Sound Engineering
Council (PSEC) needs your help! The purpose of the mentor
night activity is to bring as many practicing engineers
together with as many students as possible. We are trying
to inspire the students, most of whom are sophomores or
juniors, toward a career in engineering. The mentoring has
been focused on the one night, with engineers explaining
what their experience in the profession has been and answering
questions posed by students.
Here’s the agenda for this year's event:
6:00 pm Welcome & Introductions
6:10 pm Panel Discussion (4-5 Mentors)
6:40 pm Introduction of all Mentors (Mentors not participating
in panel will need to arrive by 6:30 pm)
6:50 pm Break; Food will be served only during the break!
7:10 pm Break-Out Sessions (three 20 minute sessions involving
all mentors)
8:10 pm Conclusion & Wrap-Up
Mentors are welcome to come early to hear
the panel. Break-out sessions will focus on one-on-one mentoring
of students by mentors in their discipline. Students will
rotate between mentors and tables to get a broad overview
of answers to their questions.
If you are interested in being a mentor, please
sign up online at http://www.pseconline.org/Events/MentorNights/SignUp.html
by October 15th.
Maps and further instruction will be sent out prior to the
event. For questions, please contact Joe Souther at southerjt@cdm.com.
Lunchtime Tour of Kenworth –
Thursday, October 23rd, 12:00 PM
This is a rare opportunity to tour the Kenworth
Truck production line while the line is active! From the
PACCAR website: “PACCAR is a global technology leader
in the design, manufacture and customer support of premium
light-, medium- and heavy-duty trucks under the Kenworth,
Peterbilt and DAF nameplates. The company also provides
customized financial services, information technology and
truck parts related to its principal business.
“Environmental responsibility is one
of PACCAR’s core values. The company regularly develops
new programs to help protect and preserve the environment
and PACCAR has established ambitious goals to further reduce
emissions and enhance fuel efficiency in its truck models.”
The tour will include a discussion of PACCAR’s Hybrid
vehicle Program, which is a key element in their effort
to improve fuel efficiency by 30% for selected medium duty
vehicles.
Kenworth is located in Renton at 1601 North
8th Street (Behind Target and Fry’s, ask the guard
to direct you to the front lobby). The tour will begin promptly
at 12:00 PM and will conclude by 1:00 PM. Those with more
flexibility in their schedules are welcome to stick around
for additional Q&A.
To reserve your space, visit http://www.evite.com/app/publicUrl/IEUDDJELRUCBYRTXANHU/paccar081023.
Note that you will be touring in a production environment,
so please dress appropriately (closed-toed shoes, long pants
or dresses, etc.). Cameras will not be allowed on the tour.
Detailed guidelines and a map are available on the WW ASME
website at the following links (GUIDE
LINE) (MAP)
AIAA Technical Symposium – Saturday,
October 25th
The Pacific Northwest Section of American
Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is hosting
a technical symposium to provide a forum for students, professors,
and industry professionals to share what they are working
or have worked on here in the Pacific Northwest. This is
a great opportunity to hear and see what is locally occurring
in aerospace. Participation is not limited to Young Professionals
or AIAA members.
More information, including how you can sign
up to present or help with the symposium, can be found at
http://www.pnwaiaa.org/. You can also contact the organizers
directly. Penny Lora Ramirez, the Symposium Organization
Coordinator, is available at pennyinseattle@hotmail.com
or 206-335-7786; and Kim Hicks, the Symposium Chair, is
available at hickskp@yahoo.com or 765-404-3419.
**Other News
Reminder: Renew Your ASME Membership
By now you should all have received your notice
to renew your ASME membership. We hope you have found value
in our section programs, and the myriad other products and
services offered by ASME. If so, please renew soon to keep
your membership active! If you complete your renewal by
October 1st, you’ll be entered to win a 42”
plasma TV.
When you renew, you’ll have the option
of making a targeted contribution directly to the Western
Washington Section. A number of you contributed last year
and the additional funds were instrumental in allowing us
to expand our programs. We’re planning to do even
more this year, so if you feel like helping it will be greatly
appreciated!
WW ASME Votes for New District D Leader
Last week the WW ASME Executive Board cast
a vote on your behalf to elect Dr. Mahantesh Hiremath as
the next Leader of District D. June 2009 will mark the end
of the term of our current District Leader, Bill Robbins.
Dr. Hiremath is currently serving as Chair of the Santa
Clara Valley Section, and the section has flourished under
his guidance. He is an experienced Program Manager at Space
System Loral, where he has dealt with the complex human
and technological issues that arise in pulling together
a satellite system and a team of people. His colleagues
at Loral and in ASME describe him as a clear thinker who
is action oriented, effective and knows how to motivate
people to help.
We look forward to working with Dr. Hiremath
and seeing how he advances the state of the District. If
you have questions or comments, please email Kalan Guiley
at guileyk@asme.org.
PE and EIT Exams Fast Approaching:
Good Luck WW ASME Members!
The EIT (FE) and PE exams are coming up on
October 25th and 26th, respectively. We wish the best of
luck to all Western Washington ASME members taking the exams.
(Not that you need it—we know you’ll do great!)
Thanks for Your Feedback
Thanks to everyone who took a few minutes
to complete the 2008 WW ASME Summer Survey. The response
rate was slightly better this year than last, and we’re
working to analyze the data and incorporate the lessons
learned as we plan our programs for the second half of the
year. Look for a summary of the responses in next month’s
newsletter.
A special thank you to the 11 of you who volunteered
to help out in various capacities. You will be contacted
individually to discuss your interests and the areas where
the section could use a little more volunteer power. This
section is run entirely by volunteers, so we all appreciate
your willingness to help!
Call for Volunteers
We are looking for volunteers to work on the
following Section Committees: Programs, Professional Development,
Membership, University Relations, Industry Relations, and
Government Relations. If you are interested in helping out
in one of these areas, please email Kalan Guiley at guileyk@asme.org.
Online Job Board
Our online job board, with a listing of job
opportunities we’ve become aware of, is available
through the section website (http://sections.asme.org/westernwa/).
Section members who are aware of opportunities that should
be posted can forward them to Kalan Guiley, at guileyk@asme.org.
