IME News @ Western Michigan University

Jefferson Science Fellowship

2010-11-15T16:24:00.000-05:00

The National Academies is pleased to announce a call for applications for the 2011 Jefferson Science Fellowship (JSF) program. Now in its 8th year, the JSF program is a model for engaging the American academic science, technology, and engineering communities in the formulation and implementation of U.S. foreign policy.

Jefferson Science Fellows spend one year at the U.S. Department of State or U.S. Agency for International Development in Washington, DC and may periodically travel to U.S. foreign embassies and/or missions. JSF awards are open to tenured academic scientists, technologists and engineers from U.S. educational institutions. Applicants must be U.S. citizens and will be required to obtain a security clearance.

The online application and instructions can be found on the JSF website: www.national-academies.org/jsf

2010 EAS Fair to connect job seekers with 40+ employers

2010-09-23T13:22:00.001-04:00

More than 40 employers have signed up for the 2010 Engineering and Applied Sciences [EAS] Fair. It’s set for Thurs., Sep. 30, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Parkview Campus main lobby. The event is free and open to the public. Name tags and a layout to find employers will be available at the sign-in table as early as 8 a.m.

More than 40 employers are signed up to interview at the 2010 EAS Fair.
Above is Post Foods group that attended the 2009 EAS Career Fair.

Christopher Sell, CEAS career development specialist, is coordinating the day’s event, which annually links internship, co-op and full-time job seekers with local, regional, national and international employers.

Among those who have already signed up are Stryker, Duncan Aviation, Michigan Civil Services Commission, Adecco Technical and Engineering, Consumers Energy, Domtar, GenTex (Zeeland), Halliburton, Innotec, Kellogg’s , Post, Parker Hannifin, Perrigo, Verso Paper, the U.S. Army Healthcare, and many more.

Chris Sell, career development specialist, with EAS flier.

Sell said those seeking jobs, internships, and/or co-operative experiences should dress up. Men should wear ties and a suit coat (if they own one), and women should wear conservatively heeled shoes. “This event requires professional attire and that’s what we are encouraging,” he said.

Job seekers should bring multiple copies of their resume. In addition, those who are aiming at specific companies should do their homework and tailor their resume for that employer and prepare a cover letter for that employer.

Other items that should be considered include a reference page and additional items that are specific to a major. “Some students – like graphics majors – may want to bring an additional portfolio to show examples of their work,” Sell said. To add a really professional touch, Sell recommends students carry their resumes and other materials in a professional, possibly leather-bound portfolio.

According to Sell, even those students not seeking employment at this time – including freshmen – should attend. “This is beneficial for all students: “It offers a great opportunity to network and make connections now and in the future.”

The list of employers can be found at: http://wmich.experience.com/cso/cf_registered_empl oyers?hnd=4616. Additionally, a newspaper tabloid will be distributed in the coming days that will include a list of registered employers. Sell encourages job seekers to review the list of employers and research those of interest ahead of time. All employers registered are identified on the Web site.

This week the CEAS advising office is holding extended drop-in hours for resume reviews on Tues.(9/21) and on Thurs. (9/23) 10-noon and 2-4 p.m. on both days. Call (269) 387-2745 for an appointment.

On Fri. (9/24) Practice Interview Day will be held at Ellsworth Hall, on main campus, next to the Bernhard Center. To sign up, one can go to www.wmich.edu/career, log in to BroncoJOBS, and then under One-Click Searches, self-register at Practice Interview Day.

Follow up interviews will be held on Fri., Oct. 1 – the day after the career fair – at Ellsworth Hall.

IME summer workshops reach out to future engineering students

2010-08-10T11:29:00.000-04:00

Summer Camp 2010 Design / Manufacturing

For one week in July, thirteen sixth-through-eighth-grade students attended the “Summer Camp 2010 Design and Manufacturing,” IME’s first outreach program for middle school students. For five days, the students spent seven hours at the Parkview Campus, using the labs and meeting the faculty and college students.

IME Summer Camp 2010 (L to R) Wil Egresits, Dr. Pavel Ikonomov,
and Ian Chu observe Spencer Fatanelli work on an IME Camp project

Drs. Sam Ramrattan, Jorge Rodriguez, and Pavel Ikonomov – all IME faculty – directed the hands-on workshop that focused on “activities that typically take place when a new product comes out,” Rodriguez said.

Among the topics explored were computer-aided design and manufacturing, industrial materials and processes, the application of physics and science in design and manufacturing, and career opportunities.

The students – who came from as far away as New Jersey – spent their mornings designing and their afternoons manufacturing. They took home small replicas of a cannon and personalized desk plaques that they had made in the labs.

Rodriguez has received positive feedback about the camp. The grandmother of one camper said her grandson was exceptionally pleased with what he did and what he learned. “I applaud the IME department, the summer camp faculty and supporting staff,” Evie Asken said in an e-mail. “The organization of each day, the development of project designs and exceptional basic knowledge presented in understandable terms for young folks was terrific. This type of outreach to youth insures the future of your profession and, of course, heralds the reputation of WMU.”

2010 Metal-Casting Workshop

2010 Metal-Casting Workshop: Seated from left Kamaleshwaran
Nagarajan (MFT master's student) and Dr. Sam Ramrattan; Lying on
table- Zack Perk; standing from left Doug Harrett, Chris Warneka,
John Kanzierski, Mike Alquist, Chris Briolat (ME undergraduate
assistant), Jordan Finn, Trevor May, Phillip Verdusco, Aaron
Prater, Ronnie Miller, Andriy Zazulya, and Seth Rachvite

A dozen students – all high-school juniors and seniors, attended the 2011 Summer Metal-Casting Workshop directed by Dr. Sam Ramrattan, an IME professor who has been offering the weeklong, hands-on metal-casting workshop for 11 years. Kamaleshwaran Nagarajan, MFT master’s student, and Chris Briolat, a mechanical engineering undergraduate, assisted him.

As in the past, the students spent a week participating in lectures, discussions, lab work, panels, and projects on metal casting history, methods, and trends. They also visited Eagle Alloy Pacific, a foundry in Muskegon, and enjoyed a college dormitory experience. Most agreed that the most fun was preparing sand castings into which they poured molten metal.

WMU administrators provided information about WMU programs and requirements. A panel of those who work or worked in the metal-casting industry shared their experiences and answered questions about their careers.

This year’s class came to WMU from Bronson, East Jordan, Hamtramck, Homer, Mesick, Portage, and Saginaw and from Cleveland and Defiance, Ohio. The students were selected on the basis of aptitude and sponsored by various chapters of the American Foundry Society and the North American Die Casting Association.

There was no cost to the students, who stayed in WMU dorms and enjoyed campus life. More information about future summer metal-casting workshops is available at sam.ramrattan@wmich.edu

IME presentations earn kudos at annual ASEE conference

2010-07-20T17:31:00.013-04:00

Two papers presented by IME students won awards at the Annual North Central Sectional Conference, sponsored by the ASEE North Central Section and held near the end of the Spring 2010 semester at the University of Pittsburgh in Pittsburgh, PA.

Sean Derrick

Sean Derrick, a graduate student studying manufacturing engineering, won first place in the “Best Student Paper / Presentation” competition with “Dual Impeller Drive System (D.I.D.S.).” The paper that he presented was co-written with Jeffrey Rauen, who earned a BS in mechanical engineering last spring but who did not attend the conference.

The paper is based on a project the duo presented at the Spring 2009 44th Conference on Senior Engineering Design (SEDP). It details the design, analysis, construction, and testing of a D.I.D.S., which is a pumping system intended for stealth marine propulsion. The pair came up with the original idea for the project and then designed and built a working prototype in order to prove their concept. The design is now patent pending.

According to Dr. Betsy Aller, an IME faculty member who attended the conference, the ASEE reviewers recommended about 20 papers for inclusion in the competition. She said the list was “painstakingly reviewed down to five” and that Derrick’s paper was the “runaway winner.” “It was described at the conference as being the quality of an MIT graduate project,” she said.

Aller and Dr. Jorge Rodriguez, an IME faculty, advised the original D.I.D.S. project.

Derrick is presently a graduate researcher for the Green Manufacturing Initiative a program established through WMU’s manufacturing research center that offers cooperative green research and development programs of mutual interest to industry. Rauen is completing U.S. Navy officer / nuclear engineering training.

A paper by Steven Srivastava, Rob Simmons, and Anson Clawson – all recent WMU alums who have earned BS degrees in engineering technology – was runner-up. "A Sustainable Waste Oil Solution" was based on a project they completed and presented at the Fall 2009 45th SEDP.

For that project, the students assessed waste oil from a food manufacturing process for its potential use as feedstock for biodiesel and designed and built an automated prototype biodiesel reactor, which produces ASTM D6751 standard biodiesel.

ASEE Winners: Dr. Andrew Kline, Rob Simmons, Dr. Betsy Aller, Steven Srivastava, and Anson Clawson

Aller and Joe Petro, an IME faculty member, served as advisors for the design project. “The students all did us proud,” Aller said. “We received many compliments from our ASEE colleagues on the quality of WMU students' work, presentations, and professionalism.”

Dr. Andrew Kline, a faculty member in the Department of Paper Engineering, Chemical Engineering, and Imaging, also attended the ASEE Conference.

CEAS students earn IME 1420 AutoCAD awards

2010-06-29T20:18:00.003-04:00

The three winners of the Fall 2009 AutoCAD competition were honored at a ceremony before an audience of students who were eligible to compete in the Spring 2010 competition.

Slobodan Urdarevik, lead lecturer for IME 1420 Engineering Graphics, presented awards to the three winners of the Fall 2009 AutoCAD competition before students enrolled in the Spring 2010 IME 1420 class.

The AutoCAD competition is held at the end of each semester for the 300 or more students enrolled in IME 1420. For the class, they complete about 50 assignments. For the competition, students create a two-dimensional AutoCAD drawing and a 3D-solid model of a complicated part. They must show all dimensions and all symbols needed for manufacturing.

Urdarevik praised the winners of the last fall’s competition. “This competition was very close,” he said. “All three winners did excellent work.”

Fall 2009 AutoCAD Winners

Slobodan Urdarevik (left), lead faculty for IME 1420 Engineering Graphics, with Fall 09 AutoCAD winners (L to R) Nick Loedeman (1st), Daniel Thomas (2nd), and Jacob Cammenga (3rd) and Dr. Paul Engelmann, IME chair.

First-year mechanical engineering major Nick Loedeman won first-place. He graduated from Mattawan High School, where he took two years of board drafting and one year of CAD related experience. That experience included a month of AutoCAD. For the rest of the year, he studied ProEngineer. He presently belongs to the Society of Automotive Engineers, where he has been putting his education and experience to work on the suspension team of the Formula SAE project. His future plans are open.

The second-place winner is Daniel Thomas, a first-year mechanical engineering major. A Middleville, MI, native, Thomas graduated from Thornapple-Kellogg High School, where he had four years of computer-aided design (CAD) classes. He used his CAD abilities at an internship with Middleville Tool and Die last summer. His goal is to eventually design off-road race cars.

Earning third place is Jacob Cammenga, a first-year aeronautical engineering major and a graduate of Hudsonville High School. He came to WMU with two years of classes in CAD. He hopes to join AIAA and work on the Design, Build, and Fly competition. His future plans include finding an internship to prepare him for a future career at NASA.

All three winners received Best Buy gift cards and engraved plaques, which were donated by Dr. Hooks, Inc., a Kalamazoo-based business.

Dr. Paul Engelmann, IME department chair, congratulated the winners and encouraged the audience members to participate in this semester’s AutoCAD challenge. “These students have earned recognition that demonstrates their ability to apply what they have learned in the classroom,” he said. “You all have the same opportunity next week.”

Mamo wins 2nd TA Award

Eric Mamo,a teaching assistant (TA) for IME 1420 Engineering Graphics, has been voted the “Best TA for Fall 2009.” It is the second
time that the mechanical engineering senior has won the award. He won his first TA award for the Fall 2008 semester.

Selection is determined by a vote by all the TAs who instruct each semester’s more than 300 students in the fine points of AutoCAD and drafting. “I enjoy all aspects of teaching the lab,” he said. He came to WMU from Milford, on a Michigan Builders’ Trade Scholarship.

An avid archery competitor, Mamo organized and actively supported Bronco Archery RSO. In 2007, he achieved the designation of All-American Academic, which means that given his GPA and his placement in archery competitions, he was one of the top American competitors. In Summer 07 he represented WMU at the Collegiate Archery World Championship in Valencia, Venezuela.

In 2008, Mamo interned with Cornerstone Engineering in Wixom.

For more information about CAD drafting at WMU, e-mail Urdarevik at slobodan.urdarevik@wmich.edu

New 2010 Sunseeker ready for 2010 American Solar Challenge

2010-06-15T20:08:00.007-04:00

The 2010 Sunseeker Team: front, kneeling, L to R: Jesse Wick, Megan Derwich with duck mascot Arnsie, Courtney Rawlings, Mitch Panek, Andrew Oman, and Madeline McAuley. Standing, L to R: Abe Poot, Joshua Allen, John Kapenga, Nicholas Killoran, Byron Izenbaard, Alex Hoeksema, Brad Bazuin, Kenwood Hoben, Fred Sitkins, and Paul Engelmann

In a ceremony at the CEAS Parkview Campus, the WMU Sunseeker Solar Race Car team unveiled its new version of Sunseeker – the WMU entry in the 1,100-mile 2010 American Solar Challenge (ASC2010) race. WMU will compete with about 17 teams from across the country and from Canada, Taiwan and Germany.

This is the 10th time WMU students have participated in a biennial ASC solar race and is one of only a few teams that have participated in all previous races. The only other Michigan collegiate participant is a team from the University of Michigan.

The challenge officially began on June 12 with Scrutineering at the Motorsport Ranch Cresson, Texas, where cars are inspected to assure conformity to all technical and safety regulations. On June 19, the competitors travel to Tulsa, Oklahoma, for the official race which begins the next day, traverses four states, and ends June 26 in Naperville, Illinois.

The new Sunseeker features state of the art technology. It was designed with a new, more aerodynamic shape (left), outfitted with new solar arrays recycled from prior solar cars, and built and assembled by the 2010 team

Leading the WMU team is Nicholas Killoran, a mechanical engineering senior, who, along with several other team members, spent all their time recently working on the solar car in the Plastics Processing Lab at the Parkview Campus.

According to Abraham Poot, Sunseeker advisor, the team worked around the clock to prepare this year’s entry, which contains an innovative new design.

Dr. Paul Engelmann, IME chair and a major contributor to the Sunseeker project, said the team spent six months grinding the cells off the original vehicle for re-use as solar arrays for the new car. He said they had saved $150,000 by recycling the gallium arsenide solar cells. “This team has been working around the clock for six weeks,” he said. “This team truly understands the concept of Just in Time.”

The ASC competition is organized to promote an understanding of the benefits and promise of solar energy technology. Students are encouraged to be creative and to learn from the hands-on experience.

To find more information about the WMU project, visit the blog at http://sunseeker2010.blogspot.com/

The CEAS issues its own brown and gold coin to make connections

2010-06-03T19:46:00.000-04:00

The CEAS Challenge coin: CEAS icon (L:tails) and the WMU seal (R: heads)

The College of Engineering and Applied Sciences has struck its own brown and gold coin to connect with and form bonds among its alums, friends, staff, and faculty.

Last January at the CEAS All-Hands Meeting, all members of the CEAS team received the new CEAS coin, which is approximately 1.75 inches in diameter.

CEAS Dean Tony Vizzini, who came to the CEAS last fall, introduced the CEAS brown and gold coin as a way to make connections. “Make sure you carry the brown and gold coin at all times,” he said. “We want you to show your connectivity to the college.”

The officially dedicated coin’s head is the Western Michigan University seal and CEAS logo is its tail. “Having a coin is a way to show that you belong to what’s on this coin,” Vizzini said. “It’s shiny and it stands out, and you can lay it on your desk.”

Vizzini explained that the idea of having a unique coin to connect a team comes from the military, where challenge coins date back to World War I. Before the US entered that war, a wealthy American Air Force pilot from New Jersey had coins struck for members of his flying squadron. They carried the coins to show their solidarity.

The pilot wore his in a leather sack around his neck. When he was shot down and captured by the Germans, his papers were confiscated, but not his coin. He escaped from the Germans and headed for France, where he was immediately captured by the French who thought he was a German saboteur. He was scheduled to be executed until the French noticed the coin he wore around his neck and recognized the squadron symbol.

When his story checked out that he was an American flying with the British, the French gave him a bottle of wine instead of executing him. “The coin saved his life, and he was benefitted by receiving an adult beverage,” Vizzini told the audience. “So carrying the coin could save your life, and it could also get you an adult beverage.”

The members of the flying squad agreed to carry their coins at all times and to challenge others to do the same. If a coin-carrying member challenged another to show his coin, the other had to either show the coin or buy the challenger a drink. If the challenge was met, then the challenger had to buy the drink.

“I carry mine all the time,” Vizzini said. “We want all of us here and all of our alums and friends to carry their coins all the time.”
The new coins were handed to each Spring 2010 CEAS graduate in a handshake. “When you hand it to someone, give it to them in your palm,” Vizzini said. “It’s a way of connecting.”

To get the coins to all CEAS alums, Vizzini told the CEAS faculty, administrators, and staff, “If you meet an alum who doesn’t have one of our coins, give him yours and we’ll give you another one.”

The coin was designed by Laura Decker, CEAS finance analyst.

IME honors the 2010 top scholars at Clausing luncheon

2010-05-11T12:10:00.000-04:00

From left, Erik Kostandyan, IEND; Joseph Mydosh, MFT; Joseph Adams, EDT; Brandon Gorton, UEM; James Burns, IEE; Courtney Rawlings, MNEM; Christopher Lininger, ENMM; and Dr. Paul Engelmann, IME chair

IME’s top students were honored in April at the 57th Annual Student Recognition Luncheon provided by Clausing Industrial Inc.

The 2010 IME Outstanding Student Awards included four undergraduate seniors, five graduate students, and three service award winners.

Joseph Mydosh, manufacturing technology (MFT), and James Burns, industrial and entrepreneurial engineering (IEE), earned both IME and CEAS dean’s awards in their respective majors.

Brandon Gorton won the IME award in engineering management (UEM), and Joseph Adams won the IME award in engineering design technology (EDT)

Graduate students honored as outstanding students were Christopher Lininger, engineering management (ENMM); Courtney Rawlings, manufacturing (MNEM); Trent Kenworthy, industrial engineering (IENM); Kari Frikken, operations research (OPRM); and Erik Kostandyan, IME’s top industrial engineering Ph.D. student (IEND).

Outstanding Service Awards were presented to Madeline McAuley, a manufacturing grad student for her continuing work on the IME blog and Web site; John Jacobs, an electrical engineering student who has served in the IME office for the last two years; and Norman Douglas, a recently retired lab instructor.

Also lauded were IME’s presidential scholar, Matthew Scarbrough, a UEM senior and the CEAS dean’s outstanding UEM student; Christopher Reniger, the dean’s outstanding EGR student; and a number of scholarship and award winners.

IME Chair Paul Engelmann praised the award winners and the faculty who support them and acknowledged the officers and advisors of seven student societies.

Engelmann challenged the winners, society officers, and other future leaders to envision every decision they make as keys to who they will become.

The event was organized by Tom Swartz, IME Scholarship and Awards Committee chair, and Drs. Steven Butt, Kailash Bafna, and Jorge Rodriguez.

Klaz Welch, Mary Fosburg, and John Jacobs, IME office administrators, were acknowledged for their support in organizing the luncheon.

More 2010 Student Awards and Scholarships

Grad Research Awards
Ashley Hovenkamp / Erik Kostandyan

Clausing Industrial Scholarship (2009)
Devon Talcott

E-week Scholarship
Brandon Gorton

Herbert Ellinger Scholarship
Jordan Avery / Adam Blake

FEF/CIC Scholarship
Scott Horton

SME Roscoe Douglass Scholarships
Edward Brabandt / Adam Blake / Jordan Kimble / Madeline McAuley / Joshua Wiese

IME Undergraduate Scholarships
Brandon De Young / Eric Nederhoed / Lynnette Neil

Saginaw Valley AFS Scholarship
Jordan Kimble

Kellogg’s IE Scholarships
James Burns / Carlee McClintic

IME 1420 TA Awards
David Schmidt (S 09) / Eric Mamo (F 08)

IME 1420 AutoCAD Contest Winners
Russell Parsons (S 09) / Karl Waltzer (F 08)

ASEE North Central Paper Competition
First place: Sean Derrick & Jeff Rauen
Third place: Steven Srivastava, Anson Clawson, Matt Otis, & Robert Simmons

SEDP to showcase 73 engineering design projects on Tues., Apr. 20

2010-04-06T17:12:00.000-04:00

The 46th Conference on Senior Engineering Design Projects (SEDP) is set for Tues., April 20, at the Parkview Campus. The event will showcase 73 capstone projects by 209 graduating seniors.

CEAS seniors (from left) Marcus Marzetti, Brad Hovarth, and Dustin Walker are preparing a mock up of a threewheeled urban electric vehicle, which they designed using CAD programs. Faculty advisers are Dr. Pavel Ikonomov and David Middleton. The SEDP will be presented a 9 a.m. in D-201.

The event (including parking) is free and open to the public. No reservations are required. High school and community college teachers are encouraged to bring students to the conference.

Posing with the remote-controlled model aircraft they designed, built, and tested for an AIAA competition are (from left), CEAS seniors Nick McDermott, Alex Satonik, and Matt Aven. The project’s faculty adviser is Dr. Kapseong Ro. The SEDP will be presented at 9 a.m. in D-109.

The 25-minute presentations begin on the hour and half hour. No projects are presented from noon to 1 p.m. Here is an overall schedule with start times:

Department of Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering (MAE): 3 concurrent sessions:

10 projects in D-109 from 9 to 3
9 projects in D-210 from 9 to 2:30
8 projects in D-212 from 9 to 2

Department of Paper Engineering, Chemical Engineering, and Imaging (PCI):

12 projects in D-208 from 9 to 4

Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering (IME):

10 projects in D-201 from 8 to 2

Department of Civil and Construction Engineering (CCE):

9 projects in Room D-115 from 8:30 to 2

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE):

9 projects in D-204/05 from 9 to 2:30

Department of Computer Science (CS):

6 projects in D-202 from 9 to noon

CEAS seniors (from left) Tim Gaston, Chris Reniger , and Matt Kunesh pose with testing equipment they designed and fabricated to improve and standardize testing of resin-coated sand systems in the foundry industry. The faculty adviser is Dr. Sam Ramrattan The SEDP will be presented at 8:30 a.m. in D-201.

More than 37 area companies, businesses, and organizations sponsored one or more projects, and more than 60 faculty and administrators are serving as advisers for one or more projects.

For more information, call Tamara Bergman at (269) 276-3248 or check out the project details at
http://www.wmich.edu/engineer/senior-design-conference.htm

Engineers’ Week serves up food, fun, and a glimpse into the future

2010-03-04T22:46:00.000-05:00

The 31st Annual Engineers’ Week (EW), held last month, served up a glimpse into futuristic travel on the Hydrogen Super Highway at the event’s annual dinner, where five scholarships were awarded to CEAS students. The weeklong EW events included a variety of educational and fun activities offered at the CEAS.

Justin Eric Sutton, founder and managing partner of the Interstate Traveler Company, presented “The Interstate Traveler Hydrogen Super Highway,” an overview of his company’s modular maglev rail system. Its exterior is laminated with solar panels that power the system’s hydrogen fuel cells and produce numerous other benefits, including clean water.

Five CEAS students won scholarships.

Scholarship winners from left: Allison Porrett, Rochelle Hawes, Brandon Gorton, Christa Ickowski, Kristen Bellmer

Kristen Bellmer, a junior from Mason whose major is chemical engineering in energy management, won a $500 IEEE scholarship. An honors student who is presently working for Bronco Biofuels, she’s a member of Phi Kappa Phi, Sigma Alpha Lambda, and AIChE, and serves as corresponding secretary of Tau Beta Pi. She also plays intramural soccer.

Brandon Gorton, an engineering management senior from St. Joseph, won a $500 SPE Scholarship. He is active in several honors and professional organizations including Alpha Lambda Delta, Epsilon Eta Mu, Tau Alpha Pi, and ASEM.

Earning one of two $500 Eaton Scholarships was Rochelle Hawes, a junior majoring in chemical engineering in life science from Battle Creek. She is involved in several societies, Phi Kappa Phi, and SWE, and was recently invited to join Tau Beta Pi.

The other $500 Eaton scholarship was awarded to Christa Ickowski, a junior majoring in imaging from Grand Rapids. The honors college member also belongs to Peace Jam Mentors RSO and Alpha Lambda Delta honors society.

Allison Porrett, a civil engineering senior from Port Huron, won the $500 ASMI Scholarship. She is presently president of SWE, vice president of ITE Institute of Transportation Engineers, an active member of the ASCE concrete canoe team, and a Tau Beta Pi member. She was a member of WMU’s marching band and was crowned Miss Kalamazoo County 2008 in the Miss America pageant.

In addition to educational tours and lab programs at the CEAS, this year’s EW event featured a week of fun activities that included dodge ball, tricycle races, a trivia challenge, a quarter-roll war (distance one can be rolled) and quarter wars (collections to determine the best department). Dr. Tony Vizzini, CEAS dean, and Dr. Paul Engelmann, IME chair, volunteered as targets for a pie-throwing event to raise funds for Haiti.

CEAS Dean Tony Vizzini (left) and IME Chair Paul Engelmann earned funds for Haiti; everyone had fun.

Engineers Week is held annually to celebrate the engineering profession. In addition to WMU, the 2010 EW was sponsored by several South-western Michigan engineering societies: AIAA, AIChE, ASCE, ASHRAE, ASME, AFE, ASPE, IEEE, MSPE, SPE, SAE, SME, and the ASM International. WMU’s CEAS covered the dinner cost for high-school students and for first-year CEAS students.

The EW committee, chaired by Mike Schwartz of Prein & Newhof, included several from CEAS: Dr. Jorge Rodriguez, Dr. Bade Shrestha, Scot Conant, Johanna Wells, Nicole Maggio, Jenni Soetaert, and Michael Romkema.

Other EW committee members were Dave Caldwell (DENSO), John Lobo (Eaton), Pradip Sagdeo (AIAA), Tim Mitchell (SME), and David Anderson (VBISD).

CEAS students earn scholarships at FEF CIC Conference

2010-02-09T23:26:00.000-05:00

CEAS engineering and technology students were among 17 students nationwide who divvied up a total of $35,000 in scholarships at the 62nd Annual Foundry Educational Foundation (FEF) 2009 College Industry Conference (CIC) held late last fall in Chicago.

Attending the 2009 62nd Annual Foundry Educational Foundation College Industry Conference are (front): Dr. Sam Ramrattan (left) and Scott Horton; back (L-R): Jacob Fowler, Jordan Kimble, and Matt Roobol.

The two-day FEF conference is held annually to celebrate the metal-casting industry and provide networking and educational opportunities for students and the industry. More than 225 industry executives, key professors, and university administrators attended the event.

WMU’s delegation was led by Dr. Sam Ramrattan,a Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering professor who specializes in metal-casting and who serves as a Key Professor for the FEF. Four CEAS students attended the event.

Jacob Fowler, a senior in MFT, represented WMU as a delegate at the conference, which limits the number of student delegates from each participating university to a select few.

Jordan Kimble, a senior in the manufacturing technology (MFT) program, won the American Foundry Society (AFS) Saginaw Valley Scholarship established to further the national outreach of this Michigan chapter.

Scott Horton, a senior with an engineering graphics and design major and minors in math and cast metals, won the Robert W. Reesman Memorial Scholarship, established in honor of the FEF president when he died shortly after the 1996 CIC.

With his passion for design and simulation of metal cast processes, Horton was impressed by the conference. One of his more memorable experiences was dining with Kohler representatives who were very interested in his die-casting skills. “I was one of a select few who were invited to attend the dinner,” he said. “It was amazing to meet so many other people with the same cast-metals’ passion that I have.”

Matt Roobol, senior in mechanical engineering, won the Modern Casting Scholarship, which was established in 1997 as a part of FEF’s 50th anniversary celebration. This endowment is comprised of advertising proceeds received by Modern Casting from advertising space bought by companies, congratulating FEF's first 50 years in the September, 1997 special training & education issue.

Roobol and Ramrattan were featured in a photo in the January 2010 issue of Modern Casting. Check out the story on pages13-14.

Roobol called the conference “a great experience” and cited both the dinner and the scholarship. “I really enjoyed having dinner with MetalTek reps and other student delegates,” he said, “and the scholarship means a great deal to me.”

Ceremony honors 2009 Spring AutoCAD competition winners

2009-12-15T01:57:00.000-05:00

Experience seems to be a key ingredient to the success of winners of the 2009 Spring AutoCAD competition. They were honored at a ceremony in early December.

Slobodan Urdarevik, the lead lecturer for IME 1420 Engineering Graphics, presented the awards before a Fall 2009 IME 1420 lecture class. The audience included students eligible to compete in the 2009 Fall AutoCAD Contest. “The 2009 Spring competition was very close,” he said. “They all did a very good job.”

Russell Parsons,a sophomore in civil engineering, won first-place. The Rochester Hills, MI, native graduated from Adams High School, where he took two years of high-school, computer-aided design (CAD) classes. He has been busy with coursework.

The second-place winner is Brandon Weeda, a sophomore majoring in mechanical engineering, lives in Kalamazoo but graduated from Plymouth Christian High School in Grand Rapids. His background in graphics includes a semester in an architectural program called SoftPlan 13. He is presently a teaching assistant (TA) in IME 1420. His future plans are open but include an internship.

Third place winner Blair Ward, a sophomore majoring in engineering graphics and design technology (EGR), is from Kalamazoo. The Paw Paw High School graduate had two years experience in AutoCAD and drawing before coming to WMU.

In addition to classes, Ward is also an IME 1420 TA, and he works at Pizza Hut in Paw Paw. He recently joined Engineers Without Borders, which is planning a summer project in Honduras. His future plans include finding an internship before he graduates and eventually finding a job “someplace warm like Georgia.”

(L to R) Dr. Paul Engelmann, IME chair, and Spring AutoCAD winners Blair Ward (3rd), Brandon Weeda (2nd), and Russell Parsons (1st); Parson’s winning drawing is shown" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_OwVIIbS4V9U/SzBt2JaTiHI/AAAAAAAABDE/OkLk7B7GSFM/image_thumb%5B1%5D.png?imgmax=800" width="358" height="342" />
Slobodan Urdarevik (right), lead faculty for IME 1420 Engineering Graphics, with
(L to R) Dr. Paul Engelmann, IME chair, and Spring AutoCAD winners Blair Ward (3rd), Brandon Weeda (2nd), and Russell Parsons (1st); Parson’s winning drawing is shown

All three winners received Best Buy gift cards and engraved plaques, which were donated by Dr. Hooks, Inc., a Kalamazoo-based business.

Dr. Paul Engelmann, IME department chair, congratulated the winners. “These students have demonstrated their ability to bring together what they have learned in the classroom and demonstrated their ability to use it.” He encouraged the audience to participate in this semester’s competition. “You all have the same opportunity next week.”

The competition is held at the end of each semester for the more than 300 students enrolled in IME 1420 Engineering Graphics, where students complete about 50 CAD-related assignments.

For the competition, students create a two-dimensional AutoCAD drawing and a 3D-solid model of a complicated part. They must show all dimensions and all symbols needed for manufacturing. For more information about the competition or about CAD drafting at WMU, Email slobodan.urdarevik@wmich.edu

SWE workshop offers Girl Scouts an introduction to engineering

2009-12-03T03:19:00.000-05:00

For five hours on a Saturday in November, WMU’s Society of Women Engineers (SWE) presented its annual “Engineer for a Day” workshop at the Parkview Campus. Twenty-eight middle and high school Girl Scouts from the Heart of Michigan Council completed hands-on, problem-solving and learning activities to simulate what engineers do.

SWE members who directed the scout event (L-R), Courtney Heath, Katie Risnes, Lauren Fromm, Lynnette Neil, Fernanda Pereira, Laura Alger, Allison Porrett, Persefoni Lauhon, Kelly McCarthy, and Melinda Katanbafnezhad

For the first activity, “The Leaning Tower of Pasta,” the scouts designed and built structures from spaghetti and marshmallows with the goal to have the structures hold as much weight as possible.
The scouts ventured outdoors to test how adding Mentos to a liter of soda pop can create some spectacular soda spraying.

For the Egg Drop Event, the scouts worked in pairs and used a variety of materials to design, create, and test packaging that would protect a raw egg from breaking when it was dropped from the second floor to the first. Some packages were more successful than others.

The scouts toured the Parkview Campus and learned why a concrete canoe floats, how a race car is designed and built, and what type of careers are open to those who major in engineering.

Geoff Van Gemert (right), a member of WMU’s Formula SAE team, showcases the 2009 car the team designed and built

Fernanda Pereira, a first-year chemical engineering major from Canton, MI. coordinated the event. At the conclusion of the workshop, SWE President Allison Porrett asked the scouts how many were interested in a career as an engineer, and approximately a third raised their hands.

“This workshop helped me decide what I want to do for a career,” said Maddie Dietrich, an eighth grader. “I’m definitely considering engineering.”

SWE’s (L to R in green) Allison Porrett, Laura Alger, and Lauren Fromm lead the final engineering feat: the scouts made their own ice cream treats with milk, sugar, cream flavoring, ice, rock salt, who plastic bags, and a lot of shaking.

Girl Scout leaders who attended the event with their troops were impressed with how the event stimulated the scouts’ problem solving abilities and introduced them to the idea of an engineering career, said Heather Ackman, a representative of Girl Scouts Heart of Michigan.

SWE is planning a workshop for younger Girl Scouts in February 2010.

Tues., Dec. 8, SEDP conference: 89 seniors offer 32 projects

2009-11-24T19:11:00.000-05:00

The 45th Conference on Senior Engineering Design Projects (SEDPs) is set for Tues., Dec. 8, at the Parkview Campus; 89 seniors from six departments will present 32 projects from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The 25-minute presentations are scheduled to begin between 9 a.m. and 2:30 p.m.; all projects start exactly on the hour and half hour. No projects are scheduled from noon to 1 p.m. The event (including parking) is free and open to the public.

From the Department of Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering (MAE), 23 students are presenting 10 projects in D-109.

MAE: Using parametric solid modeling and CFD simulation software, (L to R) Geoff Van Gemert, Nicholas Haydon, and Michael Nienhuis are designing a gasoline direct-injection fuel system to improve the fuel economy of the WMU Formula SAE vehicle. The project is being presented at 9:30 a.m. in D-109.

From the Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering (IME), 8 projects prepared by 31 seniors are scheduled in D-201.

IME: Eddie Brabandt, a manufacturing technology major, examines improvements that he and teammates Dan Jasperse, Cory Niemi, and Curtis Stack have made in redesigning a hydraulic bike for competition in the next Chainless Challenge. The project is featured in a presentation at 10:30 a.m. in D-201.

From the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE), 16 students are offering 5 projects in D-115.

From the Department of Computer Science (CS), 11 students are scheduled to present five projects in D-208.

Beginning at 9 a.m., 6 students from the Department of Civil and Construction Engineering (CCE) will offer 2 presentations in D¬204/5. Following the CCE presentations, 2 seniors in the Department of Paper Engineering, Chemical Engineering, and Imaging will present their projects in the same room.

Sponsors for this semester’s projects include the following: City of Battle Creek Wastewater Division, DENSO Manufacturing Michigan, Inc., Eaton Corporation, Kalamazoo Animal Rescue, Kalamazoo County Road Commission, Kalamazoo Loaves & Fishes Warehouse,
Kalamazoo Public Library, Panther Arms, Reflex Industries, Inc., Stryker Medical, Tech Care TronLabs, WMU’s Western Herald, and the WMU School of Music.

MAE: Dressed for work in the CEAS Clean Room, Joseph Mowat worked on a project with Tyler Ondracek and Doug Ford. It involved ferrogels and the study of the characteristics of hydrogels infused with magnetic nanoparticles. They have potential applications ranging from sensors to targeted drug delivery. The presentation on the project is at 1 p.m. in D-109.

About 30 faculty and administrators are serving as advisers for one or more projects. Professors chairing the various sessions are Dr. John Polasek (CCE); Dr. John Kapenga (CS); Dr. John Gesink (ECE); Drs. Betsy Aller and Bob White (IME); Drs. Claudia Fajardo, Rameshwar Sharma, and Pnina Ari-Gur (MAE); and Dr. Peter Parker (PCI).

For more information, call Tamara Bergman at (269) 276-3248 or see project details at http://www.wmich.edu/engineer/senior-design-conference.htm

IME 1020: offering students professional communication skills the first year

2009-10-27T18:20:00.001-04:00

Sometime during their first year of college, most CEAS and aviation students take IME 1020 Technical Communication, a three-credit-hour course that provides a total immersion in professional communication.
According to Tom Swartz, the master faculty specialist who has coordinated IME 1020 since 2003, IME 1020 is offered in about 30 sections to approximately 600 students each year. In addition to the regular classroom sessions, he has also set up E-learning components of the courses.

ED Eckel (standing), the science/engineering librarian for the University,
shows IME 1020 students how to use library databases

According to Swartz, the IME 1020 program was initiated in the early 1970s when WMU experimented with eliminating the requirement for a first-year English writing class to encourage writing across the curriculum. “Those at the engineering college said CEAS students should have a technical writing course,” he said. “Later when the University decided that English composition should again be required, the [engineering] college decided to keep the new technical writing course.”

At the heart of the IME 1020 curriculum is the requirement that students research, write, document, and produce a formal 12-to 17-page research paper that uses current, high quality resources and focuses on an engineering topic. Students follow a research process that includes choosing and limiting a topic, learning about scholarly research, and collecting the best current information on the topic.

The process requires several standardized assignments: a topic proposal, a bibliography of sources, an outline, and an abstract. Students use the American Psychological Association (APA) documentation style, and present the results in a written report and in an oral presentation to the class.

Ed Eckel, the science/engineering librarian for the University, along with many others at Waldo Library, offers ongoing support to the IME 1020 course. They provide IME 1020 students with a focused course guide on the library’s Web site with direct links to the sources that help them with their assignments.

The WMU library also provides a student-oriented self-paced electronic research review, recently upgraded and called Research Path. In its six modules students receive a complete overview of the major steps involved in the research process. Students are then quizzed on the module material, and the results of the quizzes can be electronically forwarded to the instructors.

IME 1020 students learn to write an assess procedural instructions. First-year students Michelle Repka (left) and Katie Stickels read instructions written by another IME 1020 team to create a K’Nex item.

IME 1020 students work in teams to learn how to write good instructions. Each team designs a three-dimensional K’Nex object and writes instructions to make the object. Other teams assess the instructions.

Other course requirements include learning formats for business letters, memos, and e-mail, preparing a career assessment of a chosen major, and registering for WMU’s career Web site. Students also study ethics, standards for source material, and the use of visuals. Assignments are word-processed and must feature complete sentences and standard grammar, spelling, and mechanics.

IME 1020 instructors work closely with the CEAS STEP program to help first-year students connect with the University. New lifelong learning components of the course encourage students to explore professional societies and attend and write reflections on special WMU events. “We read and assess a lot of student papers,” said Troy Place, a faculty specialist who teaches three sections of IME 1020 each semester.

Swartz says all IME 1020 instructors adhere to a tradition of maintaining high academic standards and expecting professional behavior from students. “To prepare for professional careers, students need to have WOVEn communication skills – Written, Oral, Visual, and Electronic,” he said. He continually updates a study guide with pertinent assignment information for students, and he provides an electronic course template for IME 1020 instructors.

2009 EAS career fair set to connect job seekers with employers

2009-10-13T02:30:00.000-04:00

More than 55 employers have signed up for the 2009 Engineering and Applied Sciences [EAS] Career Day. It’s set for Thurs., Oct. 22, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Parkview Campus. The event is free and open to the public. Name tags and a layout to find employers will be available at the sign-in table as early as 8 a.m.

Nicole Maggio, career advisor for CEAS and assistant director for Career and Student Employment Services, is coordinating the day and several related events to link internship, co-op and full-time job seekers with local, regional, national and international employers.

Post Foods, LLC, is sponsoring this year’s fair. The Battle Creek company has been making cereal and related products since 1895 and has been an active partner with the University. “Post has been very supportive of our [CEAS] engineering students,” Maggio said.

Post Foods is the 2009 EAS Career Fair sponsor. In this photo from our archives, CEAS Post interns Josh Wiese (left) and Alex Hiday, who are now CEAS alumns, discussed employment activities with job seekers at last year’s EAS Career Fair.

New to this year’s career fair are formal presentations by several employers every 30 minutes from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Maggio said the concept has been introduced to encourage freshmen and sophomores to engage earlier in the career development process. “This may help introduce opportunities to students in a way that they can build up to networking with the representatives,” she said.

In addition to Post Foods, representatives from Kohler, Amway, Stryker, Sircon, Parker Hannifin and more will share information about and prospects for employment at their respective companies.
On Fri., Oct. 23, follow-up campus interviews are planned by 14 of the 55 companies featured at the career fair.

Students looking for full-or part-time, intern, or co-op positions are encouraged to dress appropriately and to bring copies of their resumes and notepads to collect information. “We’re encouraging students to wear formal professional business suits,” Maggio said.

Maggio encourages job seekers to review the list of employers and research those of interest ahead of time. All employers registered are identified on the Web site. Employers have until the day before the event to sign up. “As they register, the employers are added to our Web site in real-time,” Maggio said. To view registered employers and/or to register as an employer, one can log on to www.wmich.edu/career and click on Broncojobs.

Two workshops offered students career fair preparation ideas. “The sessions focused on cover letter and resume development, professional dress expectations, and interview tips,” Maggio said. The informal workshops included group exercises.”

Assistance in resume preparation is also available during drop-in office hours in the Advising Suite at Parkview: Tuesday and Thursday – 12:30 3:30 p.m. Additional hours are available on the main campus. Students can also call (269) 387-2745 for an appointment.

Maggio, who is coordinating the annual event for the first time, credited several registered student organizations and student assistants for their support. These include AICHE, SPE, SME, GAS, Alyssa Schafer, CEAS peer educator, Danielle Boyd, engineering employer student coordinator, and Jasen Ratajczak, CEAS industry research educator. For more info, call (269) 387-2745 or go to www.wmich.edu/career

STEP begins fifth year welcoming new students to the CEAS

2009-09-22T09:17:00.000-04:00

CEAS welcomed 391 incoming students at the Summer Orientation. According to Dr. Edmund Tsang, CEAS Associate Dean, about 85% of those students have been placed in STEP Learning Communities. STEP is an acronym for the STEM [Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math] Talent Expansion Program. The five-year-old program has been providing a comprehensive first-year experience to increase retention and graduation of majors in STEM fields.

At the STEP Kickoff, first-year students enjoyed hamburgers, bratwurst, and an opportunity to check out student projects in the works for this year. In the foreground is the SAE Baja car, a new project. Other featured projects were the Formula SAE car, the Sunseeker solar car, the “Black Pearl” concrete canoe, and several tables that provided information about student organizations.

To connect first-year CEAS students with the college experience, Tsang organizes the freshmen into learning communities. The students in each learning community share at least three classes and are assigned to cohort groups of about 20 students. Each cohort is led by a CEAS faculty or administrative mentor with access to organized activities.

This year’s orientation events included CEAS Fall Welcome, Pizza with the Profs, and a STEP Kickoff picnic in the Valley pond area.

The Welcome offered incoming students an up-close experience with more than 30 Parkview Campus labs and activities. Students made paper, played red-button computer games, built spaghetti bridges, made plastic WMU license plates, and checked out a variety of vehicle, fuel cell, robotics, and simulation labs.

At the CEAS Fall Welcome, Mike Hoonhorst, a Ph.D. student in industrial engineering, explains chair research to first-year students. Other CEAS faculty, administrators, and students shared their research in fuel cells, CAD, robotics, vehicle systems, and simulation software. Students also examined a variety of CEAS labs and services.

Pizza with the Profs brought students and their professors together informally for lunch after a formal matriculation ceremony. Following the pizza lunch, the students participated in an interactive Academic Etiquette workshop and were assigned to send their IME 1020 Technical Communication instructors a professionally drafted e-mail.

The Kickoff provided another opportunity for students to meet and greet CEAS faculty, administrators, and students and to learn about CEAS while they enjoyed hamburgers and brats.

Following “Pizza with the Profs”, Dr. Edumnd Tsang (standing on left), CEAS associate dean and STEP director, works with first-year CEAS students on an Academic Etiquette Competition

New to STEP this year is an engineering mathematics course, funded by an NSF Course, Curriculum and Laboratory Improvement: Phase 3 grant and headed by Tsang and Drs. Ikhlas Abdel-Qader and James Kamman, faculty in the Departments of Electrical and Computer Engineering and of Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering respectively.

The Early Intervention Initiative in IME 1020 Technical Communication is being continued under the direction of Tom Swartz, Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering faculty and IME 1020 coordinator. STEP is also pilot testing computer software designed by two computer science seniors to take attendance in IME 1420 Engineering Graphics.

Tsang began the STEP project in 2004 with an NSF grant that ends this month. The STEP project is being continued through 2009-2010 with funds provided by Provost Tim Greene. “Provost Greene also said he will put into the Office of Academic Affairs planning to support our retention efforts,” Tsang said. “Our collaboration with Residence Life will continue to allow us to leverage their resources to build on our efforts.”

New CEAS dean returns to Michigan roots

2009-09-01T12:19:00.000-04:00

Dr. Anthony (Tony) Vizzini took the reins at the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences this summer. The new dean comes to WMU from Mississippi State University where he had served as department head of Aerospace Engineering since 2003 when he earned the Bill and Carolyn Cobb Chair of Engineering. He comes to WMU with outstanding credentials.

From 1986 to 2003, Vizzini had been a member of the aerospace engineering faculty at University of Maryland where he taught undergraduate and graduate courses in composite structures and manufacturing and in aircraft structures. He also researched the integrity of composite structures and low-cost manufacture of composites.

After growing up in Allen Park, MI, Vizzini earned four degrees at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT): a BS in mathematics and BS, MS, and Ph.D. degrees in aeronautics and astronautics. In 2006 he became a registered Professional Engineer in Mechanical Engineering in the State of Mississippi. He is now tenured in the CEAS Department of Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering.

Vizzini’s primary interests include response and failure of composite structures, particularly in energy absorption and crashworthiness, in tailoring techniques to improve structural integrity, and in damage tolerance of sandwich structures. Additionally, he is interested in manufacturing methods for polymer-based structural components including affordable manufacturing and manufacturing for automotive and space applications, system design and mission planning of unmanned aircraft.

He was awarded the A. James Clark School of Engineering Poole & Kent Company Teaching Award for Senior Faculty, May 1998. Two years later, he was selected Professor of the Year, by the University of Maryland AIAA and SGT Student Chapters.

Vizzini’s honors include being an Associate Fellow, American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics and a fellow for the American Society for Composites (ASC). In September 2008 he served as general chair of the ASC 23rd Technical Conference. He was voted ASC vice president (president elect) for 2008-2009.

He is also a member of Tau Beta Pi (engineering), Sigma Gamma Tau (aerospace), and Phi Beta Kappa (arts & sciences) honor societies. Vizzini has been active in the Society for the Advancement of Material and Pro¬cess Engineering (SAMPE) and is presently serving as International Vice President of SAMPE’s Executive Cabinet.

He was also the founding faculty advisor for chapters at Mississippi State University (2003-2009) and at University of Maryland (1990-2003). He has also served SAMPE in numerous other positions, including technical co-chair in 2007.

Among his other credits, Vizzini has been the editor of several professional journals. He is presently an associate editor of the Journal of Advanced Materials, 2002. He also served five years on the editorial advisory board of the Journal of Composite Materials, two years on the editorial advisory board of AIAA Education Series, and eight years as an associate editor of the Journal of the American Helicopter Society.

He is presently a reviewer for the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET), a position he has held since 2004.

His wife, Patty, is originally from Birmingham, MI, and their three children – Anthony, Katrina, and Sean – are currently enrolled at Mississippi State University. Anthony and Katrina are pursuing degrees in aerospace engineering and Sean is pursuing a degree in computer science.

CEAS projects showcased at 2009 WMU Day in Lansing

2009-08-11T16:51:00.000-04:00

Late last spring, about 700 WMU supporters traveled to Lansing for the second annual WMU Day. Several CEAS projects were among the more than 30 showcased at the event aimed at introducing legislators to WMU. Here are some photos submitted by Abe Poot and the PCI department. In addition to those pictured on this e-news, the CEAS also featured Dr. John Patten and his plug-in hybrid electric vehicle.

Concrete Canoe: WMU American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) students Allison Doty, Adam Eaton, Ryan Stoughton, and Mike Romkema brought Black Pearl – this year’s entry in the North Central concrete canoe competition.

RoboBronco: Manthiramurthy Paramasivam “talks” to RoboBronco. Dr. Tarun Gupta, and IME professor and a team brought RoboBronco, a six-foot tall robot with a friendly horse face, to WMU Day. Gupta mentored two robotics teams of area high school students, Quantum Ninjas #1677 and FLEET (Future Leaders Exploring Engineering & Technology) #2767, in the 2009 FIRST competition.

FSAE car: The WMU Formula racing team of the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) brought this year’s entry in the 2009 Formula SAE Michigan Competition. The WMU team successfully completed all events at the competition, which requires teams to design and build a formula-style race car.

CAPE: Presenting examples of printed electronics from the new Center for the Advancement of Printed Electronics (CAPE): front (L to R): Dr. Margaret Joyce, Dr. Massood Atashbar, and Sara Lara; back (L to R): Dr. Erika Hrehorova, Dr. Marian Rebros, Michael Joyce, Dr. Dan Fleming. Dr. Joungmin Cho is missing from photo

Flying Machines: Dr. Kapseong Ro led the development of a plane with solar panel wings (in front of the van) and teamed up with Dr. Jun-Seok Oh and a team to develop the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) for traffic and emergency surveillance that is on top of the van. Team members DaeWoon Park and Taeseung Kuk also participated.

Sunseeker 05: WMU’s solar car team reviewed features of Sunseeker 05 while solar car adviser Abraham Poot photographically documented CEAS projects.

“Dr. Sam” offers a decade of hands-on metal-casting outreach

2009-07-14T23:59:00.000-04:00

Every summer for the last decade, Dr. Sam Ramrattan, an IME professor, has been offering a weeklong, hands-on metal-casting workshop for high school students. At the 2009 workshop held last month, 10 students from the U.S. and Canada spent a week as college metal-casting students.

One element that makes the workshop fun is the hands-on aspect. “Dr. Sam,” as many refer to him, had students do real metal-casting work in the Metal Casting Laboratory at the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences’ Parkview Campus.

The students made molds, melted metal, and poured. “It’s a fun way to learn about metal casting,” said Luke Gossen, a Plymouth, Minnesota, junior.

Dr. Sam Ramrattan (left) oversees the students as they prepare
the molds that they will test with molten metal.

Ramrattan is a technical advisor to the American Foundrymen's Society and a Key Professor for the Foundry Educational Foundation. He offers the summer hands-on workshop to identify and promote the variety of viable metal-casting careers available today. It is open to up to 15 area tenth-through-twelfth-grade students.

In addition to the lab work, the workshop offered lectures and discussions on metal casting history, methods, and trends. Students examined metal casting from the perspectives of manufacturing (molding, melting, filling, and finishing), engineering, quality control, purchasing, marketing, and sales. They also networked with metal casters at area foundries.

Students attending this year’s metal casting workshop donned safety
apparel to pour molten aluminum into sand molds they
prepared. Dr. Sam Ramrattan (left) oversees the process.

Jordan Kimble, a senior in the manufacturing technology program and IME’s 2009 top manufacturing engineering senior, assisted in the workshop. He will represent IME at the upcoming Foundry Educational Foundation (FEF) conference.

WMU administrators provided the students with materials about programs and requirements at WMU. Students also reviewed career opportunities with a panel of industrial professionals and FEF.

The workshop included visits to area foundries to see real-world technology. Their tours included A.C. Foundry, Battle Creek, MI, and Metals Technologies’ Three Rivers Gray Iron Plant. The students also enjoyed activities in the Kalamazoo / Portage area.

In a thank-you note to Ramrattan following the workshop, Joshua Jarvis-Peters from Ontario, Canada, praised the workshop. “I wish it had been longer,” he said.

WMU’s metal-casting program is over 100 years old. The most recent accreditation began in 1992. Contact Dr. Sam for more information on WMU metal casting or on the summer workshop, at sam.ramrattan@wmich.edu

IME’s 2009 Presidential Scholar aims to design auto components

2009-06-02T18:34:00.000-04:00

WMU President John Dunn (left) and Faculty Senate President John Jellies (right) present IME’s 2009 Presidential Scholar award to Jordan Avery, EGR senior

Avery, an Engineering Graphics and Design Technology (EGR) senior with a minor in automotive systems, is the 2009 Presidential Scholar Award from the Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering (IME).

The award is given each year to the most outstanding senior in each WMU department based on general academic excellence, academic and/or artistic excellence, and intellectual and/or artistic promise.

The 2009 award was presented to only 46 WMU students at the 29th Annual Presidential Scholars Convocation, held earlier this spring. For the event, Avery was joined by IME’s Dr. Mitchel Keil, whom he invited as his most supportive faculty member.

Avery, who is from Jackson and who maintains a 3.95 GPA, received a WMU Academic Scholarship from the Medallion competition and a Dean’s Scholar grant. He also won the Herbert E. Ellinger scholarship for engineering technology students.

Avery’s main academic interest is “design engineering of automotive components and making that process more efficient through the knowledge-based engineering (KBE) process,” he said.

Avery has completed two internships. First, he worked with the chief engineer at the Kalamazoo County Road Commission on project management and the review of local road construction projects. He also designed new plans for county drain culverts for approval through the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ).

For his second internship, he worked for the North American Automotive Experience Interiors Division of Johnson Controls, Inc., (JCI) as part of the KBE team involved with project automation.

“KBE works to assist in the engineering design process and ultimately speeds up the process, making it more efficient and saving the company time and money,” Avery said.

Avery’s responsibilities included building engineering knowledge into computer-aided design (CAD) applications to facilitate a lean approach to engineering. “This involved working with current subject matter technical experts (SMTEs) and building their knowledge into the CATIA CAD software through Knowledgeware programming,” he said. Avery’s professional memberships include the Golden Key International Honour Society and WMU’s Delta Chapter of Tau Alpha Pi Engineering Technology Honor Society, for which he presently serves as treasurer.

While working at JCI last summer, Avery joined the West Michigan CATIA User Group (WMCUG), a group of industry professionals that meet monthly to learn new CATIA functionality to keep their companies lean and efficient.

Outside of school Avery enjoys sports and outdoor activities. In the winter he snowmobiles with his Dad, and in the summer he water skis and wakeboards at his family’s cottage. He recently began mountain biking. “I also have an interest in automobiles, whether it be working on them or trying to keep up with the latest technology in the automotive market,” he said.

After he graduates in December, Avery would like to stay in West Michigan and be involved in “automotive technology to help companies develop a lean approach to engineering in the design phase.” Eventually he plans to pursue a master’s degree in engineering management and get involved in the management side of engineering design.

2008 Fall AutoCAD competition winners honored this month

2009-04-30T21:38:00.001-04:00

Experience seemed to be a key ingredient to the success of the three winners of the 2008 Fall AutoCAD competition. They were all honored at a ceremony earlier this month.

Slobadon Urdarevik, lead faculty for IME 1420 Engineering Graphics (L to R) with the 2008 Fall AutoCAD winners Grant Miller (2nd), Karl Waltzer (1st), and Stephan Telenko (3rd); in the background is Waltzer's winning drawing

Slobodan Urdarevik, the lead lecturer for IME 1420 Engineering Graphics, presented the awards before a Spring 2009 IME 1420 lecture class. It was an audience of students eligible to compete in the 2009 Spring AutoCAD Contest.

Karl Waltzer, a first-year civil engineering student, won first-place winner. Waltzer is from Memphis, MI, which is located near Port Huron. The Capac High School graduate had three years of high-school, computer-aided design (CAD) classes.

Waltzer’s future plans include obtaining bachelor’s and master’s degrees and then starting his own construction company.

The second-place winner is Grant Miller, a first-year engineering management (UEM) major and integrated supply management minor from Byron Center. He had three years of high-school CAD. He is presently interning with CollegeWorks Painting.

Miller would also like to be a teaching assistant for IME 1420. His future plans include obtaining bachelor’s and master’s degrees and starting his own engineering firm.

Third place winner Stephan Telenko, a first-year engineering graphics and design technology (EGR) major, is from Canton, MI. Telenko graduated from Salem High School, where he took four years of CAD and drafting classes. His is currently employed putting up tents for special events, but he would eventually like to be a designer. “I’m interested in all kinds of designing,” he said.

All three winners received Best Buy gift cards and engraved plaques donated by Dr. Hooks, Inc., a Kalamazoo-based business.

The competition is held at the end of each semester for the more than 300 students enrolled in IME 1420 Engineering Graphics, where students complete about 50 CAD-related assignments. For the competition, students create a two-dimensional AutoCAD drawing and a 3D-solid model of a complicated part. They must show all dimensions and all symbols needed for manufacturing. For more information about the competition or about CAD drafting at WMU, e-mail slobodan.urdarevik@wmich.edu

IME honors the 2009 top scholars at Clausing luncheon

2009-04-09T17:07:00.000-04:00

IME Departmental Outstanding Students
From left, Dr. Paul Engelmann, IME chair; Ashley Hovenkamp, IENM; Josh Wiese, UEM; Aarti Valsadia, IE/IEE; Jordan Kimble, MFT; Amanda Glick, Service; Jordan Avery, EGR; Madeline McAuley, Service;
Jason Horton, MNEM; Dr. John Dunn, WMU president; and Dr. Dan Litynski, CEAS dean. Missing from the photo is Casey Koopmans, EMTN.Casey Koopmans

IME’s top graduate and undergraduate students were honored this month at the annual Student Recognition Luncheon provided by Clausing Industrial Inc.,a supporter of IME programs for 56 years.

Emcee Dr. David Lyth, IME professor, wore his favorite “It’s a great day to be a Bronco” hat for the ceremony that honored winners of IME’s outstanding student awards: four undergraduate seniors, three graduate students, and two service award winners. IME’s presidential scholar, the CEAS dean’s outstanding students, and the winners of a number of other scholarships and awards were also acknowledged.

Jordan Avery, IME’s top engineering graphics and design (EGR) senior, was lauded as the department’s WMU Presidential Scholar and as the CEAS outstanding dean’s student in EGR.

IME seniors Jordan Kimble, in manufacturing technology (MFT), and Joshua Wiese, in engineering management (UEM), were IME’s and the CEAS dean’s outstanding students in their respective majors.

Aarti Valsadia won IME’s outstanding student award in industrial engineering and industrial and entrepreneurial engineering (IE/IEE). Yenni Chen was the CEAS dean’s outstanding student in IE/IEE.

Outstanding Service Awards were presented to Madeline McAuley, an EGR senior who developed the IME blog and Web site, and Amanda Glick, an IEE senior who was credited for assisting wherever she is needed.

Graduate students honored as outstanding students were Casey W. Koopmans, engineering management (EMTN); Jason Horton, manufacturing (MNEM), and Ashley Hovenkamp, industrial engineering (IENM).

WMU President John Dunn, CEAS Dean Dan Litynski, and IME Chair Paul Engelmann offered kudos to the award winners and the faculty who support them in a ceremony that included paying tribute to the officers and advisors of seven student societies with IME members and three IME student honor societies.

Engelmann challenged the winners, society officers, and other future leaders to envision every decision they make as keys to who they will become.

The event was organized by Tom Swartz, who chairs the IME Scholarship and Awards Committee, and committee members Drs. Steven Butt, Kailash Bafna, and Jorge Rodriguez.

Klaz Welch, Mary Fosburg, and John Jacobs, the IME office administrators, were acknowledged for their support in organizing the luncheon.

On Tues., April 14 ... 69 seniors showcase their design projects

2009-03-31T20:43:00.000-04:00

The 44^thConference on Senior Engineering Design Projects – set for Tues., April 14 at Parkview – features 69 projects by 180 seniors from seven CEAS departments. The 25-minute presentations begin on the hour and half hour between 8 and 4. No projects are presented from noon to 1 p.m. The free event is open to the public, and parking is available.

Here is the schedule with start times:

Civil and Construction Engineering (CCE):
34 students / 10 projects – 9 to 2:30 in D-204-5.

Computer Science (CS):
13 students / 6 projects -9 to 11:30 in D-210.

Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE):
22 students / 7 projects – 8:30 to 11:30 in D-208.

Industrial Design (ID):
14 students / 14 projects – 8:30 to 4 in D-115.

Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering (IME):
33 students / 10 projects – 8 to 1:30 in D-201,
and 2 multi-disciplinary projects with MAE.

Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering (MAE):
48 students / 16 projects in concurrent sessions –
9 projects – 9 to 2 in D-109 and 7 projects – 9 to 2:30 in D-212.

Paper Engineering, Chemical Engineering, and Imaging (PCI):
16 students offer 6 projects – 1 to 3:30 in D-208.

This semester’s project sponsors include American Axle & Manufacturing, Armstrong International, Battle Creek Area Habitat for Humanity, Biomet Orthopedics, CSM Group, DENSO North America Foundation, Eaton Aerospace, Eaton Corp., Eliason Corp., Fabri-Kal, Graphic Packaging International, Humphrey Products, I.D. Systems Inc., Kapenga Design, Kellogg Co., Kelm Acubar, Michigan Department of Transportation, Michigan Biodiesel, Midwest Business Exchange, Miller-Davis Co., National Transportation Research Center, Inc., Noble Networks.net, Parker Hannifin Corp., Project H Design, Stryker Medical, Terra Trike, VSA Arts of Michigan, WACO Classic Aircraft Corp., and W.K. Kellogg Institute.

For more information, call Tamara Bergman at 269-276-3248. A complete schedule of project presentations is available at http://www.wmich.edu/engineer/senior-designconference.htm

CEAS showcases engineering in Gagie School outreach

2009-03-19T19:07:00.000-04:00

Students from Gagie School, a private Kalamazoo elementary and middle school, examined the world of engineering and applied sciences for four consecutive Friday mornings earlier this semester. CEAS faculty, administrators, and students from three CEAS departments and from career services offered each new group a taste of engineering. Based on their thank you notes, the students approved of the CEAS efforts.

Dr. Tycho Fredericks Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering (IME) faculty, and Heather Highhouse, CEAS career adviser, organized the community outreach program.

Each Friday, students from two grade levels were welcomed by Dr. Paul Engelmann, IME chair. Scot Conant, CEAS outreach coordinator, then provided guided CEAS tours led by Jennifer Soetaert, outreach graduate assistant and John Ihling, student ambassador. Fred Sitkins, CEAS director of cooperative education, presented the Sunseeker.

Dr. Koorosh Naghshineh, MAE faculty, and Kyle Myers, a graduate student, started demos and hands-on activities in the Noise and Vibration lab by demonstrating a shaker table, which can simulate vibrations of vehicles, and the anechoic chamber, a heavily insulated room that absorbs sound into the walls. "The floor that simulated the back of a truck was really cool," a student said in a thank you note.

In the manufacturing lab directed by IME faculty Dr. Tarun Gupta, Srinivas Ghattamaneni, a graduate student, described the FIRST competition robotics and encouraged the students to interact with RoboBronco. “I really liked the robots,” a student put in his note.

In the Parker Motion and Control Lab, Dr. James Kamman, MAE faculty, showed students the two hydraulic bicycles. “We discussed how the bikes functioned and compared them to the bikes they have at home,” he said. “They were intrigued that the bikes had no chains and were curious about how the bikes were driven by hydraulic oil.”

For the first/second grade and third/fourth grade visits, Larry Ahleman, Lois Lemon and Matt Stoops – faculty in the Department of Paper Engineering, Chemical Engineering, and Imaging (PCI) – provided hands-on experience. “We emphasized the idea of a template because screen printing uses templates or stencils so we can create images that are the same size and shape every time,” Lemon said.

One highlight of each visit was the various design challenges provided by Fredericks and Dr. Steven Butt, IME faculty, with the assistance of graduate students Supreeta Amin, Fehime Utkan, Amanda Glick, Ilgin Acar, and Ashley Hovenkamp.

Each week, various age-appropriate design challenges included the building of spaghetti towers, marble transport systems, and 30-second “junk” timers.

Conant is planning similar visits for other area elementary and middle school students. “We are thrilled to provide these exciting hands-on opportunities to area youth,” he said. “Future Bronco engineers are sure to come from programs like this.”

IME Night offers students career opportunities, fun, and prizes

2009-03-10T08:39:00.000-04:00

More than 100 students attended the third annual IME Night last month at the CEAS Parkview Campus. For three hours, attendees ate pizza and learned about IME programs and projects. They also received advice on preparing for employment and dialogued with representatives from local companies, faculty, and students doing co-ops and internships.

Slobodan Urdarevik, IME faculty, coordinated the event, which included prizes and games. All students were welcomed, including the 28 students who registered with undecided majors.

Alumni from area companies discuss their products and hiring practices. From left: Mike Ziemelis, Wayne Nicolen, and Mark Wallace answer questions of students attending IME Night

The Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering (IME) offers four undergraduate programs: manufacturing engineering technology (MFT), engineering management technology (UEM), engineering graphics and design technology (EGR), and the new industrial and entrepreneurial engineering (IEE).

Chris Briolat (seated second from the left), discusses IME programs with Fred Sinkins (left), Trent Kentworthy (standing left), an IE master's student, and Slobodan Urdarevik

Fred Sitkins, IME faculty and CEAS director of co-operative education, emceed the event. Stryker's Mike Ziemelis, Glassmaster Controls' Wayne Nicolen, and Tenneco's Mark Wallace shared information about their respective companies.

Key organizers of the third annual IME Night (from left): Fred Sitkins, Nicole Maggio, and Slobadon Urdarevik

Nicole Maggio, career development and cooperative education graduate assistant, and Anna Perez, a first-year chemical engineering student, coordinated the check in and collected names for the 14 prizes offered.

Several IME students participated in the event. Josh Weise, an UEM senior who is presently interning at Post, shared information about the work he is doing. Timothy Gaston, a MFT senior, explained the value of belonging to professional organizations such as Sunseeker and engineering fraternities. Trent Kenworthy shared his experiences with attendees, and MFT senior Jordan Kimble displayed the IME hydraulic bike. Srinivas Ghattamaneni, an IE graduate assistant, supervised RoboBronco, who welcomed the attendees electronically.

Jordan Kimble, a MFT senior, with the hydraulic bike that is the focus of a senior engineering design project which he is presently involved.

Others who assisted with the event included IME faculty Dr. Steven Butt, Dr. Tycho Fredericks, Dr. Tarun Gupta, Dr. Pavel Ikonomov, and Mr. Troy Place; IME office assistant Mary Fosburg; CEAS career advisor Heather Highouse; and volunteers from many CEAS organizations: IEE, SME, SPE, and Sunseeker.

Engineers’ Week serves up a smorgasbord of events

2009-02-24T17:42:00.000-05:00

For the 30^thAnnual Engineers’ Week Dinner (EWD), held in last week to celebrate the engineering profession, an audience of nearly 300 enjoyed food, camaraderie, and a glimpse of how algae may be a prime biomass for future bio-diesel fuel. Five CEAS students were awarded scholarships at the event that featured the theme “Engineers Make it Work.”

Dr. Jay Newman, president of Optional Energy Partners, Inc., located in Sturgis, MI, provided the keynote address on "Sustainable Energy -Sustainable Communities.” His seven-month-old company is using the waste from waste treatment plants for fuel.

CEAS students won five scholarships, two sponsored by Eaton Corp. and one each from the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE), Consumers Energy, and the Society of Plastic Engineers (SPE).

Joshua Wiese, an engineering management technology senior from Belleville, Mich., is Epsilon Mu Eta president and the Tau Alpha Pi VP. He graduates this spring. He is presently interning at Post Foods and spent four summers interning at GM.

Greg Vosters, an electrical engineering senior from Otsego, Mich., graduates in Dec. He is currently working at Eaton in a co-op, working full time in the summer and part time while he’s in school. As the Tau Beta Pi president, he is involved with Relay for Life. Eventually he would like to work in power distribution

Britney Richmond, a civil engineering junior from Chesaning, Mich., is a member of ASC, the concrete canoe team, and Tau Beta Pi, and has been active in the development of service learning projects for local schools. She interned with MDOT last summer and is planning a career in the structural aspect of civil engineering and the completion of a master’s degree.

Nicholas Pohl, a mechanical engineering (ME) senior with math and science minors, is from Fowler, Mich. He wants an aerospace career after graduating.

Peter Feldpausch, a ME junior from Hastings, Mich., has career aspirations in engines and transportation. Both Pohl and Feldpausch are members of Alpha Lambda Delta and St. Thomas’ Parish.

Prior to the formal ceremony, four CEAS professors showcased their labs and research: Dr. Bade Shrestha, from MAE, introduced the students to the work done in the Fuel Cell Evaluation and Research Center; Dr. John Patten, from MFE, explained research about the CEAS’s wind turbine and the plug-in hybrid electric vehicle; Harold Hladky, from PCI, offered an update on bio-diesel creation; and Abe Poot, Sunseeker adviser, discussed solar-powered vehicles.

Sponsored by the Southwestern Michigan engineering societies, the event annually celebrates National Engineers Week and the engineering profession. The dinner and scholarships are possible thanks to WMU, professional societies and area industries.

Donors to the event include Pfizer, Post Foods, AIAA, SAE, ASCE, AIChE, ASME of Central Michigan, Haworth, IEEE, SW Mich. Chapter of MSPE, SPE of West Michigan, CEAS, Byce and Associates, Consumers Energy, Eaton Corp., Prein & Newhof, Soil and Materials Engineers Inc., and Tower Pinkster.

The EWD committee, chaired by Mike Schwartz of Prein & Newhof, included several CEAS people: Dr. Jorge Rodriguez, Dr. Peter Parker, Dr. Dean Johnson, Scot Conant, Johanna Wells, Tamara Bergman, Samuel Kallen, Jenni Soetaert, Michael Romkema, and Heather Highhouse.

Other members are Dave Caldwell (DENSO), John Lobo (Eaton), Pradip Sagdeo (AIAA), Tim Mitchell (SME), and David Anderson (VBISD).

Metal casting conference offers networking and scholarships

2009-02-04T17:14:00.000-05:00

Dr. Sam Ramrattan, Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering (IME) professor specializing in metal casting, led a delegation of five IME students to the 61^stAnnual Foundry Educational Foundation (FEF) College Industry Conference (CIC) held in Chicago late last fall.

The two-day conference celebrated the metal-casting industry and provided networking opportunities for 30 company reps and the faculty members and 98 students from 24 metalcasting-accredited colleges. Only five students from each college were invited to the conference.

WMU attendees were Michael Horvath, Jason Klein, Kirk Mrozek, Shane Sovia, and Brad Tudor, all technology majors interested in metal casting.

The conference offered information sessions and speakers on innovation, globalization, sustainability, and career opportunities.

Klein, who earned a BS in Manufacturing Technology last semester, won a $2,000 American Foundry Society (AFS) – Saginaw Valley Scholarship. He was one of only 15 students to win a CIC Student Delegate Scholarship.

Klein dined with representatives of MetalTek International, headquartered in Waukesha, Wisconsin. He was impressed with the conference speakers, and especially a Caterpillar, Inc., rep who described the company’s efforts in restoring old equipment. “They take bulldozers that have been rusting in fields for 20 years and make them new,” he said.

The conference camaraderie added to the atmosphere of the conference. “It was definitely a rewarding experience,” Klein said. “Most of the company reps are former FEF students who keep giving back, and you realize that once you’re in metal-casting, it’s a lifelong membership.”

Klein came to WMU from Grand Rapids and is now a graduate assistant in WMU’s manufacturing master’s program. He attends classes, teaches a lab section of ME 2200 Processes and Materials in Manufacturing, and assists in Ramrattan’s research. He is also interviewing for a summer internship.

Having won at least five other metal-casting-related scholarships, Klein is more than enthusiastic about the topic, and he is eager to go to work in metal-casting.

Sunseeker 295 retires again … this time to the Air Zoo

2009-01-29T21:24:00.000-05:00

Sunseeker 295 has been refurbished and is now on display at the Kalamazoo Air Zoo Space Annex. It was recently returned to WMU after being exhibited for the past 5 years at the Gilmore Car Museum.

Sunseeker 295 is the solar-powered vehicle that WMU entered in the 2001 American Solar Challenge (ASC), which followed Route 66 from Chicago to Los Angeles.

In ASC 2001, Sunseeker 295 took 5^thplace in stock class and 23^rdoverall. It was also featured in a National Geographic solar-car documentary that aired on cable network.

Abraham Poot, adviser to Sunseeker, said that the car played a major part of the history of WMU’s solar vehicles.

Sunseeker 295 was originally Sunseeker 93, built for the 1993 GM Sunrayce, a race from Dallas, Texas, to Minneapolis, Minnesota. Overcast and rainy weather hampered all 34 solar team entries, and Sunseeker 93 finished 18^th.

Sunseeker 93 had a strong chassis and served as the base for Sunseeker 95, which featured improvements in the solar array, power train, and aerodynamics. With a new Bronco Gold paint job, Sunseeker 95 placed 8^thof 38 cars in the1995 Sunrayce, which ran from Indianapolis to Golden, Colorado.

Sunseeker 295 on display at the Kalamazoo Air Zoo Annex

Sunseeker 95 was put on display before the 1997 race and used that year as an educational tool in every town along the race route. It was retired after the 1997 race and loaned to Gilmore Car Museum for exhibition in the Steam and Electric Vehicle barn.

For the 2001 competition, the ASC’s 2400-mile challenge along Route 66 became the longest solar race in the world.

Problems with the modification of the 1999 solar car prompted WMU to pull Sunseeker 95 out of retirement. With a new solar array, carbon-fiber wheels, and new battery pack, Sunseeker 295 was born.

After the 2001 race, Sunseeker 295 was used extensively for recruiting and education. The car visited numerous schools in West Michigan, participated in energy events, took part in parades, and appeared at special WMU events. Sunseeker 295 was retired after a new 2003 Sunseeker was built.

Last November Sunseeker 295 was moved from the Gilmore Museum to the Kalamazoo Air Zoo. “Over the past 19 years, more than a million people have seen the WMU solar cars,” Poot said. “Sunseeker 295 played a major role.”

For additional information, see the Sunseeker web site: www.wmich.edu/sunseeker or contact the Sunseeker team at: sunseeker@wmich.edu

Patten’s new plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) to run on wind energy

2009-01-06T15:05:00.000-05:00

Last year Dr. John Patten, the manufacturing engineering department chair, secured funding from a Community Energy Project Grant (CEPG) from the State of Michigan Energy Office and from WMU to retrofit his Toyota Prius with a $10,000 battery system that transforms the hybrid-electric vehicle into a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV). The vehicle now runs up to 40 miles on a battery before it moves into its hybrid mode.

Patten took the five-year-old Prius to Minneapolis – the nearest place where the work was available – for the installation of 200 pounds of lithium ion batteries, a controller, a charger, a regulator, a plug-in, and the interface that makes it a plug in. “It’s pretty cool,” he said. “I can go up to 40 miles on the battery before the hybrid kicks in.”

The new PHEV serves two major purposes. First it’s a demonstration vehicle. “I want people to know that this can be done,” he said.

Second, Patten is monitoring the car’s performance, use of gas and electricity, and costs and the effects of temperature on the battery.

In addition, Patten wants to power the new battery with the electricity produced by a wind turbine located on the WMU Parkview campus along US 131 near the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences sign. He funded the turbine’s installation in 2007 with overhead and residual funds from his other research grants. Now he wants to incorporate it into the PHEV equation.

“The big picture of the research is determining whether the wind turbine produces enough electricity to charge the vehicle on average,” he said. “The preliminary data shows that it will. The research will show if that’s valid.”

Patten wants a completely green transportation system. “When the car runs in electric mode, there are no tailpipe emissions,” he said. “But when the car is plugged into a windmill, there will also be no power plant emissions.”

The present set up at the CEAS requires Patten to keep manual records about miles driven, kilowatt hours used, and time required. A new Web-based meter is presently being installed to automate the collection process. “We’ll put that information into a database and spreadsheet and use that for the analysis,” he said. “The results will be posted on the Web page.”

The CEPG grant lasts one year. Follow the research at http://www.wmich.edu/mfe/energy/research_and_labs.php#phev

Nontraditional civil engineering major wins Spring 2008 AutoCAD title

2008-12-29T16:56:00.000-05:00

A nontraditional civil engineering student who moved to Kalamazoo a year ago won first place in the 2008 Spring AutoCAD Contest, an event that challenges more than 300 students each semester to put the skills they learned in their IME 1420 Engineering Graphics course to work.

Bradley Gerbasich, who transferred to WMU from the University of Toledo, was honored by Slobodan Urdarevik, the lead lecturer for IME 1420, before an audience of students eligible to compete in the 2008 Fall AutoCAD Contest.

“I take great pride in this challenging competition,” Urdarevik said. “The awards from the prior semester are presented just before the next competition to motivate the next group to compete.”

Gerbasich spent 13 years in Toledo managing National Amusements, a large movie complex. After moving to Kalamazoo, he decided to enroll at WMU. Although he has technically earned enough credits to be a senior, he anticipates that completing the requirements for a civil engineering degree will take at least a couple more years.

Currently working as a co-op technician with SME [Soil and Material Engineers] in the Business, Technology, and Research (BTR), Gerbasich is involved in material testing of concrete, asphalt, and soil. His future goals probably involve “something in either geo-technical or structural engineering,” he said.

Gerbasich’s background in drafting includes high school classes and a college AutoCAD class taken about 10 years ago. “A lot has changed since then,” he said.

Kimberly Harms, a sophomore majoring in industrial and entrepreneurial engineering, won second place in the competition. The self-described “100 percent Kalamazoo” native had no prior experience in drafting. “I didn’t have any classes in this,” she said.

Urdarevik described Harms as “the hardest working student” in the Spring class. “She is only the second female to win an award in this competition,” he said.

Harms expressed her appreciation for the Kalamazoo Promise for enabling her to come directly to WMU. She was very busy with classes her first year but is now becoming involved with professional organizations like the Institute of Industrial Engineers and considering an internship next semester.

Harms’ primary career interest is in hospital work. “I’m really interested in work related to hospital efficiency studies,” she said. “I like being involved and don’t see myself as sitting at a desk.”

Justin Hamlin, an electrical engineering major, won third place. The South Haven native transferred to WMU from Lake Michigan College, where he took pre-engineering classes.

Hamlin is a member of Engineers Without Borders and will start a co-op at Palisades Nuclear Plant in January. His previous drafting experience includes one drafting class at South Haven High School.

In a short address to the students, Dr. Paul Engelmann, chair of the Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering (IME), encouraged students to take part in the competition. “Winning an award in this competition will look good on your resume and significantly enhance your ability to be hired,” he said.

All winners received gift cards from Best Buy and engraved plaques donated by Dr. Hooks, Inc., a Kalamazoo-based business that specializes in awards.

For the competition, students create both a two-dimensional AutoCAD drawing and a 3D-solid model of a complicated part. They must show all dimensions and symbols needed for manufacturing.

Urdarevik began offering drawing competitions when he came to WMU in Fall 2004. For more information, contact him at slobodan.urdarevik@wmich.edu

CEAS students and RoboBronco join the cast of feature-film Cherry

2008-12-16T14:33:00.001-05:00

Numerous students – mostly from the CEAS – pulled all-nighters on a Saturday night to pretend they were engineering students in Cherry, a feature-length movie filmed in Kalamazoo. Actor Kyle Gallner has the leading role as an engineering student in his first year at an elite college engineering program. WMU’s Parkview Campus, with its high-tech facilities, provided an excellent backdrop for the story line.

Between 3 p.m. on Sat., Nov. 15, and 8 a.m. on Sun., Nov. 16, CEAS students starred as extras for the film’s classroom scenes. The long night included multiple takes of CEAS students sitting in a real Parkview lecture hall pretending to be students in a fictional classroom. Bright lights, huge camera setups, and an abundance of electronic gadgetry filled more of the lecture hall space than the students.

In between takes, the students waited in the Extras Holding area, the DENSO cafeteria.

"Being in the movie was crazy and fun," said Kendall Vasilnek, a civil engineering senior and film extra who added that filming took longer and required more people than she had initially thought it would.

Several faculty and staff members also stayed most of the night. Dr. Paul Engelmann, chair of the Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering, and Courtney Rawlings, a graduate assistant in manufacturing engineering, oversaw the filming that took place in the CEAS Plastics Lab.

Dr. Tarun Gupta, IME professor, and Srinivas Ghattamaneni, a graduate assistant in industrial engineering, supervised RoboBronco as the robot made its acting debut. Other participants included Dr. Karlis Kaugars, CEAS computer-aided engineering director (CAE); Chuck Overberger, CAE technician; and Tammy Bergman, CEAS office associate.

Cherry’s screenwriter and director is Jeff Fine, who said that the movie is being shot in Michigan because of the state’s new tax incentives for filmmakers.

Five honored with 2008 CEAS Dean Awards for outstanding work

2008-12-02T06:55:00.000-05:00

Five CEAS faculty and staff members won 2008 CEAS Faculty and Staff Awards. WMU Provost Tim Greene, who initiated the annual awards two years ago when he was the CEAS dean, presented this year’s awards to Dr. Peter Parker and Dr. Margaret Joyce, Dept. of Paper Engineering, Chemical Engineering, and Imaging (PCI) professors; Slobodan Urdarevik, Dept. of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering (IME) faculty specialist II; Dr. Zijiang James Yang, Dept. of Computer Science (CS) assistant professor, and Abraham Poot, the CEAS technical specialist for IME and MAE.

“Every year we recognize another set of faculty and staff who are truly outstanding," Greene said.

Parker, the 2008 CEAS Outstanding Educator, has been teaching WMU chemical engineering classes since 1997. He is an advisor to the chemical engineering program, and he incorporates WMU’s “designation as student-centered” into both teaching and advising. His teaching methods evolve from combining new techniques with those that withstood “the test of time.” Parker’s background includes a University of Rochester BS in chemical engineering, a University of Pittsburgh MBA, and University of Michigan MSE and Ph.D. in chemical engineering. His research interests are process modeling and simulation, tissue manufacturing, and engineering ethics. He’s a longtime member of the Faculty Senate, chairs the Academic Information and Technology Council, and is a member of WMU's Ethic Center advisory board.

Winning the 2008 CEAS Outstanding New Educator, Urdarevik, IME 1420 Engineering Graphics lead instructor, teaches three mass lecture sessions of up to 120 students and coordinates up to 14 student teaching assistants (TAs). His credentials include two U.S. patents and three U.S. patents pending for his teaching strategies.

Each semester Urdarevik coordinates a design competition for the more than 300 students enrolled in IME 1420 and an annual Best TA competition. He is an official reviewer of several graphics text books. Before coming to WMU in 2003, he taught at Humber College in Toronto. He has a mechanical engineering master’s degree from the University of Skopje in Macedonia.

Joyce, the 2008 CEAS Outstanding Researcher, has assumed major roles in securing over one million dollars in external funding through grants and contracts for diverse projects that include bolstering homeland security through use of RFID-radio frequency identification and developing a new coating measurement system in the foundry industry. A recognized leader in the coating industry, she is widely published and has coordinated many conferences. With 10 other CEAS faculty, she recently started CAPE [Center for Advancement of Printed Electronics] for multidisciplinary research.

Yang, whose primary research interest is computer system reliability, won the 2008 CEAS Outstanding New Researcher. He was recently awarded a $400,000 National Science Foundation (NSF) grant for research on multithreaded program verification. He has also been awarded five other external research grants since 2003. Yang’s papers have been published in top computer science journals and conferences, and he recently won the prestigious 2008 ACM TODAES Best Paper Award. The IEEE senior member is an inventor with five U.S. patents and five patents pending. Yang came to WMU in 2003 after earning a Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania.

Winning the 2008 CEAS Outstanding Staff Award, Poot, the IME\MAE lab coordinator, supports computer and electrical equipment design, assembly, and maintenance. Since 2001, Poot has served as project adviser of the WMU Sunseeker Solar Car teams, which have placed in several North American Solar Challenge competitions and have won both design and sportsmanship awards. For his support in many areas, including tribology, thermal systems, aerodynamics, biomechanics, foundry, and automotive laboratories, Poot was recently honored with the 2008 WMU Distinguished Service Award.

The winners of this year’s awards were selected by a committee of last year’s winners from nominations made by faculty, administrators, and emeriti. These five 2008 award winners will serve as the selection committee for those who win next year’s awards.

Tues., Dec. 2, conference to showcase 42 senior engineering projects

2008-11-18T23:18:00.000-05:00

The 43^rdConference on Senior Engineering Design Projects – set for Tues., Dec. 2 – features 36 projects presented by 99 seniors from five CEAS departments. The event is free and open to the public; parking is available.

The 25-minute presentations are scheduled to begin between 9 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. at the Parkview Campus. All sessions begin exactly on the hour and half hour. No projects are presented during the lunch break from 12 to 1 p.m.

The Department of Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering (MAE) is offering two concurrent sessions for 14 projects completed by 35 students: 8 presentations from 9 to 2 in D-109 and 6 from 9 to noon in D-206.

The Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering (IME) has scheduled 8 projects by 24 students from 9 to 2 in D-201.

The Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) is presenting 7 projects by 22 students from 9 to 1:30 in D-208.

From the Department of Civil and Construction Engineering (CCE), 11 students are offering 3 presentations between 9:30 and 11 in D-115.

Four presentations by 9 students in the Department of Computer Science (CS) are scheduled at 9 and 11 in D-204/5.

Sponsors for this semester’s projects include the following: AC Foundry, Decco Software, Diagnostic Systems, Associates, Eaton Corporation, eInternet Design, Fantom Racing, FEMA Corporation, Frank’s Shoe Parlor, Kelen Sales Consulting, LLC, Parker Hannifin Corporation, Stryker Medical, and Whirlpool Corporation.

About 30 faculty and administrators are serving as advisers for one or more projects. Professors chairing the various sessions are Dr. Hobo Cai (CCE), Dr. John Kapenga (CS), Dr. John Gesink (ECE), Dr. Betsy Aller (IME), Drs. Rameshwar Sharma and Pnina Ari-Gur (MAE), and Drs. Claudia Fajardo and Christopher Cho (MAE).

A complete schedule of project presentations is available at http://www.wmich.edu/engineer/senior-design-conference.htm For more information about the conference. call Tamara Beraman at (269) 276-3248.

Innovative IEE degree offers students unique opportunities

2008-11-11T15:21:00.000-05:00

Over the past year, the CEAS industrial engineering (IE) program has been innovatively transformed into a new undergraduate degree in Industrial and Entrepreneurial Engineering (IEE).

“The new IEE curriculum is fundamentally consistent with traditional IE programs with an added emphasis,” said Dr. Azim Houshyar, a professor in the IME department. “The new IEE curriculum emphasizes instruction in how to take a new concept from inception to introduction in the marketplace.”

In 2006 Houshyar and Dr. Bob White, another IME professor, began pulling together ideas to offset what Houshyar described as a “national problem” of decreasing demand for industrial engineers. “The problems of the economy and the changing perception of industrial engineers as quality or reliability engineers led us to study ways to blend engineering with business to reflect what our engineers are doing in the workplace.”

Houshyar and White teamed up with industrial engineering faculty that included Drs. Steven Butt, Tycho Fredericks, Leonard Lamberson, and Tarun Gupta to complete an extensive curriculum overhaul. Using input from the advisory board, faculty, and employers, they revised the traditional IE curriculum to create a new undergraduate degree in Industrial and Entrepreneurial Engineering (IEE) that is consistent with traditional IE programs.

The team focused on the goals and objectives of what the engineering students would need in the world of work. “Our graduates will fill a gap in current engineering education and will be best-fitted to the requirements of new global enterprises,” Houshyar said.

Curricular changes include three new capstone courses in entrepreneurial engineering. Entrepreneurial I, taught by White, focuses on the financial aspects. The second course is team taught by Butt, Fredericks, Houshyar, and White. It involves hands-on product design and development.

In a third course to be offered for the first time next year, Houshyar will focus on supply chain. “It will examine the marketing aspects such as how a product is marketed and where to find suppliers, manufacturers, and buyers,” he said. “The beauty of this is that our students are actually creating products that they will have to manufacture, price, and market.”

Part of the new IEE program requires students to choose from three foreign study options “They can actually do foreign study, participate in an internship, or take a course in globalization,” Houshyar said.

With the new IEE, students can also obtain a minor in any field. They are not limited to engineering.

Students who were enrolled in IE were allowed to graduate with an IE degree or to transfer into the new program. “The majority chose to transfer to the new program,” Houshyar said. “By next fall all our students will be in the IEE program.”

Future plans include a call for expanding the IEE program to the master’s level. A recent curricular change enables undergraduates to take up to 12 hours of 500level coursework that can be applied to both a bachelor’s and a master’s degree. It enables students to earn both in five years. It can be presently applied toward a master’s IE degree and in the future to one in IEE.

For more information on the IEE program, email azim.houshyar@wmich.edu or bob.white@wmich.edu

WMU Formula SAE team competes, wins exhibition competition

2008-10-23T18:55:00.000-04:00

WMU’s Formula SAE (FSAE) team designed and built a car that was entered in the 2008 Formula SAE® competition held last spring at the Michigan International Speedway, Brooklyn, Mich. The WMU entry placed 63 in a field of 105 international competitors and earned praise for many components.

Also, the FSAE team won first place in the Student Exhibit Competition held at Cobo Hall in Detroit in conjunction with the SAE 2008 World Congress. The competition, sponsored by Eaton Corporation, required that the Congress theme, “A Climate for Change” be incorporated into the exhibit.

Exhibit judging included a formal 10-minute presentation by two team members and informal discussion with the judges. Five FSAE team members displayed the FSAE project, competed for prizes, and networked with manufacturers, suppliers, and alumni.

“It is a great joy for me and an honor for our FSAE Team to win this prestigious award,” said Dr. Parviz Merati, MAE chair and professor.

Dr. Claudia Fajardo, an assistant professor in the Department of Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering (MAE) and one of the SAE advisers, praised the entire FSAE team and especially the five – all enrolled in MAE programs – who represented WMU at the competition: Sarah Gerbig, Brian Doorlag, Geoffrey Van Gemert, Michael Nienhuis and Kyle Schmidt. “The competition is one of the most exciting activities of the Congress,” she said. “The students showcase the technical merit of the Formula SAE vehicle design and the project’s business and teamwork aspects.”

Gerbig and Doorlag created a two-part presentation with both business and engineering aspects. In the “Re-fueling for Future Generations,” Gerbig presented the organizational and leadership changes the WMU team made this year to improve efficiency and effectiveness. In "Changing Gears," Doorlag discussed design changes the team made to the differential to simplify it and to reduce its weight and cost.

Other universities that competed included Michigan Tech, University of Michigan, Michigan State University, University of Toledo, and Central Michigan University.

“Overall, the 2008 SAE World Congress was a great experience for everyone involved,” Gerbig said. “It was a great opportunity for students who attended to network with hundreds of OEMs and automotive suppliers, along with several other universities’ groups.”

Others who contributed to the FSAE project are MAE faculty members Dr. Bade Shrestha, a coadviser, and Dr. Richard Hathaway, who provided technical advice. Tom Sutton, an instructor in the Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering, assisted in the testing stages.

This fall, the SAE organizational meeting attracted more than 65 students. Membership is open to anyone interested in cars, and no previous experience is required. This year’s major activity involves the design and development of a Formula car to represent WMU at the 2009 Formula SAE® competition.

The SAE student chapter meets every other Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. in the F-115 study lounge area at Parkview. Those interested in attending a meeting should email the team at wmuformularacing@gmail.com

SAE information is available on the official Web site at http://www.rso.wmich.edu/sae

IME course offers PMI training to students and professionals

2008-09-30T13:13:00.000-04:00

Dr. Betsy Aller (with a PMI certificate) and IME 6140 students; most are working toward the 35 PDUs needed to take the PMP exam

WMU is completing its first year as a registered education provider (REP) for the Project Management Institute (PMI), “the world’s leading not-for-profit association for the project management profession,” according to its Web site at http://www.pmi.org

Three faculty members in the Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering (IME) – Dr. Larry Mallak, Dr. Betsy Aller, and Dr. David Lyth – are actively involved in the delivery of courses and/or training offering professional development units (PDUs).

“Being a REP allows us to offer PDUs for students and professionals who wish to sit for the Project Management Professional (PMP) exam,” said Mallak, who was acknowledged for completing the paperwork to secure REP certification.

Mallak said that project management is an essential skill set in industry today. The increasing complexity of work and the need for integration of skilled workers to produce work that’s on time and that meets specifications requires more technical professionals to hold PMP credentials.

IME 6140 Project Management provides an effective means for local employers to send their employees for project management training. Students in WMU’s program get more than the typical training offered by other providers.

“They get the academic foundation for the project management content and preparation for the PMP exam,” Mallak said. “The Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) is now a required text in the course and is the basis for the PMP exam material.”

By taking IME 6140 and paying an administrative fee, those students interested in earning PMI certification can garner the necessary 35 PDUs needed to take the PMP exam. “We are the only university in Michigan that’s licensed to deliver the training and offer those PDUs,” Mallak said.

According to Mallak, getting PMP certification has become an important element of a professional portfolio. “There’s been a huge growth in the demand for PMPs,” he said. “There’s also been a substantial increase in the number of people taking the exam.”

WMU’s REP status was awarded last January for the calendar year, and Mallak said that plans call for the license to be renewed on an annual basis. As a REP, WMU is licensed to award PDUs not only in IME 6140 coursework, but also in shorter training courses offered to local industry and online. These courses must be approved by PMI.

“They provide additional opportunities for West Michigan employees to have ready access to high quality training while obtaining credits toward their PMP credential or toward their PMP renewal,” Mallak said. “To retain their PMP status, those with PMP credentials must earn a minimum number of PDUs.”

According to Dr. Paul Engelmann, the IME Chair, the advantage to having certification is that training is available locally. “We can now offer short courses so local industry won’t have to send their people to Chicago to be trained,” he said. “And for a small fee, our students who take IME 6140 can get those credits as part of their master’s or doctoral work.”

For more information about PMI, email larry.mallak@wmich.edu or betsy.aller@wmich.edu

“Aspire to a Career” connects job-seekers to more than 80 employers

2008-09-16T17:02:00.000-04:00

More than 80 employers are coming next week to the 2008 Engineering and Applied Sciences [EAS] Career Fair. It’s set for Thurs., Sept. 25, from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. The Parkview event is free and open to the public, with no pre-registration required to attend.

Heather Highhouse, assistant director for Career and Student Employment Services (CSES) and career advisor for the CEAS, is coordinating the event. The theme of this year’s engineering career fair is “Aspire to a Career,” which she said is a way to focus on the CEAS spire that serves as a beacon in front of the Parkview Campus. The spire is featured on the 2008 career fair tabloid.

Representatives from many sectors of the economy offer opportunities to students, alum, and others. Some areas include manufacturing, aeronautical, aviation, service, health care, medical, mechanical, civil, energy, construction, distribution, chemical, paper, electrical and electronic, computer, food, governmental and military.

“We have an excellent balance of employers participating in this year’s career fair,” Highhouse said.

Highhouse has also partnered with the advising office to provide this year’s fair with a student/information area for name tags, maps, tabloids, and information.

Eaton Corp. is sponsoring this year’s fair. According to its Web site, Eaton is a diversified power management company and global technology leader in electrical systems, hydraulics, aerospace technology for commercial and military use, and truck and automotive drivetrain and powertrain systems. It has 81,000 employees, sells to customers in 150 countries, and had $13 billion in sales in 2007.

More than 120 students attended the Engineer Your Career 2008
Workshop to prepare for the "Aspire to a Career" Engineering
and Applied Sciences Career Fair on Thurs., Sept. 25, at Parkview

To prepare students for the fair, Eaton sponsored "Engineer your Career," a four-hour event that attracted over 120 students last week. The event included a resume workshop, a fashion show of successful professional attire provided by Macy's and a planel with tips for success.

Professionals from Eaton, Whirlpool Corp., Consumers Energy, and the Department of Labor and Economic Growth provided perspectives on networking, interviewing, etiquette, and the economic outlook. “This was one of the best resources to help students prepare for the fair,” Highhouse said.

Eaton has been consistently supportive of CEAS students, projects, and programs. “We really appreciate all that Eaton has done for us,” Highhouse said.

Students who are looking for positions are encouraged to dress appropriately professional and to bring copies of their resumes.

Assistance in resume preparation is available during drop-in office hours in the Advising Suite at Parkview: MW -12 to 2 p.m. and TR – 11:30-1:30 p.m. Additional hours are available on the main campus. Students can also call (269) 276-3241 to schedule an appointment.

Job seekers should prepare for the EAS career fair by reviewing the list of employers and researching those of interest ahead of time. All employers registered are identified on the Web site. Employers have until the day before the event to sign up. As employers register, they are added to the Web site in real-time. To view registered employers and/or to register as an employer, go to

http://wmich.erecruiting.com/st/cf_registered_employers?fhnd=3219

Highhouse, who is coordinating the annual event for the first time, credited several student organizations and student assistants for their support: Nicole Maggio, graduate assistant, Joe Mydosh, peer educator, and Matt Smith, co-op assistant. For more info, call (269) 387-2745 or go to www.broncojobs.wmich.educareer

CEAS students collect nursing data for Bronson study

2008-09-09T19:16:00.000-04:00

Six years ago Drs. Tycho Fredericks and Steven Butt, industrial engineering faculty in the Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering, received two grants to provide quantifiable data about nursing care activities of the Bronson Methodist Hospital nursing staff.

At the time approximately 17 WMU students used palm pilots to collect data on the time nurses spent with patients in two areas – a surgical intensive care unit and a general medical unit – based on the level of care required by the patients. The collected data assisted Bronson with strategic decisions and will be used to develop innovative scheduling and facility design models for hospitals.

The study, “Determining the Relationship Between Patient Acuity, Time Standards, and Productivity,” was funded by two grants, one from the Bronson Healthcare Group and another from Bronson Research Fund.

“After Bronson moved into its new building in 2000, we started collecting data on nurses working in the new single patient rooms in the general medical unit,” Butt said. “Once we collected and analyzed data for that study, we completed similar research on the surgical intensive care unit where they have a very different type of patient.”

This summer, Stephanie Means, a doctorial research associate, is directing another extension of the study that started in 2006 and runs to the end of this year. It is focused on Bronson’s neonatal unit. “The old neonatal unit had a typical open ward layout with five nurseries with 810 patients each,” she said. “When Bronson moved into the new North Campus pavilion, mother and baby shared a single room, so we’re looking at the difference between the two different setups – neonatal ward and single patient room – in terms of care and impact on nurses and patients.”

Four industrial engineering students – Carlee McClintic, Amanda Glick, Ashley Hoverkamp, and Yenni Chen – are collecting information about the amount of time nurses spend with patients based on the level of care required. Assisting the group is Sarah Meade.

“What’s unique and important about the work is that the students are using actual continuous direct observation,” Means said. “We are tracking nursing activities.”

Means described continuous direct observation as “a hybrid of work sampling and time study.” The students use palm pilots that contain all the activities that the nurses perform. They follow the nurses all day and record everything the nurses do and the paths they take.

“It’s like a big data recording drive,” Means said. “We collect information on everything the nurses do directly with the baby and everything they do indirectly, which includes filling out charts and forms and performing unit activities.”

Nurses also wear pedometers to track the distance they travel and heart rate monitors to measure energy expenditure and to determine which activities cause spikes. “We capture everything they do,” Means said.

In the past, researchers have done random time sampling by checking every 5 minutes or so, and they’ve done studies with either or both independent observers and self-reporting by the nurses. “What makes this research special is the continuous direct observation,” Means said. “It’s labor intensive because we’re often capturing data 7 days a week for 24 hours a day.”

The data collected in the most recent study will also be compared with the data collected in the two earlier research studies. “We may find something from our early analysis, and we may have to collect more data,” Means said. “We will have a lot of data to study and analyze.”

The research team plans to write papers on the discoveries made. “The team will do a paper to compare and contrast what we’ve learned here with the previous two studies,” Means said.

Eventually Means hopes that the results can be used to “make life simpler and less stressful for the nurses.”

“We may be able to standardize some activities, and streamline some procedures,” she said. “We’re also looking at the built environment for future building projects.”

For more info, e-mail tycho.fredericks@wmich.edu

HECO provides students first-hand SOP writing experience

2008-08-21T14:13:00.001-04:00

This summer’s IME 3160 Report Preparation class gained real-world work experience writing standard operating procedures (SOP).

Students in the course taught by Thomas Swartz wrote SOPs for HECO, Inc. Industrial Groups. Headquartered in Kalamazoo, HECO is a repair and sales organization that has served the motor needs of more than 1500 companies for nearly half a century. Started as the Hatfield Electric Co. by Terrell Hatfield in 1959, HECO now has more than 50 employees working a two-shift operation.

According to Todd Hatfield, vice president of engineering and repair, the company has been trying to update its SOPs for some time, but something more important always “put them on the backburner.”

A plan to have the 16 IME 3160 students work in groups of four and write SOPs was developed by Hatfield; Justin Hatfield, HECO’s equipment management specialist; and Swartz, who coordinates the CEAS technical communication program. Each group wrote one shop-floor SOP.

The students – all industrial engineering (IE), electrical engineering (EE), and engineering management (UEM) majors –also proposed improvements to the SOP template and process.

“We generally write textbook scenarios in class,” Swartz said. “With the SOP project, HECO offered the students a real work-related writing experience.”

HECO provided a SOP template for use as a starting point. “We were encouraged to be creative in the SOP design,” said Jason LaDuke, a UEM junior whose group wrote the SOP “Disassembly of a Standard AC Motor.”

The assignment challenged the students, whose first goal was to meet with support groups of HECO personnel who actually do the processes featured in the SOPs. “We had to learn how to disassemble an electric motor before we could write about it,” LaDuke said.

The students communicated with the support groups via phone and email, and they worked together on line and off to develop SOPs. “Much of our work was planning, writing instructions, and letting everyone in the group and at HECO review them as we went along,” said IE senior Yenni Chen.

According to Justin Hatfield the HECO support groups were “impressed with the questions the students asked.” The SOPs need to be further tested by those not familiar with the SOP processes.

Each group presented its SOP and proposed template and other recommendations in an oral presentation to an audience that included both Hatfields. “I think everyone did a good job,” Todd Hatfield said. “I was impressed with their ideas and their proposals.”

After examining the details, Todd Hatfield said that some student work appeared to be very high quality and that he would consider employing some of the students to write additional SOPs.

Swartz said the successful collaboration between HECO and the students may be repeated in the future. For more information, contact thomas.swartz@wmich.edu

Sunseeker team wins sportsmanship award and more at 2008 NASC

2008-08-12T00:47:00.000-04:00

Last week the CEAS offered a welcome lunch and ceremony for the 14-member WMU Sunseeker team that won the Sportsmanship Award at 2008 North American Solar Challenge (NASC), an intercollegiate 2,400-mile race from Texas to Calgary, Canada.

2008 Sunseeker Team (L-R): Front: Edmund Tan, Lyth Alobiedat, Nicholas Killoran, Alex Hoksema (in driver's seat), Brendan Hill, David Ludens, and Abraham Poot; Back: John Kapenga, Paul Engelmann, Kevin Kalchik, Adrian Sargent, Dan Gore, Madeline McAuley, Ian Smith, Steve Mohney, and Chris Rocker

For this year’s Sunseeker team, the road to the 2008 NASC was fraught with obstacles in funding, material procurement, and design and development. In the final months, the team worked day and night – sometimes camping out in study areas at the Parkview Campus – to complete the WMU entry unveiled last month.

A seemingly final blow came from a wind burst that destroyed a solar panel array during qualification trials and eliminated the vehicle from this year’s competition. However, the wind didn’t eliminate the team, who were invited to join teams that qualified for the race. They put their skills to work and gained a wealth of experience.

While the Sunseeker advisors and three team members drove and displayed Sunseeker at the race checkpoints, 10 WMU students joined the teams of the University of Michigan, Iowa State University, Northwestern and Waterloo universities, and the Missouri University of Science and Technology.

Alex Hoeksema, a junior in electrical engineering, worked with the Iowa State team. “Even though we couldn’t race, we could help everyone else,” he said. He helped fix a brake problem that almost eliminated the Iowa team. “They had to re-qualify because the brakes failed before they reached the first stop,” he said. “Their callipers were the same kind that we use, so I was able to get our team to give them a hand getting parts and meeting the deadline to get back in the race.“

According to Hoeksema, one value of the competition is the mutual support of its competitors. “All the teams helped each other every night of the race,” he said.

2008 Sunseeker Team enjoys welcome-home
luncheon and award ceremony

The WMU students gained an abundance of hands-on experience. “You learn a lot in the classroom, but trouble shooting and solving problems in the field gave me an education you can’t get in a classroom,” Hoeksema said. “I put what I learned to work.”

Dr. Paul Engelmann, Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering (IME) chair and a member of the Sunseeker team, called this year’s team “the very best of what the college has to offer.” He said the team had – through no fault of its own – met obstacles at every turn. “Lesser teams would have given this up many times, and no one would have blamed them for quitting,” he said. “But this team persisted and thrived and won the sportsmanship award.”

David Ludens, Madeline McAuley, and
Kevin Kalchik with 2008 Sunseeker

Abraham Poot, engineering lab coordinator for both IME and the Department of Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering (MAE) and a Sunseeker advisor, said that the team is “fired up” for next year’s solar competitions. “The team plans to fix this car and take it to the Formula Sun track race next May in Texas,” he said. “They would also like to re-build a car for the World Solar Challenge in Australia set for the third week in October 2009.”

Hoeksema and Nicholas Killoran, a mechanical engineering junior, will serve as next year’s project leaders. This year’s project leader, David Ludens, who earned his bachelor’s in aeronautical engineering this spring, will be in constant communication with the new team. “There is no way I could write down everything I’ve learned from this project.” he said.

For more information on Sunseeker and its future endeavors, check out www.wmich.edu/sunseeker

Paper coating techniques may improve metal casting quality

2008-08-05T00:37:00.000-04:00

The Department of Defense (DoD) needs lighter equipment to be able to move quickly. One way to make lighter equipment is to produce lighter castings, which means producing castings with thinner walls.

The goal of a multi-year DoD research grant overseen by the American Metalcasting Consortium is to develop the data on coatings that could lead to improved castings.

The principal investigators (PIs) of the grant research are Dr. Sam Ramrattan, Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering (IME), and Dr. Margaret Joyce, Department of Paper Engineering, Chemical Engineering, and Imaging (PCI). Assisting the two professors is IME graduate student Adil Abdelwahab.

Ramrattan, a metal casting specialist, and Joyce, whose expertise includes paper coatings, are pooling their talents to evaluate how potential coatings used in the paper industry could improve the casting process.

“Multiple industries are seeking coating to add value to their products,” Joyce said. “The basic components of foundry and paper coatings are similar. We have much to learn from each other’s industries.”

Coating paper is a well developed science; however, coating is relatively new in metal casting. “We can’t use the types of coatings, but we can use similar coating control techniques in metal casting and we’re coming up with alternative testing techniques, several of which we have borrowed from the paper industry,” Ramrattan said.

When hot molten metal is poured into a sand mold, the heat causes the mold to expand, which leads to cracks and defects in the product. The heat can also dislodge grains of sand, which end up in parts where they are not wanted. “The defects can be extremely harmful if the part is a block or a coated head in an engine,” Ramrattan said.

To offset these problems, the research team is testing refractory coatings as interfacial barriers between the mold wall and the metal. “Having the right coating can lead to a smoother casting with a better surface finish,” Ramrattan said. “It can also prevent sand from getting into the metal and eliminate cracking.”

In addition to finding the right environmentally-acceptable coating and determining the right amount to use to produce a quality casting is finding a way to be sure that the quality of the coating remains consistent throughout repeated use. Because the sand used in casting is recycled, particles in the coatings can settle out as the coating is reused.

“A control mechanism is needed to make sure the particles are not settling out, to maintain consistent coatings quality throughout the process,” Ramrattan said.

According to Ramrattan, the current testing gauges in the casting industry are not designed for coatings used in the paper industry, but controlled tests measuring rheological characteristics in the paper industry show potential in the development of instruments for casting. “We are developing testing techniques and instruments for sand casting that included modified permeability and mold quality index tests,” Ramrattan said.

Other research discoveries are related to the optimal dip time for refractory molds, data related to the effect of coating deposits that can affect the permeability of the dipped mold, which indirectly affects the casting quality, surface finish, dimensional properties, and other qualities.

Ramrattan said the first-year findings were officially reported to the DoD Logistics Department in June. “This is year-to-year work, and everyone seemed satisfied with our findings,” he said. “We are continuing our search for a means to improve coating and to reduce defects.”

For more information on this project, contact Ramrattan at sam.ramrattan@wmich.edu or Joyce at margaret.joyce@wmich.edu

Changing of the guard in the CEAS dean’s office set for Aug. 1

2008-07-22T17:02:00.000-04:00

On Aug. 1, Dr. Tim Greene, who has served as CEAS dean since April 2005, assumes the position as WMU provost and vice president for academic affairs.

Last week, WMU announced that Dr. Dan Litynski – a professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering who has served as CEAS dean, WMU provost, and interim WMU president – will serve as CEAS dean for 11 months while a 15-member WMU team searches for a new CEAS dean.

Litynski was CEAS Dean from 1999-2002, a period of increased CEAS student enrollment, new programs and accreditations, the conception and construction stages of the new 270-acre CEAS Parkview Campus, and the early development of the Business, Technology, and Research Park. He recently spent three years at the National Science Foundation as program director for physics and director of the Division of Undergraduate Education.

A retired U.S. Army Brigadier General, Litynski has spent over 25 years researching and teaching more than 20 courses in electrical engineering, optics, and physics. His research specialties are lasers, photonics, and electro-optics. Before coming to WMU, he was professor in and later head of the Dept. of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.

His education includes Ph.D. and BS degrees in physics from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI), and a MS in optics from the University of Rochester. He is also a graduate of the Army Command and General Staff College and the Industrial College of the Armed Forces of the National Defense University.

Litynski is looking forward to serving as dean, and then he plans to return to the faculty next July. “This is a wonderful opportunity to serve our great college and faculty once again and help during the transition,” he said.

Greene, who was selected as WMU’s provost last spring, credited the CEAS community for his promotion. “I am now the provost because of the excellent contributions of the CEAS faculty, staff, and students,” he said. “One of the reasons I was promoted was because I got credit for the hard work, dedication, and accomplishments of so many here at the college.”

WMU’s CEAS DEAN Search Committee and Schedule:
Chair Joseph Reish, (Dean of the Libraries); Margaret Joyce (PCI), Massood Atashbar (ECE), Ajay Gupta (CS), Betsy Aller (IME), Koorosh Naghshineh (MAE), Jun Oh (CCE), Paul Englemann (IME Chair), Don Nelson (CS Chair), Sue Ketchum (Staff), Pat Resetar (Staff), Carl Roberts (EBOV/alum), Bob Miller (WMU), Sarah Gerbig (MAE undergraduate), and a graduate student to be determined

A tentative schedule…
September 1st – Publish advertisements for CEAS dean
October 15th - Begin screening candidates
December – Conduct airport interviews
December 20th – Announce on-campus candidates
January / February – Conduct on-campus interviews
March 31st – Announce a new CEAS dean
July 1st – Welcome the new CEAS dean

Everyone is encouraged to nominate candidates whose identities will remain confidential until announcement of the final list in December. Interviews will be open and everyone is also encouraged to provide input regarding the final selection. The CEAS Executive Committee is preparing an announcement that will be submitted to several publications and posted on the Web. Detailed information and application procedures are available at www.wmich.edu/hr/careers-at-wmu.htm

Before coming to WMU, Greene was assistant vice president for research and academic affairs at the University of Alabama where he had served as Dean of Engineering from 1999 to 2004. His experience includes heading up the School of Industrial Engineering and Management and being associate dean of research at Oklahoma State University and serving on the faculty at Virginia Tech. He has MS and Ph.D. degrees in industrial engineering and a BS in aeronautical and astronautical engineering from Purdue.

Greene encouraged the CEAS community to get involved in the process of selecting a new dean.
“I’m challenging them to think of the characteristics they want in the next dean and to seek and encourage good faculty to apply for the position,” he said. “One of the reasons I came here is the strong encouragement I received from the faculty, and I hope they will do the same for the next candidates.”

High school students enjoy hands-on metal-casting workshop

2008-07-15T16:54:00.000-04:00

In June at the 2008 Metal-casting Workshop, Dr. Sam Ramrattan, an IME professor, shared the tools of the metal-casting trade with nine high school students. This year’s students came from Mesick, Saginaw, and Saline, Mich.; Brook Park and Defiance, Ohio; Stroudsburg, Penn.; and Trinidad, West Indies.

Ramrattan, a technical advisor to the American Foundrymen's Society and a Key Professor for the Foundry Educational Foundation, held classes and lab work in the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Parkview Campus Metal Casting Laboratory.

“Dr. Sam,” as he is known at the college, has hosted a weeklong metal-casting workshop every summer for the last nine years. This year’s hands-on event was similar to the previous ones.

The course is a balance of lecture topics on metal casting history, methods, and trends; networking; and hands-on metal casting. Students examined metal casting from several perspectives: manufacturing (molding, melting, filling, and finishing), engineering, quality, purchasing, marketing, and sales. They also explored the use of computers, math, and science in metal casting.

In addition to their lab and course work, the students learned about WMU programs and requirements from administrators and met with a panel of industrial professionals and the Foundry Educational Foundation. (FEF) to review career opportunities in metal casting.

The workshop included visits to area foundries to see real-world technology. This year’s attendees toured A.C. Foundry, Battle Creek, MI, and Contech’s die casting facilities in Dowagiac, MI. They also enjoyed activities in the Kalamazoo / Portage metro area.

Students who attended the program were selected on the basis of aptitude for math and science and were sponsored by various chapters of the American Foundry Society (AFS) and the North American Die Casting Association (NADCA). There was no cost to the students, who stayed in WMU dorms and enjoyed campus life.

WMU’s metal-casting program is over 100 years old. Its most recent accreditation was when Ramrattan joined the faculty in 1992. Metal casting is presently an option in all IME undergraduate programs. For more information, contact Dr. Sam at sam.ramrattan@wmich.edu

WMU’s Sunseeker races for a place in the sun in 2008 NASC

2008-07-08T16:45:00.000-04:00

The WMU 2008 Sunseeker solar car team headed to Texas last week to compete with 23 other teams in the 2008 North American Solar Challenge (NASC). The 14-member team will spend a week qualifying for the biennial, cross-country, international, intercollegiate 2,400-mile race set for July 13-22, 2008, from Texas to Calgary, Canada.

The Sunseeker team designed and built this year’s entry using state-of-the-art technology. Team captain David Ludens, who graduated in April, said this year’s car is lighter, has improved motor controllers, and features a “brand-new generation of batteries.” The car also has improved aerodynamics, and the driver’s seat has been adjusted to allow the driver to sit up to drive.

Unveiled in a ceremony in front of the CEAS Parkview Campus the day before the team left for Texas, the 2008 car is different from past entries. The new Sunseeker is white and has front-wheel drive. Although it still has four wheels, the back ones are about one foot apart so that the car functions as a three-wheeled vehicle. The second rear wheel adds stability and safety.

This year’s team advisors are Abraham Poot, engineering lab coordinator for both Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering and of Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering, and John Kapenga, associate professor in the Department of Computer Science.

The 2008 NASC is sponsored by Toyota and Crowder College. The race has stops and checkpoints in seven US and five Canadian cities: Plano (just north of Dallas), Texas [start of the race]; McAlester, Okla.; Neosho, Mo.; Topeka, Kan,; Omaha, Neb.; Sioux Falls, S.D.; Fargo, N.D.; Winnipeg, Manitoba; Brandon, Manitoba; Regina, Saskatchewan; Medicine Hat, Alberta; and Calgary, Alberta [the finish line].

Eight American solar challenges have been held since 1990. In 2005 WMU’s solar car entry finished in sixth place and won the competition’s “Aesthetics” award.

2008 Sunseeker Tech Specs: The 2008 Sunseeker vehicle weighs 240 Kg; it’s five meters long, 1.8 meters wide and 1.2 meters high. Its motors include 2 CSIRO hub motors, 4.5 KW each, and front wheel drive. Its solar cells feature Emcore triple junction gallium arsenide with a peak output of 1500 W. The vehicle’s 29 Kg Battery pack consists of 520 Lithium Polymer cells with 5.3 KWhr capacity. The chassis features a chromemoly roll cage with carbon fiber bottom shell and fiberglass array shell. The car has a dual hydraulic braking system with Hayes four-wheel disks. It has four G.H. Craft carbon fiber wheels with Bridgestone Ecopia 2.5 x 14 tires.

CEAS hosts Agile Manufacturing Conference on July 16 - 18

2008-06-17T19:11:00.000-04:00

The 2008 International Conference on Agile Manufacturing is set for Wed., July 16, to Fri., July 18, at Western Michigan University’s Parkview Campus, in Kalamazoo, Michigan.

Sponsored by the International Society of Agile Manufacturers (ISAM), the conference will focus on the latest advances in agile manufacturing methods and business processes.

“This conference provides an excellent opportunity for industrial practitioners, academic researchers, and engineering and business graduate students to update their understanding of agile methods from the design, manufacture, and business process perspectives,” said Dr. Pavel Ikonomov, conference chair and assistant professor in the Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering.

“This conference will encourage both academia and industry to get involved in the free exchange of ideas and to discuss the challenges of agile methodologies,” he said. “The conference will also encourage future collaboration among the members of these groups.”

Ikonomov is looking for “speakers, papers, and participants” in all areas of agile manufacturing. “I know that many with valuable experience do not like to write full papers,” he said. “For this conference, I want everyone to be fully involved.”

Dr. Pavel Ikonomov

According to Ikonomov, the conference will be preceded by a day of interactive workshops to allow delegates to get a deeper understanding of the fundamentals and recent significant advances in agile methodologies.

The conference begins with an opening reception and includes workshops, tutorials, panels, exhibits, technical sessions, and tours. Dinners and other social activities allow for informal networking. Sponsorship opportunities are available for industrial partners.

Topics for the conference include but are not limited to lean manufacturing, flexible manufacturing, rapid and functional full-scale prototyping, reverse engineering, concurrent engineering and PLM, quality assurance and six sigma, and reverse engineering verification and applications.

Other related topics of interest include agile business processes, supply chain management and development, new product development and design, and agility in remote production. Additional topics include empirical methods for assessing lean and agile processes, cross-disciplinary aspects of agility, agile software development, micro/nano manufacturing, and research and applications in the automotive industry.

Those who are interested in making a presentation should contact Ikonomov as soon as possible, and preferably before Wed., June 25.

For more conference information, check out

http://www.wmich.edu/ime/icam2008/

Serving Hotdogs and Jobs at the 2nd Annual Co-op Cookout

2008-06-10T14:28:00.000-04:00

CEAS students devoured more than 500 hotdogs during the 2^ndAnnual Co-op Cookout, a three-hour opportunity for students, career advisers, and employers to meet informally.

Fred Sitkins, CEAS director of co-operative education, coordinated the event, held on the Parkview Campus front lawn. Post Battle Creek and Parker Aerospace donated the hotdogs and accompaniments respectively.

Sitkins attributed the cookout’s success to the “excellent support” provided by CEAS Career & Student Employment Services staff and administration, and to ASME, NSBE, Tau Beta Pi, and Theta Tau volunteers.

The picnic-style eating fest followed a “Co-op Spring Info Session” by Parker, which offered students an afternoon of information on the company and its employment opportunities. Similar information sessions had been offered by Post Battle Creek, Stryker, and Eaton Galesburg for the three weeks preceding the cookout.

Each week, one company spent one afternoon at the CEAS campus. The company’s representatives set up a table-top display in the Parkview lobby in the early afternoon, accepted resumes and met informally for a couple of hours with students.

Then, at about 4:30 p.m., company reps provided a two-hour presentation highlighting the company’s history, products, processes, innovations, goals, and employment expectations. The presentation ended with a Q and A session.

Sitkins said the weekly spring events had been so enthusiastically received that he plans to continue them this fall in a format similar to this spring’s. About 25 to 45 students are expected to attend each event.

“We’re encouraging business and industry reps to connect with engineering and technology students for potential internships, co-ops, and full-time employment,” Sitkins said.

Employers interested in learning more about the fall session program or in scheduling a fall information session should contact Sitkins at fred.sitkins@wmich.edu or Heather Highhouse, CEAS career advisor, at heather.highhouse@wmich.edu

CEAS Showcases Special Projects at First WMU Day

2008-06-03T18:09:00.000-04:00

CEAS students, faculty, and administrators were among the roughly 800 who participated in the first WMU Day held in Lansing on the lawn of Michigan’s Capitol. All WMU colleges showcased projects on the lawn of Michigan’s Capitol in Lansing. Among the CEAS displays were a concrete canoe, a life-sized robot, a solar car, a Formula race car, a hydraulic bike and chair research.

Dr. Tarun Gupta, a professor in the Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering (IME), and a team brought RoboBronco, a six-foot tall robot with a friendly horse face. Gupta mentored a robotic team of area high school students who call themselves the Quantum Ninjas, in the FIRST competition.

WMU’s Sunseeker solar car team, with advisors Abraham Poot and John Kapenga, brought its 2005 entry for up-close examination. The team is preparing its current entry for next month’s 2008 North American Solar Challenge (NASC), a biennial, cross-country, international, intercollegiate 2,400-mile race from Dallas, Texas, to Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Sunseeker is designed and built by students from all academic disciplines.

The Bronco entourage was welcomed by several area legislators, including Rep. Lorence Wenke, who praised the WMU supporters for what he described as a unique and “impressive” presentation.

Industrial Engineering Major is IME’s 2008 Presidential Scholar

2008-05-22T17:15:00.001-04:00

Benjamin L. Smith, of Athens, MI, was the recipient of the Presidential Scholar Award in Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering at Western Michigan University.

As a Presidential Scholar, Smith, whose GPA is 3.95, achieved WMU’s highest academic award. He is the top 2008 graduating scholar of the Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering.

“I am honored to receive such a prestigious award,” he said. “However, the credit really belongs to my classmates, my professors and staff members, and especially my parents for their support and guidance over the past four years.”

The award was presented at the 28th Annual Presidential Scholars Convocation, hosted by WMU President John Dunn. For the event, Smith was joined by IME’s Dr. Bob White, who was Smith’s choice as the most supportive faculty member. “Dr. White’s style of teaching and challenging course work have truly prepared me for the professional environment,” Smith said. “I’ve learned that data are not always perfect and answers are not always in the back of textbooks. We must simply do the best with what we’re presented and be able to effectively communicate our results with the appropriate justifications.”

In April, Smith, a Lee Honors College scholar, earned a BS in Engineering: Industrial.

During his time at WMU, Smith completed internships at DENSO Manufacturing Michigan and Albion Industries, and he served WMU as a research associate and as a teaching assistant.

Smith has been active in numerous professional organizations, including the Institute of Industrial Engineers, American Society of Engineering Management, and APICS-the Association for Operations Management. He also is a member of the Alpha Pi Mu and Tau Beta Pi engineering honor societies and participates in various volunteering activities.

Five Inducted into 2007 Alumni Excellence Academy

2008-05-15T14:34:00.001-04:00

Kalamazoo’s Park Club was the setting for the inauguration ceremony of five new members inducted into the 2007 Alumni Excellence Academy last month. WMU President John Dunn joined the CEAS Executive Committee and CEAS Dean Tim Greene in honoring the recipients, who have impressive credentials.

Dr. Nick Triantafillopoulos (BSE `81 and MS `85, Paper Engineering), Director of Technology for Performance Chemicals at OMNOVA Solutions, Inc. and one of the company’s two Fellows, also serves on the OMNOVA Foundation board – which distributes $1.1 million annually in education grants, and the TAPPI Coating and Graphic Arts Steering Council.

A world recognized expert in coating process technologies and rheology, Triantafillopoulos has won OMNOVA’s Eagle of Excellence chairman’s award. An author of numerous books and papers, he selected WMU for its paper science and engineering program.

Rod Smith (MS `81, Computer Science), an IBM Fellow and Vice President of Internet Emerging Technologies, IBM Software Group, is a recognized technical leader in the industry. His team’s technological innovations and cross-industry collaborations have enabled the rapid adoption of technologies such as Web Services, XML, Linux, Java and most recently, Ajax and Do-it-yourself application platforms.

Smith enjoys a sustained record of achievements in the software business with his ability to identify key emerging technologies. Companies that have sought his expertise include O’Reilly, JP Morgan Chase, Disney, Reuters, CNN/Turner, AMEX, and Lockheed Martin. Smith has earned many awards including IBM’s Thomas J. Watson, Jr. Design Excellence Award.

Dr. Arvon (Arv) Byle (BS `61 and MS `63, Industrial Education), a WMU professor in the Department of Paper and Printing Science and Engineering, retired in 1996. In addition to teaching, he had served as department chair for eight years. An expert in rotogravure and flexographic packaging and publication printing, he served on many committees, provided consulting services, traveled abroad as an industry/education advocate, and served students in various capacities.

Byle loved classroom teaching. He also recruited students nationally for WMU. In 1995, he won WMU’s Distinguished Service Award, and when he retired, a Medallion Scholarship was awarded in his name.

Fred Lawrence (BS `70, Electrical Engineering), a venture partner for Shepherd Ventures and California Capital, the chair of Silicon Systems and Ceyx Technologies, and the director for Avaax, is a member

of the Board of Directors for the San Diego State University Business School and the Florida Council of 100. He started his career telecommunications at AT&T, where he worked while attending college.

Lawrence has also served as CEO, Sprint’s Florida Telephone Operations; president, Transmission Group of ADC Telecommunications; CEO, ComStream; and CEO, Adaptive Broadband Corp.

Curt Shaneour (BS `59, Aviation Maintenance), president/CEO of the Shane Group in Hillsdale, MI, is a charter member of the Presidents’ Forum for the Center for Entrepreneurship at Eastern Michigan University. The four-year US Air Force veteran is presently president of the Hillsdale County Industrial Development Commission and the former mayor of Hillsdale.

Shaneour has been recognized by Omicron Delta Kappa (academic and leadership fraternity) and the State of Michigan Legislature and has won the Hillsdale Community Service Award and the Hillsdale College “Charger Award.” His charitable interests include the Hillsdale Junior Achievement and the Hillsdale Chamber of Commerce.

The Alumni Excellence winners were selected by the CEAS Executive Committee from nominations submitted by alumni, administrators, and faculty. More information on the awards and the 2008 nominations is available at http://www.wmich.edu/engineer/alumni.htm

** CEAS finance analyst Laura Decker prepared the induction ceremony program used for information featured in this e-News.

CEAS Directs Engineering Sessions for KAMSC Students

2008-05-06T19:28:00.000-04:00

About 130 high school students from the Kalamazoo Area Math and Science Center (KAMSC) held classes for two days last semester at WMU’s College of Engineering and Applied Sciences’ Parkview Campus. Several CEAS faculty provided the KAMSC juniors and seniors with sessions on a variety of topics related to engineering and applied sciences.

Dr. Osama Abudayyeh, CEAS associate dean, and Scot Conant, CEAS student outreach and recruitment coordinator, arranged the event with Dr. John Goudie, director of KAMSC research. The activity was the first of what could become an ongoing event. “The students were very happy with the sessions,” Abudayyeh said.

Dr. Brad Bazuin, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE), lectured on recent research on Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), the automatic identification method that stores data and retrieves it remotely. Drs. Frank Severance, Damon Miller, John Gesink, and Raghe Gejji, all ECE faculty, coordinated sessions that provided an activity in which student built and tested an electronic coin tosser.

Dr. Dean Johnson (ECE) led a session on iPod Deconstruction and Dr. Janos Grantner (ECE) presented a session on digital logic.

Dr. Jan Pekarovic - Department of Paper Engineering, Chemical Engineering, and Imaging (PCI) - offered sessions on paper testing. Other PCI-directed sessions included fiber microscopy by Dr. Matt Stoops and thermo response by Dr. Harold Hladky.

Dr. Pavel Ikonomov, Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering (IME) demonstrated the CNC machine, and Slobodan Urdarevik (IME) presented sessions on 3D Solid Modeling in AutoCAD.

Dr. Karlis Kaugars, CAE director, introduced games programming.

Dr. Jun-Seok Oh, Department of Civil and Construction Engineering (CCE), directed sessions in the Intelligent Transportation in Civil Engineering. Dr. Hubo Cai (CCE) offered an activity in rapid global positioning.

Department of Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering (MAE) faculty provided several sessions. Dr. Parviz Merati and MAE grad student Charles Davis presented fluid measurements with pulse lasers, and Dr. Koorosh Naghshineh demonstrated concepts in the Noise and Vibration lab. Dr. Murali Ghantasala participated in sessions in the Micro/Nano Technology lab.

Abudayyeh is looking forward to future exchanges with KAMSC. “Since this one involved juniors and seniors, we would have to either do younger students next year or wait two years and invite juniors and seniors again,” he said. For more information, email osama.abudayyeh@wmich.edu

IME Honors the 2008 Top Scholars at Clausing Luncheon

2008-04-22T15:21:00.000-04:00

IME’s top graduate and undergraduate students were honored this month at the annual Student Recognition Luncheon provided by Clausing Industrial Inc., which has been supporting IME programs for 55 years.

IME Departmental Outstanding Undergraduate Students
(L to R ): Jason Klein (MFT), James Vlieg (EGR), Courtney Rawlings (EGR), Shannon Bowerson (IEN), Michael Sell (UEM), with IME Chair Paul Engelmann and Dean Tim Greene. Absent: Robert Barden (EGR)

Dr. David Lyth, IME professor, emceed the ceremony honoring IME’s top students in all programs: under-graduate: engineering graphics and design (EGR), industrial engineering (IEN), manufacturing technology (MFT), and engineering management (UEM) and graduate – Ph.D. in industrial engineering and master’s – industrial engineering (IENM), engineering management (ENMN), manufacturing (MNEM), and operations research (OPRN).

IME Departmental Outstanding Graduate Students
(L to R ): IME Chair Paul Engelmann, Elizabeth Evans (OPRN), Michael Hoonhorst (IENM), Jay Morrison and William Crocker (ENMN), Jai Thomas (IE Ph.D.), Dean Tim Greene, and Adil Abdelwahab (MNEM).

CEAS Dean Tim Greene and IME Chair Paul Engelmann assisted in the presentation of awards in a ceremony that included paying tribute to the officers and IME advisors of seven student societies and three IME student honor societies. Engelmann referred to the award winners and society officers as “future leaders” and encouraged them to use their gifts to improve that future.

Presidential Scholar: Benjamin Smith (third from left) is IME’s 2008 top scholar. With the IEN major are (from left) IME Chair Paul Engelmann, Dr. Bob White, and Dean Tim Greene. White was Smith’s choice as outstanding faculty member.

IME Dean’s Outstanding Students with Faculty Choices
From left Dr. Sam Ramrattan (MFT), Jason Klein (MFT), Dr. Bob White (IEN), Ashley Bazzana (IEN), IME Chair Paul Engelmann, Mr. Joe Petro (UEM), Dr. Mitch Keil (EGR), Brad Tudor (EGR), and Dean Tim Greene. Absent: Matt Spenceley (UEM)

The event was organized by Tom Swartz, who chairs the Scholarship and Awards Committee. Klaz Welch and Mary Fosburg and the IME office were acknowledged for their support in organizing the luncheon.

WMU Chapter Wins an Award at Regional IIE Conference

2008-03-27T15:17:00.000-04:00

Attending the regional IIE Conference were (left to right): Row 1 David Treier, Ben Smith, Krisana Gutierrez, and Aarti Valsadia; Row 2: Ella Lambrix; Row 3: Wen Ken Loh, Yenni Chen, Alisha Hankins, Mariam Ouazar, and Prachi Chandrana; Row 4: Eric Drzerwicki, Rob Cookingham, Bryan Dopkins, Shannon Bowerson, and Ashley Bazanna; Row 5: Evan Maltas, Dr. Steven Butt, Matt Pridgeon, and Dr. Tycho Fredericks

Last month, 17 industrial engineering students - all members of WMU’s IIE chapter who ranged from freshmen to seniors - attended the Great Lakes Region IV Institute of Industrial Engineers Conference (IIE) at the University of Louisville in Louisville, Kentucky.

Yenni Chen, an IE sophomore, won third place in a competition to determine the best technique to sort a deck of cards and place them in order. “Yenni did an incredible job using our IE skills to come up with the best procedure to sort the cards,” said Shannon Bowerson, an IE senior who serves as IIE president. For her accomplishment, Chen received a check from the University of Louisville Student Chapter.

The group also heard several speakers and technical paper presentations and toured the Louisville Slugger factory. “We all received a free Louisville Slugger bat and a group picture with the giant bat in front of the factory,” Bowerson said.

The other IE students who attended the regional conference include Ashley Bazanna, Prachi Chandrana, Rob Cookingham, Bryan Dopkins, Eric Drzerwicki, Krisana Gutierrez, Alisha Hankins, Ella Lambrix, Wen Ken Loh, Evan Maltas, Mariam Ouazar, Matt Pridgeon, Ben Smith, David Treier, and Aarti Valsadia.

Accompanying the students were Dr. Steven Butt and Dr. Tycho Fredericks, professors in the Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering (IME) who serve as advisors to the WMU IE Chapter. “We really appreciate everything they [advisors] do for us,” Bowerson said.

WMU’s IIE chapter toured Louisville Slugger factory, where
everyone received a bat and this photo

“We also appreciate and want to thank the IME department and the Dean [Dr. Tim Greene] for their generosity and the support that allowed us to attend this conference,” Bowerson said.

IME Night Showcases Programs with Facts, Fun, and Food

2008-02-27T14:09:00.000-05:00

To showcase IME’s four undergraduate programs, the IME department held its second annual IME Night. IME students and professors provided lots of pizza in an informal setting to discuss and answer questions about industrial and entrepreneurial engineering (IEE), manufacturing engineering technology (MFT), engineering management technology (UEM), and engineering graphics and design technology (EGR).

Ilgin Acar (right), IE Ph.D. student, reviews chair research with Case Bonebrake, who came to IME Night to explore options and who won the
door prize, a WMU chair.

Slobodan Urdarevik, IME faculty, coordinated the event. Activities included games, lab tours, research displays, and networking opportunities with faculty, students, and representatives of two area companies Enhancing the fun was a variety of pizza, soda, and treats.

Torrey Cook (left), associate human resource manager for General Foods’ Post Cereal, talks to Wes Moon, an undecided CEAS student. Post is a major
contributor to WMU and CEAS.

Torrey Cook, an associate human resource manager for General Foods’ Post Cereals, and Anton Lorentz III, a technology team leader from Parker Hannifin Corp., the Parker Aerospace Group, The Hydraulics System Division, discussed what engineers do in the workplace. Cook also answered questions of presently enrolled IME students about resumes and life after graduation.

As Trent Kenworthy (left), an IME teaching assistant majoring in IE,
looks on, IME professor Dr. Tarun Gupta (second from left) explains a
robot to two undecided students who attended IME Night. The robot
was designed and built by a team of area high school students for the
2008 FIRST regional competition next month.

IME students and faculty set up tables to showcase IME programs, products, and organizations and to answer questions. Ongoing chair research being done by IME’s Human Performance Institute was displayed so that participants could examine a chair used to produce computerized images of the pressure points a person exerts when he or she sits. Furthermore, some Parkview Campus engineering labs were open for guided tours and demonstrations

IME faculty Dr. Tarun Gupta (left) and Slobodan Urdarevik, discuss
IME programs with Kevin Megee (right), an undecided CEAS engineering student. Urdarevik coordinated IME Night.

Urdarevik credited the IME professors, staff, and students for the event’s success. Special thanks were offered to Troy Place, who emailed over 160 invitations, Fred Sitkins, who invited the corporate representatives, and the IME office staff: Klaz Welch, Mary Fosburg, Marji VanHoorelbeke, and John Jacobs for their efforts in procuring food and preparing publicity materials. “Many contributed to this event,” Urdarevik said.

Casting Spells with High School Students at Summer Workshop

2007-07-17T13:08:00.000-04:00

Last month, IME professor Dr. Sam Ramrattan hosted a weeklong metal-casting workshop for nine high school students from areas around Detroit, Ann Arbor, and Saginaw, Michigan; Cleveland, Parma, and Defiance, Ohio; and Windsor, Ontario. He has been offering the annual hands-on workshops for up to 15 area tenth-through-twelfth-grade students for the last eight summers.

Dr. Sam Ramrattan (right) and Adil Abdelwahab (second from right in back), an IME graduate student, pose with nine high school students who attended the 2007 summer metal casting short course at WMU

During the students’ five-day campus visit, Ramrattan, a technical advisor to the American Foundrymen's Society and a Key Professor for the Foundry Educational Foundation, directs activities in the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Parkview Campus Metal Casting Laboratory.

Workshop topics include metal casting history, trends, and the relationship of manufacturing (molding, melting, filling, and finishing), engineering, quality, purchasing, marketing, and sales of castings. The students explore the use of computers, math, and science in metal casting.

In addition to their lab and course work, the students meet with WMU administrators to discuss university entrance requirements and expectations and with professionals from the foundry industry to review career opportunities in metal casting.

Field trips to metal casting industries provide students with opportunities to see real-world technology and to meet with professionals. This year’s attendees toured Metal Technologies’ Three Rivers Gray Iron Plant, and Contech’s die casting facilities in Dowagiac, MI. They also enjoyed activities in the Kalamazoo / Portage metro area.

Students who attend the program are sponsored by various chapters of the American Foundry Society (AFS) and the North American Die Casting Association (NADCA). Students are selected on the basis of an aptitude for math and science. There is no cost to the students, who stay in WMU dorms and enjoy campus life.

Dr. Sam Ramrattan supervises as two students pour molten aluminum into sand molds that they had prepared. Other high school students, seated behind the protective barrier, took turns donning safety apparel and making their own sand castings.

WMU has had a casting metal program in various engineering curricula since the college opened over 100 years ago. Its most recent accreditation began in 1992 when Ramrattan joined the faculty. It is currently an option in all IME undergraduate programs. “Our goal is to produce hands-on engineers as an integral part of what we do in manufacturing engineering programs,” he said.

Saginaw high school students Steve Trombley (left) and Rollin Carter prepare a sand mold that they will use to create sand castings from molten aluminum.

Ramrattan specializes in material and process improvement emphasizing casting and non-traditional manufacturing processes. For more information, contact him at sam.ramrattan@wmich.edu

ANTEC Offers Fun and Futuristic Visions of the World of Plastic

2007-07-03T13:11:00.000-04:00

Five members of WMU’s student chapter of the Society of Plastics Engineering (SPE) attended the society’s Annual Technical Conference (ANTEC) in Cincinnati, OH, in May. WMU Engineering Graphics and Design Technology (EGR) seniors Josh Leyrer, Jim Gabriel, Courtney Rawlings, Lauren Lambert, and Jim Vlieg were accompanied by IME Department Chair Paul Engelmann and Jay Shoemaker, IME adjunct professor and Moldflow, Inc., employee.

ANTEC, the world’s largest plastics conference, included four days of technical presentations covering all concentrations of the plastics engineering field. “I’m really interested in plastics, and this conference was THE conference for plastics,” Lambert said. “We learned about plastics from many perspectives.”

Presentation topics included process optimization methods, overcoating improvements, bioplastics, shear-thickening fluids, the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, and nanotechnology. Presenters included university professors, research and industrial professionals from all over the world.

Vlieg enjoyed the “especially interesting” presentation on bioplastics. “With oil prices rising, plastics derived from other sources could be the future of the industry,” he said. Lambert was “wowed” by the presentation on nanocomposities. “I would really like to learn more about them and their potential,” she said.

Five WMU students attended ANTEC student activities night, which included two hours of games. At right, WMU students (from left) Jim Gabriel, Jim Vlieg and Lauren Lambert. enjoy virtual bowling. “We had two hours of any game we wanted to play,” Lambert said. In addition Gabriel won a pair of Oakley sunglasses in a raffle.

Students learned about the latest technologies and developments in plastics at Plastics Encounter, an exhibition set up by plastics companies.

WMU SPE group enjoy an ANTEC networking social. From left, clockwise: Dr. Paul Engelmann, Lauren Lambert, Josh Leyrer, Jay Shoemaker, Courtney Rawlings, Jim Vlieg, and Jim Gabriel.

Evenings included several social events. Formal and informal socials gave the students and professors opportunities to form networking connections with others in the industry. One evening also included a Moldflow-sponsored student activities night at a local gaming center.

Students were selected for the trip based on individual application essays. They wrote formal proposals for travel support to the conference as well as trip reports on their ANTEC activities and professional development upon their return.

"I'm glad that I was given the opportunity to go to this event to further my learning in the plastics field," Rawlings said.

The trip was sponsored in full by a grant for support of lifelong learning and supplied to the school by the Alcoa Foundation, through EPC/Alcoa in Mattawan. The grant supports the professional development and global awareness of students in engineering technology programs.

Dr. Betsy Aller, IME associate professor, is principal investigator of the grant.

Mattawan Math Students Turn Numbers into Goblets

2007-06-19T13:14:00.000-04:00

Mattawan High School students enrolled in Nancy Garman’s calculus classes were recently challenged to design a goblet using their math skills. The students’ computational responses were then sent to Dr. Mitchel Keil, an IME professor, who created prototype goblets from the students’ work.

Nancy Garman (standing), a 21-year veteran calculus teacher at Mattawan High School, reviews 16 goblet prototypes made by Dr. Mitchel Keil (seated) on a rapid prototyping machine (shown in the foreground). The prototypes are based on equations prepared by Mattawan High School math students

“This was a little end-of-the-year project to design a goblet,” Garman said. “Making the prototypes added a realistic dimension to the math.”

Garman’s 48 advanced math students were organized into 16 groups of three and required to produce the calculations for a goblet that met two criteria: the goblet had to be made with a specific amount of material and the goblet had to be able to hold a specific amount of liquid. She worked with Mattawan’s drafting teacher and CAD teacher on the project.

“The students had to design a goblet with those specifications using not only this year’s calculus, but also a lot of translations, scale changes, and what they had learned in functions last year,” Garman said.

The students used Pro-E, a computer-aided design software program that creates solid models. They also maintained engineering notebooks about the process they used and prepared a final report.

Although the computations were sent to Keil, he credits Jai Thomas, a Ph.D. graduate assistant, with doing the actual work of making the prototypes.

Thomas used the rapid prototyping machine in the Center for Integrated Design at WMU’s College of Engineering and Applied Sciences at Parkview Campus. The process of making the 16 goblets took about seven hours.

According to Keil, the rapid prototyping machine creates prototypes – made from cornstarch – layer by layer using the computer calculations. “The process of getting the student design files to the machine is actually kind of simple,” he said.

Keil was generally impressed with the prototypes. “Several goblets are very close to meeting the criteria,” he said. “Only one seems a little small and one definitely seems very large.”

The prototype goblets were returned to the students who reviewed their computations and reported on any problems. “We pick apart their mathematics to discover what they did wrong,” Garman said.

Garman, a 21-year veteran math teacher, first used prototypes a year ago when her calculus students completed a similar project as part of a National Science Foundation grant study led by WMU engineering professor Dr. Andrew Kline. His grant project was completed last year, but this year’s advanced math students at Mattawan had heard rave reviews from last year’s students and wanted to do a similar project.

“The kids really liked doing this last year,” Garman said. “They gained a lot of understanding from the actual prototypes.”

The Mattawan Foundation was credited for providing grant funds for this year’s project, and Garman said that if funding is available, she plans to do a similar project next year. “This is very valuable for the students,” she said.

---Story and photos courtesy of Kalamazoo Gazette

Engineering Management Major Selected as IME Presidential Scholar

2007-06-05T13:17:00.000-04:00

Melissa Saltzman, an April 2007 graduate of the IME Engineering Management Technology (UEM) program with a minor in Integrated Supply Management, was the IME choice as the 2007 WMU Presidential Scholar and as the 2007 CEAS Dean’s Scholar.

As a Presidential Scholar, Saltzman, who earned a 3.95 GPA, achieved the highest academic honor that can be attained by a WMU student. She is the top 2007 graduating scholar of the Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering Department. “I appreciate the support and encouragement I received from my professors, classmates, and most importantly, my family,” she said.

The Presidential award was presented at the 27th Annual Presidential Scholars Convocation, hosted by WMU Provost Janet Pisaneschi, and the Dean’s award was given at a special luncheon given by CEAS Dean Tim Greene.

For each event, Saltzman selected IME’s Dr. David Lyth as the most supportive faculty member and her choice to celebrate with her.

Saltzman has been an intern at Summit Polymers Engineering since 2005. “Being an intern has helped teach me a lot about the engineering world,” she said. “I feel that experiencing first-hand the fast-paced, high-quality demands of the auto industry has really helped me appreciate the knowledge I’m gaining from school.”

At the 27th Annual Presidential Scholars Convocation (left to right) IME professor David Lyth, Provost Janet Pisaneschi, IME Presidential Scholar Melissa Saltzman, and Faculty Senator John Jellies

For her senior design project, Saltzman and her team mates, Zachary Armstrong and Andrew Nowak, worked on designing a feasibility analysis of mobile incineration to process certain kinds of medical waste in the state of Michigan. Mobile Incinerator New Venture Analysis was presented on April 17 at the Senior Engineering Design Conference held at the Parkview Campus.

A Lee Honors College member from 2003 to 2005, Saltzman also belongs to many honor societies. Her scholarships include the MEAP, Heart of Cook, WMU Academic, George R. Kohrman, and Engineering Week, and she also won the Fall 2006 IEEE Writing Contest. She is a member of the Society of Women Engineers, and she has volunteered as a Glad-Peach Fest Children’s Day Game Designer since 2000.

Saltzman’s future plans include continuing her education at WMU in pursuit of a master’s in engineering management technology with a possible focus on supply chain and perhaps a Ph.D. in operations. “The prospect of being able to help generate plans that will lead to savings in not only time and money, but also precious resources and energy really excites me,” she said. “I look forward to being able to apply what I learn in school to the real world.”

Saltzman would like to remain in Southwest Michigan. “Someday I may also want to consider becoming a college professor,” she said. “I’d like to encourage girls to get involved in the sciences.”

First Book Signing Planned for Troy Place’s First Novel

2007-05-22T13:19:00.000-04:00

Troy Place, an IME faculty specialist, will be holding the first local book signing for his debut novel Pizza Pie and Politics: How Mitchell Moon Lost His Childhood at the Barnes and Noble on South Westnedge in Portage on Sat., May 26, from 2 to 4 p.m. The novel – which takes place in Battle Creek, MI, and Chicago – was released in January by Publish America of Baltimore, MD.

Cynthia Halderson, Senior Research Assistant for Science and Mathematics Program Improvement, described Pizza Pie and Politics as “a coming-of-age story of a college graduate and two buddies who decide to spend one last summer in the pizza shop where they’ve worked since high school.” They postpone self-awareness, relationships, and careers in favor of “a few more months of ritualized guy stuff.” She called the novel “a good read – well-crafted, funny as slapstick at times, and faithful to the bumpy road of human understanding.”

Writing has always been one of Place’s goals, and he has already published several pieces. Two of his short stories have been published in literary magazines, one in the Dickinson Review, a Dickinson College publication in Pennsylvania, and one in Xero, a literary magazine in Florida. Three of his poems have also been published.

Place has also written about 10 articles for Salem Press, an encyclopedia company, on a variety of topics including writer Jim Harrison, playwright David Auburn, murder-mystery writer Stuart Woods, Ford Foundation history, the Sydney Harbor Bridge, the Air Force X-20 Dinosaur project (a precursor to the Space Shuttle), and CAD-CAM technology.

Among his other writings are conference proceedings and a journal article about Orwell’s 1984 in Explicator. He recently submitted a journal article to Writing Across the Curriculum. “It’s about getting students to track down original information” and based on what Place had discussed in class.

Inspiration for Pizza Pie and Politics came to him at a wedding reception one summer when he and his friends seemed to be serving as groomsmen on an almost bi-weekly basis. “One of my friend’s dads suggested we hire ourselves out as groomsmen,” he said. He originally planned to write a book of short stories. “I thought that this story would be the fifth in a book of short stories, but once I had completed about fifty pages of it, I realized that I had a novel,” he said.

IME faculty specialist Troy Place with a copy of his first novel, Pizza Pie and Politics: How Mitchell Moon Lost His Childhood, a coming-of-age-story that takes place in Battle Creek and Chicago

One of his favorite writers is Jim Harrison, the former Sports Illustrated writer of Legends of the Fall. “I’ve read a lot of him since college,” Place said. He also enjoyed Charles Dickens. “I read a lot of Dickens in college and his work has led to my writing about young people,” Place said.

Prior to accepting a full-time position in the IME department in 2003, Place taught writing and communication classes part-time for WMU in the IME and English departments, freshman comp and research writing at Kellogg Community College, and English at Kalamazoo Valley Community College.

Place earned a bachelor’s degree in English and a master’s degree in critical studies in the teaching of English at Michigan State University. He and his wife, Nicole Place, reside in Battle Creek with their two children: Amara, 6, and Colton, 1.

Pizza Pie and Politics can be purchased at Publish America.com. Amazon.com, and Barnes and Noble.com. or ordered at any Barnes and Noble.

Place has not yet started a new novel, but he is considering it. “I’m thinking it will be something related to high school and basketball,” he said. He can be reached via email: troy.place@wmich.edu

Clausing Serves up Another Annual Awards Luncheon for Top IME Scholars

2007-05-08T13:23:00.000-04:00

The IME Annual Student Recognition Luncheon paid tribute to IME’s top graduate and undergraduate students, seven professional societies, and three honor societies. Clausing Industrial Inc., which has been supporting IME programs for 54 years, provided the lunch.

Some of IME’s top students: (from left ): Murray Swoish (EGR), Shannon Bowerson (IEN), Meike Pamplone (GEM), J. D. Steinmetz (MFT), Lawrence Pitcher (IEN), Dr. Tim Greene (CEAS dean), Ashley Ford (UEM), Anil Kumar (Ph.D.), Brian Sather (MFEG), and Dr. Paul Engelmann (IME chair).

Several students received multiple honors. UEM senior Melissa Saltzman was IME’s Presidential Scholar and the CEAS dean’s UEM scholar and won two scholarships. Lawrence Pitcher (IEN), Murray Swoish (EGR), and John (J. D.) Steinmetz (MFT) were selected as both the IME and CEAS dean’s outstanding students in their respective programs. Pitcher also shared honors for a first-place IIE Region IV Conference paper.

Shannon Bowerson (IEN) earned an outstanding service award and won two scholarships. Jason Klein (MFT) and Ella Lambrix (IEN) each won two awards. A complete list of award winners follows.

IME Departmental Outstanding Students

Undergraduates Murray Swoish EGR

Lawrence Pitcher IEN

John (J.D.) Steinmetz MFT

Ashley Ford UEM

Graduates Meike Pamplone GEM

Brian Sather MFEG

Nikki Crocker IEG

Anil Kumar IE Ph. D.

Outstanding Service Award Shannon Bowerson

Dr. Paul Engelmann, the IME chair, called the students “the future,” and told them, “All people have gifts. You are people with a series of gifts that will lead to better products, better services, and hopefully better lives for all the people you will serve.”

Some of the scholarship winners….

Ù Jim Lester, Clausing Industrial’s inside marketing manager, presents the Clausing Scholarship to freshman Cory Barber.

Jaymi Gonzalez (left), Kellogg Foundation representative, with scholarship winners Ben Smith, Alisha Hankins, Shannon Bowerson, Ashley Bazzana, Bryan Dopkins, and Ella Lambrix. Ú

IME Offers Future Students a View of College Life in Engineering

2007-04-10T13:26:00.000-04:00

IME faculty and students recently provided an IME Open House for several high school students who have been accepted at WMU for the fall semester. All the students have either applied to an IME engineering or technology program or declared no engineering major.

A dozen IME faculty, led by Dr. Betsy Aller and Fred Sitkins and several WMU students who are enrolled in IME programs, answered questions from the high school students and their parents. “It was a fun, interactive day,” Aller said, “We want to encourage them to come to Western.”

Dr. Betsy Aller (center, facing camera), IME professor, and grad assistant Brian Sather discuss college life with Kim Harms and her parents, Nelson and Cheryl Harms from Kalamazoo

The event began with a pizza lunch which led to tours of several IME labs. IME professor Dr. Pavel Ikonomov led a project in the Fabrication Lab that enabled the visiting students to make a personalized metal object using the computer-controlled plasma cutting system. He also provided a hands-on demonstration of how machines can be controlled by virtual reality.

Brandon Spence (center), a senior in IME’s engineering graphics and design technology (EGR) program, discusses the plastics lab.

In the automotive lab, IME instructor Tom Sutton demonstrated how data on a new Ford Mustang is collected while the vehicle is being run on a chassis dynamometer. In the vehicle lab, James Plocinik, a senior in the engineering graphics technology program, presented the Sunseeker ’05, WMU’s solar car entry in the most recent North American Solar Challenge (NASC), a 2,500- mile race from Austin, Texas, to Calgary, Alberta, held two years ago.

In the plastics lab, Brian Sather led a team that demonstrated how plastic bags are made, and students vacuum formed a WMU license plate.

James Plocinik (center, facing camera), a senior in the IME’s engineering graphics and design technology program (EGR), discusses Sunseeker ’05, the WMU solar powered car and design award winner in 2005 NASC race.

The IME department offers four undergraduate programs – industrial engineering (IEN), engineering graphics and design technology (EGR), manufacturing engineering technology (MFT), and engineering management technology (UEM) – three master’s programs – industrial engineering (IEG), manufacturing engineering (MNE), engineering management (GEM) – and a Ph.D. in industrial engineering.

IME students who answered questions and served as tour guides included Lauren Lambert (EGR), Josh Leyrer (EGR), Madeline McAuley (EGR), Ryan Miller (MFT), James Plocinik (EGR), Courtney Rawlings (EGR), Brian Sather (MNE), Anthony Serge (MFT), Brandon Spence (EGR), Dan Switzer (EGR), and Jim Vlieg (EGR).

“I was very gratified to see the level of student support for this event,” Stikins said. “Our students always turn out to be our best ambassadors.”

Other IME faculty who participated included Paul Engelmann, Tycho Fredericks, Tarun Gupta, Mitchel Keil, Joe Petro, Sam Ramrattan, and Tom Swartz.

Carrying tokens of her visit to the IME Open House is Leslie Whitman (center), who came with her parents, Chuck and Sue Whitman from Augusta

Aller and Sitkins were pleased with the enthusiasm of the parents and students. “This was indeed a rewarding event for all,” Sitkins said.

Area Boy Scouts Earn Drafting Badges in WMU Workshop

2007-03-27T13:29:00.000-04:00

Boy Scouts from Vicksburg and Schoolcraft went to college to learn about engineering drafting. In two three-hour sessions at WMU’s College of Engineering and Applied Sciences’ Parkview Campus, 14 scouts examined engineering drawing from two perspectives, by hand and with computer-aided design (CAD).

Slobodan Urdarevik (left), the lead engineering graphics faculty member at Western Michigan University’s College of Engineering and Applied Sciences, assists David Pauli, 14, a ninth-grader in Vicksburg Troop 251, with AutoCAD drawing.

WMU’s Slobodan Urdarevik, the lead faculty member in the engineering graphics classes in the IME department, provided the instruction with the help of student teaching assistant volunteers. “Working with these scouts has been very exciting,” he said.

As part of the requirements for the drafting badge, the Scouts, who ranged from 11 to 15 years old, completed a third angle orthographic projection showing the front, top, and right side views of an object. “In order to draw any object either by hand or in CAD, we need to know these three views of a part,” Urdarevik said. “These are basic.”

By hand, the scouts learned to transfer measurements from the part to the drawing, to use symbols, and to show dimensions. They took width, depth, and height measurements of the part and determined the location and diameter of a hole in the part. “We learned drafting a design and a block on paper,” said David Pauli, 14, a ninth-grader in Vicksburg’s Troop 251.

One week later, the scouts returned to a WMU computer lab where they drew the same part they’d drawn the week before except that they used AutoCAD, an electronic drafting program. WMU students Jonathan Zolp, a second-year aeronautical engineering student from Paw Paw; David Schmidt, a second-year civil engineering student from Rochester Hills; and Jaime Rodriguez, a mechanical engineering senior from Three Rivers, volunteered to assist the scouts. All three presently serve as undergraduate teaching assistants (TAs) in the engineering graphics course.

Kris Peck (left, front), 12, a seventh-grader from Vicksburg Troop 251, gets AutoCAD assistance from David Schmidt, a second-year civil engineering student from Rochester Hills, while Logan Pauli, 12, also a seventh-grader from Vicksburg Troop 251, attends to his own drawing. In second row (left to right) are Deric Blanchett, 11, a sixth-grader from the same troop, and Jaime Rodriguez, a mechanical engineering senior from Three Rivers, and Cody Sherman, 12, a seventh-grader from the same troop. In the third row on the left is Andy Lovell (left), 13, from Schoolcraft Troop 254. Standing in the back of the room is Slobodan Urdarevik, the lead engineering graphics faculty member at WMU.

Many scout merit badges are introductions to various careers, and Urdarevik reviewed the Boy Scout merit badge book on drafting to be sure that the sessions would enable the scouts to meet all the badge requirements. “In a very short period of time, they learn many things very quickly,” he said.

“Coming here has been great,” Vicksburg Troop 251 leader Mike Gerry said.

This is the first time Urdarevik has offered the drafting sessions for scouts, but he is interested in providing instruction for other scouts to earn the drafting badge.

“I hope there will be more requests because I think learning about drafting is beneficial for the scouts, and it’s also good for them to come here to the college.” Those interested in scheduling sessions should contact him at slobodan.urdarevik@wmich.edu

---Story and photos courtesy of the Kalamazoo Gazette

WMU Chapter Wins Awards at Regional IIE Conference

2007-03-13T13:31:00.000-04:00

The WMU chapter of the Institute of Industrial Engineers [IIE] won several awards last month at the 2007 IIE Region IV Conference held at Ohio State University, in Columbus, OH.

IME professors and IIE advisors Dr. Steven Butt, current IIE Region IV vice president, and Dr. Tycho Fredericks, current IIE Region IV assistant vice president for student development, accompanied 19 WMU students to the event.

Four WMU students won first and third place honors for two papers presented in the technical paper contest.

Seniors John Knapp, Michael Kruse, and Lawrence Pitcher took the top prize for a paper based on their senior design project. "Analysis of Forecasted Capacity Utilization Through a Simulated Environment of an Outpatient Pharmacy."

The paper explores a Southwestern Michigan hospital's outpatient pharmacy and uses work design and a simulated environment to develop models, analyses, and recommendations to improve the workflow and customer wait time.

To complete the project, the students used several exploratory tools to uncover the items that were adversely affecting productivity, efficiency, and customer wait time. The seniors will compete on May 20, 2007, at the national conference in Nashville.

Attending 2007 IIE Region IV Conference, left to right, front row: Benjamin Smith, Ella Lambrix, Alisha Hankins, Aarti Valsadia, and Krisana Gutierrez; second row: John Knapp, Robert Cookingham, Ashley Bazzana, Larry Pitcher, Dr. Steven Butt, Melanie Zaleski, Shannon Bowerson, and Michael Kruse; third row: Dimas Insani, Anthony Moguel, Matthew Pridgeon, Dr. Tycho Fredericks, Bryan Dopkins, Eric Drzewicki, and Jason Saksewski.

Senior Jason R. Saksewski won third place with “Process Design and Improvement: Primary and Finish Broaching Operations,” a paper based on his experiences as an intern.

The WMU group also won awards for having more students in attendance than any other travelling chapter and for travelling farther than any other chapter. “We are very excited about how the conference turned out,” said Shannon Bowerson, president of WMU IIE chapter.

Winning awards in the technical paper contest at the 2007 IIE conference are (left to right) Larry Pitcher, John Knapp, and Michael Kruse, who won first place and the right to compete at the national conference in Nashville in May, and Jason Saksewski, who won third.

Other IIE Region IV universities include Dayton University, Kettering University, Ohio University, Purdue University, University of Louisville, University of Michigan – Ann Arbor, University of Michigan – Dearborn, University of Toledo, Wayne State University, Wright State University, and Youngstown State University.

This year’s regional conference, with its “Think Global” theme, included social networking, team-building events, a panel discussion on post-graduation opportunities, and several prominent speakers including Dr. Deborah J. Nightingale (MIT – Lean Aerospace Initiative), Dr. Scott Sink (VP, MTS Corp.), Dr. Seth Bonder (CEO, VRI), and Ms. Darlene Martin (GM, GE-Aviation) .

First IME Night Offers Information and Fun

2007-02-27T12:33:00.000-05:00

The IME department held its first IME Night to showcase IME’s four undergraduate programs: industrial engineering, manufacturing engineering technology, engineering management technology, and engineering graphics and design technology.

Reviewing IME program material are industrial engineering students (left to right) Shannon Bowerson, IE undergrad; Supreeta Amin, IE Ph.D.; Ilgin Acar, IE Ph.D.; and Mike Hoonhorst, IE master’s.

Even though the three-hour event was set for one of the most blustery winter evenings this month, more than 40 IME students and faculty set up tables to showcase IME programs, products, and organizations and to answer questions.

In addition, many Parkview Campus engineering labs were open for guided tours. Participants could also view a computerized image of the pressure points they exert on a chair when they sit down, which is part of ongoing chair research.

Supreeta Amin, IE Ph.D. student, reviews a computer image of the pressure points that Al Reyes Rivera has created in the special chair in which he is sitting. The chair is part of ongoing research by Drs. Tycho Fredericks and Steven Butt.

All undecided engineering majors were invited to meet and discuss careers, school, and anything else with present IME students and faculty and to eat pizza, play games, and win prizes.

Discussing casting products and potential careers are (seated) Jason Klein (baseball cap) and John (J. D.) Steinmetz, IME manufacturing engineering technology seniors.

According to Dr. Steven Butt, an associate professor in the IME department who helped to coordinate the event with the IME department student chapters, several students requested more information about IME programs. “In spite of the weather, it was a very good night,” he said. “The interaction between the students and faculty within the department was great!”

IME professors Joe Petro and Kailash Bafna were two of many IME professors who attended IME Night to meet, greet, and discuss IME programs. Petro is an advisor in IME’s Manufacturing Engineering Technology and Engineering Management Technology programs.

Also pleased with the event was Dr. Paul Engelmann, IME chair. “This was clearly a positive event for our current students, and I, for one, had a good time,” he said.

Plans are in the works to offer IME Night in subsequent semesters.

FEF Conference Offers Students Opportunity to Network in Metal Casting Industry

2007-01-12T12:35:00.000-05:00

Six IME students attended the 2006 Foundry Educational Foundation College Industry Conference (FEF CIC) held last November with Dr. Sam Ramrattan, a specialist in material and process and the WMU FEF Key Professor, and Dr. Tim Greene, dean of WMU’s College of Engineering and Applied Sciences.

The 59-year-old conference is held annually in Chicago. The current FEF President is Bill Barrett, president and CEO of Neenah Foundry Co , who was inducted into the CEAS Alumni Excellence Academy in 2006.

The WMU student delegates were Adam Bell (ME), Kyle Manduch (EGR), Ryan Miller (MFT), Charles Ponscheck (MFT), Matthew Rutledge (EGR), and Scott Seckel (MFT).

Ramrattan described the conference as “an exciting event” that actively reaches out to engineering colleges and universities in North America. WMU is one of only 25 in the world to be accredited by this foundation.

Seckel said the conference gave student delegates the opportunity to interact with representatives of companies in the metal casting industry. “There were as many as six delegates from numerous colleges from across the country,” he said. “The information section is structured to connect students to potential employers.”

According to Manduch, an EGR senior, the group spent the first night meeting representatives from a number of companies. “It was a great opportunity not only to meet companies, but to network with others in the metal casting industry,” he said. “It was a fun night, where we [he and Miller] went out and about in downtown Chicago. We ended up at the Signature Room on the top of the Hancock Center, where we enjoyed the beautiful night lights of Chicago while networking with Honda representatives.”
A special feature of this year’s event was a fund-raising silent auction held at the awards banquet in which industry leaders competed to purchase Super Bowl XL football tickets. Proceeds from the auction will benefit students in metal casting programs.

Students attend the conference for the opportunity to win scholarships and to network with representatives from industry. “Companies attend this conference to help promote their names and to look at students who could potentially become part of their teams,” Seckel said.

Representing WMU at the 2006 FEF CIC: front row (l-r) Scott Seckel, Dr. Sam Ramrattan, and Adam Bell and back row (l-r) Charles Ponscheck, Ryan Miller, Kyle Manduch, Matt Rutledge, and Dr. Tim Greene

The conference presentations included an update of current work being done by a recent engineering graduate, a review of changes in the industry from an engineer who has spent his life in the metal casting field, and an overview of positions presently available to graduates in the metal casting field. “The last discussion was primarily about the new wave of technology and the future of casting technology,” Manduch said. “After the conferences, we were able to tour the night life of Chicago.”

Manduch described the conference experience as a “very beneficial” one that seemed like a “family reunion” and offered lifelong learning experiences the students would be unable to get in a class. “It was like a giant metal-casting family,” he said. “Everyone knew everyone else, and I learned stuff I will take with me for the rest of my life.”

Describing his conference experience as “very valuable,” Seckel said he had his first “very tasty” dinner interview, which led to a second interview and a job offer that he accepted as the Casting Engineering Manager at Blackhawk Foundry in Davenport, IA. “The opportunities presented to students like me are the result of attending industry conferences like this,” he said.

EGR Seniors Present “Power Copies” Project at COE Workshop

2006-11-20T12:37:00.000-05:00

Three IME students – all engineering graphics and design technology program (EGR) seniors who graduate in December – accepted an invitation to make a presentation at the CATIA Operators Exchange (COE) Automotive Industry Workshop Technical Conference held last month in Dearborn.

IME students (L–R) Greg Giudici, Josh Brien, and Eric Korbecki
were the only students invited to present at COE conference

In “Putting the Power in Power Copies,” Eric Korbecki, Greg Giudici, and Josh Brien provided an overview of work they did last summer while interning at Johnson Controls, Inc. (JCI). “Our presentation dealt with Knowledge-based Engineering and a form of engineering design in CATIA V5 called power copies,” Korbecki said.

Brien, who interned at the JCI Holland location, explained that “a power copy is a copy of a feature that can be used on a model.”

According to Giudici, who interned at the JCI Plymouth location, the students created power copies as part of the Knowledge-based Engineering (KBE) team at JCI. “Creating power copies saves designers time when they need to use one of the common features,” he said. “Instead of modelling the feature in their part, they simply use the power copy feature.”

For the COE presentation, the students described the processes of creating a power copy, imbedding knowledge into it, and implementing it. Combined with Knowledgeware and engineering rules, a model can be morphed and adapted to its environment. “It’s taking CATIA to the next level,” Giudici said.

According to Korbecki, the students’ design of the workbenches and the applications used were relatively new and advanced. “We considered this an opportunity to show the capabilities of the Knowledgeware workbench in CATIA for rapid and identical creation of common, complex features in a 3D solid model,” he said.

Many concurrent presentations of technical material based on Dassault Systems’ software programs were offered at the workshop. The students’ presentation was part of the Product Design Category at the Beginner, Intermediate level.

“We were the only students to present at this conference,” Korbecki said. “It was a great way to showcase the skills and knowledge we’ve received from Western and from JCI.”

The group credited JCI mentor and KBE team leader Jeff Roark for encouraging the students to speak at the conference. They also expressed their appreciation to JCI co-workers and WMU alumni Dave Burke and Anthony Pulcini for their technical support during the internship.

Attending COE (L-R): JCI’s Jeff Roark, Eric Korbecki,
JCI’s Dave Burke, Greg Giudici, and Josh Brien

In addition to making the presentation, the students also attended presentations on knowledge assets, which is similar to power copies, and product data management (PDM), a virtual data base system. They also participated in a hands-on course for developing 3D solid models at a substantially faster and more efficient rate.

“It was good to get out and see what’s going on in industry,” Brien said.

IME Group Enjoys ANTEC’s Futuristic Perspective of Plastics

2006-08-29T13:41:00.000-04:00

Last May, 11 IME professors, graduate assistants, and students joined up to 5,000 plastics enthusiasts from all over the world at the Annual Technical Conference (ANTEC) sponsored by the Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE) and held in Charlotte, NC.

Described on the SPE Web site as “the leading technical forum for providing cutting-edge technological issues and information pertinent to the needs of the plastics industry,” ANTEC annually offers peer-reviewed technical papers providing plastics professionals “unique inside access to proprietary research and findings.”

IME Chair Dr. Paul Engelmann called ANTEC “the major technical event for plastics.” He said that more than 600 papers were presented in 25 concurrent sessions that ran from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. for three days and for most of a fourth. “The Society’s best international papers for the year are presented at this set of meetings,” he said.

Accompanying Engelmann were IE Ph.D. graduate assistants Kurt Hayden and Jason Trahan; Jay Shoemaker, adjunct assistant professor from Moldflow; and Brian Sather, a master’s candidate graduate assistant in the plastics manufacturing program.

The six undergraduate students who attended – Brian Cervin (MFT), Andrew Dowdy (EGR), Greg Giudici (EGR), John Graver (MFT), Eric Korbecki (EGR), and Ryan Miller (MFT) – served as ushers at technical sessions in lieu of registration fees. The undergraduate students’ travel arrangements were made by Hayden, who also mentored the students throughout the conference.

Funds to send the students to the conference were provided by a grant from the Alcoa Foundation, through EPC/Alcoa in Mattawan. The grant supports the professional development and global awareness of students in engineering technology programs. The students wrote formal proposals for travel support to the conference as well as trip reports on their ANTEC activities and professional development upon their return.

IME Assistant Professor Dr. Betsy Aller is principal investigator of the grant and Professor Dr. Larry Mallak is co-PI. Aller has applied for another EPC/Alcoa grant for the same purpose; it is currently in the process of being approved at the national level.

Trahan presented a paper titled "Why troubleshoot when you can prevent? A Bayesian network approach," which he described as his ”biggest event” of the conference. “I had good turnout for the presentation and good conversations afterwards on the topic,” he said.

In addition to the papers, the event also included a series of special international panels and vendor displays.

The attendees were particularly impressed by the panel discussions, especially one titled “The Plastics Industry in India: The Next Frontier.” Engelmann said, “It furthered my understanding of the maturity of that industry in India as compared to in the US.” Engelmann was also impressed by presentations on nanotechnology, which could revolutionize the way that reinforcing elements are used in plastics.

Attending ANTEC: (FRONT L-R) Brian Cervin, Andrew Dowdy, Jay Shoemaker, Brian Sather, Kurt Hayden, and Dr. Paul Engelmann. (BACK L-R) Greg Giudici, Eric Korbecki, Jason Trahan, John Graver, and Ryan Miller.

The IME students attending ANTEC cited presentations on globalization in the plastics industry and an interactive session on injection molding as among the most interesting and useful sessions. They also noted that many sessions helped them see the relevance of and connections between materials they’d learned in classes.

Several attendees mentioned “Student Recognition Night,” sponsored by several companies including Moldflow, as a fun social activity. Students played arcade games, networked with professionals and attendees from other universities, and received free SolidWorks software.

In their trip reports, students said that the opportunity to travel and interact with IME professors and graduate students was excellent, as was networking with other students and professionals at ANTEC. “After participating in the ANTEC conference, I see that there are so many different directions that the plastics industry has to offer,” Cervin said. “Only at a convention of this magnitude can you appreciate [all these aspects].”

Several students stated they were inspired to present a professional paper at a future ANTEC conference. And all echoed Dowdy’s “Thank you for the continued support and development of engineering students!”

With support from the new EPC/Alcoa grant, IME plans to send several undergraduate students to ANTEC 2007, with the goal of presenting at least one technical paper.

Metal Casting Workshop Sparks Interest of Area High School Students

2006-07-27T13:43:00.000-04:00

Dr. Sam Ramrattan explains the metal casting process to high school students enrolled in the 2006 summer metal casting workshop

Last month, IME professor Dr. Sam Ramrattan hosted a weeklong metal-casting workshop for 10 high school students from Kalamazoo, Coldwater, Saginaw, Grand Rapids, Detroit, and Toledo, Ohio. He has been offering similar hands-on workshops for up to 15 area tenth-through-twelfth-grade high school students during each of the last seven summers.

Field trips to metal casting industries provide students with opportunities to see real-world technology and to meet with professionals. This year’s attendees toured A.C. Foundry in Battle Creek, MI, Metal Technologies’ Three Rivers Gray Iron Plant, and SPX Contech’s die casting facilities in Dowagiac, MI. They also enjoyed activities in the Kalamazoo / Portage metro area.

Dr. Sam Ramrattan and Adil Abdelwahab, an IME graduate student, demonstrate how to pour molten aluminum into sand castings. After the demo, the high school students, who are seated behind the protective barrier, donned safety apparel and made their own sand castings.

WMU has had a casting metal program in various engineering curricula since the college opened over 100 years ago. Its most recent accreditation began in 1992 when Ramrattan joined the faculty. “Our goal is to produce hands-on engineers as an integral part of what we do in manufacturing engineering programs,” he said.

Metal casting is currently a program option in the industrial, manufacturing, graphics, and engineering management programs.

Dr. Sam Ramrattan demonstrates the mold making process

IME Advisory Boards Meet; Local SME Adds $20,000 to Roscoe Douglas Fund

2006-07-11T13:45:00.000-04:00

This spring, the IME’s four advisory boards met to discuss the future education of engineers. The boards, which include representatives from several corporations and organizations and IME faculty, discussed future trends in the workplace and assessed how to meet the changing educational and experiential needs of IME.

Groups re-presenting IME’s four under-grad-uate programs – manufacturing (MFT), engineer-ing graphics (EGR), engineering management (UEM), and industrial engineering (IE) – held meetings following the 38^th Conference on Senior Engineering Design Projects (SEDP).

According to Dr. Mitchel Keil, the IME professor who chairs the EGR board, many members of the boards are WMU alums of the programs for which they now serve as advisors.

The boards considered current changes being suggested to the core curriculum to provide a common first-year program for all incoming freshmen engineering students and to organize them into cohorts. Under consideration also were the need for co-op experiences and international internships and potential changes in foreign language and calculus requirements.

Members also weighed the pros and cons of minors and options, the call to limit programs to 124 credit hours, and the inclusion of a 4 +1 program to allow a student to earn bachelor’s and master’s degrees in five years. They also reviewed enhancing the curriculum with topics such as product data management (PDM) and failure mode effects and analysis (FMEA).

IME professor Fred Sitkins said the MFT board agreed that the goal of education is changing from those proficient in manufacturing engineering to those proficient in manufacturing processes. “They want to hire those who understand the broad processes,” he said

Referencing the SEDP Conference that preceded the advisory meetings, IME professor Dr. Bob White said the IE Board agreed that “the IE projects were the best group of IE projects they’d seen at SEDP.”

SME Scholarship Funds Presented to Foundation

SME members pose with a $20,000 check donated to SME Foundation for scholarships. Left to right are Ron Jones, Dave Steffans, Bruce Burrows, Mitchel Keil, Erik Korbecki, Brian Cervin, Ryan Miller, SME Foundation Representative Bart Aslon, and IME Chair Paul Engelmann

Kalamazoo Chapter 116 of the Society of Manufacturing Engineers (SME) presented a check for $20,000 to the SME Foundation for Roscoe Douglas Scholarships (RDS). Ron Aslon, representing the SME Foundation, accepted the check and thanked the local organization.

In the past, Chapter 116 has supported RDS, which have been awarded by SME to full-time students who maintained a 3.0 GPA in either a manufacturing engineering or a technology program and who attended one of six approved Michigan institutions.

WMU’s most recent RDS recipients are Brian Cervin, Eric Korbecki, and Joshua Weise.

Next year, the IME department’s scholarship and publicity committee will determine how the RDS funds are distributed. Also all future RDS recipients must be WMU students.

The next official advisory board meetings are set for April 2007.

IE senior earns IME’s Presidential and Dean’s scholar awards

2006-06-27T13:46:00.000-04:00

Pamela S. Apotheker earned top senior awards as IME faculty’s choice as both the 2006 WMU Presidential Scholar and the 2006 CEAS Scholar. Her nomination was based on a combination of academic excellence and extracurricular involvement.

The Presidential award was presented at the 26^th Annual Presidential Scholars Convocation, which was hosted by WMU President Judith Bailey, and the Dean’s award was given at a special luncheon given by CEAS Dean Tim Greene. A faculty member of her choice celebrated with Apotheker at each celebration. Dr. Bob White was selected for the Presidential event, and Dr. Azim Houshyar, for the Dean’s event.

“Dr. White and Dr. Houshyar are the dynamic duo of the IME department,” Apotheker said. “They teach well and maintain high standards, and they have the respect of their students.”

Apotheker, who maintained a 3.88 GPA, graduated with a BS in Engineering – Industrial with a minor in mathematics, was one of 47 WMU students from the university’s 48 departments honored as a Presidential Scholar, an award that has been given since 1981.

Before graduating, Apotheker passed the Fundamentals of Engineering Exam, the first of two tests that lead to her becoming a credentialed professional engineer. After working four years in the field, she will be eligible to take the final exam for her PE credential.

For her senior design project, Apotheker and two other seniors completed an analysis of the security checkpoint at the Kalamazoo/Battle Creek International Airport. This project helped the airport determine the additional resources needed to decrease the wait time experienced by passengers.

Apotheker’s memberships include two engineering honor societies: Tau Beta Pi, the engineering honor society, and Alpha Pi Mu, the IE honor society. As a new member to Tau Beta Pi, she won an award and $50 for the “shiniest bent,” which is a small replica of the Tau Beta Pi symbol.

She also chaired WMU’s chapter of the Society of Women Engineers (SWE), served as vice-president of the Institute of Industrial Engineers (IIE), and mentored the Kalamazoo area’s first FIRST competitive robotics team, which won a rookie award.

Left to right: CEAS Dean Dr. Tim Greene, 2006 Presidential and Dean Scholar Pam Apotheker, IME Professor Dr. Bob White, and IME Chair Dr. Paul Engelmann

The Kalamazoo native and a graduate of Kalamazoo Christian High School came to WMU as an undecided engineering major. She selected IE because “it’s people related” and because an IE career would enable her to use her math skills without requiring her to teach. “I knew I wanted to be an engineer, and industrial engineering offered the most,” she said.

As an undergraduate, Apotheker had a summer internship at Cook Nuclear Power Co that she described as “fun.”

Apotheker officially changed her name to Pamela Tkachuk on May 6, when she married Dan Tkachuk, a WMU aviation administration alumnus who works as an operations technician at the Kalamazoo / Battle Creek Airport.

Pam Tkachuk recently began working as a production engineer at Perrigo Company in Allegan. “I deal with and support the day-to-day operations,” she said.

IME students honored at annual Clausing luncheon

2006-05-24T13:48:00.000-04:00

At its annual Clausing Student Recognition Luncheon, the IME Department honored 31 students as winners of several awards and scholarships. The Outstanding Undergraduate Student awards in IME’s four programs went to Scott Seckel (MFT), Erin Brown (IEN), Paul Marsman (EGR), and Quentin Witkowski (UEM).

Pam Apotheker (IEN) was honored as this year’s Presidential Scholar and the Dean’s Outstanding IEN Student. The other winners of Dean’s Outstanding Student Awards were Josh Brien (EGR), Josh Schilling (UEM), and Scott Seckel (MFT).

Six Outstanding Graduate Student awards were given to students in IME’s postgraduate programs: Geoffry Twietmeyer (GEM), Janna Muller (GEM), Gordon Peters (IEG), Olubusola Soyode (OR), Hardik Shah (IE PhD), and Jason Trahan (IE PhD).

Earning an IME Outstanding Service Award were Kayla Goostrey (IEN) and Renae Hoglen (IEN). Goostrey won for her extensive outreach involvement with the Society of Women Engineers, Habitat for Humanity, Alpha Pi Mu, Institute of Industrial Engineers (IIE), and Tau Beta Pi (Engineering Honor Society). Hoglen won for her extensive leadership involvement in IIE.

Erin Brown (IEN) was also acknowledged as one of four Kenneth W. Knight Scholarship winners. The other winners were Supreeta G. Amin (IE PhD), Nikki Crocker (IEG), and Elizabeth Evans (IEN).

Doctoral students Anil Kumar (IE PhD) and Jai Thomas (IE PhD) were honored for winning All-University Scholar awards. Kumar won for his outstanding research and Thomas won for his outstanding teaching.

Luis Hernandez was honored as the winner of the 2005 Clausing Industrial Scholarship, and Melissa Saltzman won not only the Ellinger Scholarship but also the IEEE Paper Contest.

Recognition was also given to Brad Armstrong and Dana Gronau for winning the North Central Regional American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) Conference Best Paper competition. The paper was based on their Senior Design robotics project.

Scott Seckel was the recipient of three scholarships: Foundry Educational Foundation (FEF) Outstanding Student Scholarship, Ford Scholarship, and the AFS Wisconsin Chapter Scholarship.

Other FEF scholarship winners were Ryan Miller, Matthew Rutledge, and Michael Tolonen. Rutledge also won the Detroit-Windsor Chapter of the American Foundry Society (AFS) Scholarship.

Winners of the IME 1420 TA awards were Laura Wegner (Spring 2005) and Anthony Marciniak (Fall 2005). Justin Hobart won the CADKey competition.

Three students received Society of Manufacturing Engineering (SME) Chapter 116 Roscoe Douglas Scholarships: Brian Cervin, Eric Korbecki, and Joshua Weise.

Clausing Industrial, Inc., is a Kalamazoo-based company that has been providing support to the IME department and offering scholarships to its students for 54 years. Clausing CEO Joe Felicijan celebrated with the award winners.

IME Professor Tom Swartz emceed the recognition ceremony, and CEAS Dean Tim Greene and IME Chair Paul Engelmann assisted in the award presentations.

New engineering management honor society initiates 44

2006-05-09T13:55:00.000-04:00

Last month the Alpha Gamma Chapter of Epsilon Mu Eta (EMH) made its debut at WMU by initiating 44 members, including professors, alumni, and students. Among the new members were alumni Herb Everss (’65), former automotive supplier executive and now CEO of Global EMERGENT, INC., and Peter Karadjoff (’86), CEO of Mercy Hospital in Port Huron, who addressed the group and shared secrets of their successful careers.

From left: David Lyth, Larry Mallak, and Herb Everss

EMH is the engineering management society. It was established at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Va., in 2003. At WMU the Engineering Management Research Laboratory is one of the founding members. IME’s Dr. David Lyth and Dr. Larry Mallak are charter members.

According to a letter written by William R. Peterson, EMH president and founder, the society’s goal is “to recognize academic achievements of students in engineering management programs” and its distinguished academic leaders and practitioners.

Peter Karadjoff

Among the initiates were three generations of engineering management. “Before it became engineering management, it was manufacturing administration, and before that it was industrial supervision,” Lyth said.

Lyth noted that Everss was a gradu-ate of industrial supervision; Karadjoff, of manufacturing administration.

Both speakers reviewed their careers, connected their successes to their educations, and offered advice to students and recent grads.

Everss told them to find and enhance “the gifts [they] bring to business and industry,” to “do more than what is expected,” and not to underestimate the value of communication. “Focus as much on communication as you do on the technical side because one without the other doesn’t go,” he said. “If you can’t sell your technical strength, how do you make the point that you have the answer to the problem?”

Karadjoff told them to develop techniques to work with people who are not in their fields, to network by asking for advice on “how to approach” the search, and to be detail oriented. “You’ll get more opportunity if you prove your ability to do a good job at the small ones,” he said.

Lyth led the swearing in ceremony, and the new members signed an official directory. In addition to Everss and Karadjoff, initiates included three IME faculty: Dr. Kailash Bafna, Dr. Betsy Aller, and Mr. Joe Petro, Jr.

Alumni initiates from the Engineering Management MS program include Peter Battey, Mike Bosscher, Vincent Dutter, Juhani Engelberg, Terri Estkowski, Tod Grams, William Koepf, Brent Ladd, Kenneth Lee, Michelle Leiterman, Sundaresan Narayanan, Rahul Shah, and Greg Williams.

Alumni initiates from the Engineering Management Technology BS program were Nolen Akerman, Aric Carlisle, Michael Gaddes, Bradley Glessner, Joshua Maes, James McEachen, David Smith, and Nick Yambura.

Current initiates from the MS program are Dzinyo Asamoa-Tutu, Chad Beebe, Stewart Gulliver, Aaron Keller, Carlos Tejada Medina, Janna Muller, Peter Oosting, Geoffry Twietmeyer, and Max Wettlaufer.

Current initiates from the BS program include Zachary Armstrong, Ryan Linenfelser, Andrew Nowak, Kevin Ortbals, Melissa Saltzman, Thomas Saville, Joshua Schilling, Kyle Swanson, and Quentin Witkowski.

CEAS Dean Dr. Tim Greene and IME Chair Dr. Paul Engelmann, and IME emeritus professor Dr. Frank Scott, whom Everss’ said had been his “favorite professor,” welcomed and celebrated the new society.

IME grad students win all-university research and teaching awards

2006-04-21T13:57:00.000-04:00

IME graduate students Anil Kumar and Jai Thomas have earned All-University Graduate awards. They are part of a select group of 20 who were recently honored by the Graduate College in a Bernhard Center ceremony.

Anil Kumar, a doctoral student and a research scientist in IME’s Human Performance Institute, was honored with one of eight Graduate Research and Creative Scholar Awards for his chair research. In a 10-minute presentation at the awards ceremony, Kumar presented “snippets from the chair study” that he’s been working on for about two and a half years.

Specializing in biomechanics and ergonomics, Kumar has participated on biomechanical projects involving the Anil Kumar (right) runs tests on a seat with grad student Supreeta Amin evaluation of EMS personnel, labor and delivery nurses, lifting during manual material handling, and the ergonomics of hand tools. Kumar has also managed research projects that have considered human factors and cognitive usability issues related to task chair seating. He has numerous publications and presentations.

Kumar’s dissertation and chair research involved Haworth Company, which has provided support for him. He has already influenced product design and been invited to establish protocols in this area. His other research endeavors were for Stryker Medical and Bronson Methodist Hospital.

Kumar earned a BS in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Pune in India. He came to WMU in 2002 from Wichita State University in Kansas where he had earned a MS in Industrial Engineering with emphasis on ergonomics. Following the completion of his dissertation, Kumar plans to seek a tenure-track academic position and continue his research in seating and ergonomics.

Jai Thomas is an IME doctoral student who has served as a secondary instructor for four years in many courses, including descriptive geometry, introduction to CAD, CAD applications, and CAD programming. He received one of 12 Graduate Student Teaching Effectiveness Award. “My teaching experience at Western has been very rewarding and encouraging,” he said.

The engineering technology courses that he teaches are particularly difficult because they require the use of tools that are constantly being updated and the understanding of underlying concepts.

Thomas said he reinforces theory with practical and real-life examples and motivates students to do well, encourages “independent thinking,” and makes students “work more to learn more.” In evaluations, students describe his presentation of the material as “excellent.”

He said he was impressed by the IME faculty’s “dedication to making students think” in the classroom. “I would like to pass on that dedication to the students,” he said.

After earning a BS in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Pune, Thomas came to WMU in 2001. He plans to earn his Ph.D. with a specialty in brake-hose modeling by December 2007.

Kumar and Thomas were also unanimously selected by the IME faculty as the department’s recipients of their respective awards. Kumar was nominated and supported respectively by Drs. Tycho Fredericks and Steve Butt. Thomas’ nomination and support was provided respectively by Drs. Mitchel Keil and Jorge Rodriguez. Both received letters of recommendation from IME Chair Dr. Paul Engelmann.

A total of 59 grad students competed for the university awards. The grad students received news of the awards via email. In the 21 years that the research and creative scholar award has been offered, 565 grad students have earned the award, and in the eight years that the graduate teaching award has been made, 225 grad students have been recognized.

Seniors polishing projects and presentations for April 18 conference

2006-04-12T13:58:00.000-04:00

In the Parkview labs and study areas, 30 graduating IME seniors are busy checking calculations, organizing data, reviewing final recommendations, and putting the finishing touches on 10 presentations for the 38^th Conference on Senior Engineering Design Projects [SEDP]. The projects represent solutions to problems facing business and industry.

Sponsored by the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences, the Conference is set for Tuesday, April 18, 2006, at the Parkview Campus. It is free and open to the public.

The IME presentations will be presented between 9:30 a.m. and noon. Dr. Bob White will chair five presentations in Room D-201, and Dr. Betsy Aller will chair five in D-208. Each presentation is limited to 30 minutes and begins promptly on either the hour or the half-hour.

Seven area manufacturers or organizations sponsored projects. Humphrey Products Co. sponsored a project by Crystal Hawkins, Mike Muller, and Paul Schmidt to reduce lead time and work-in-process in pneumatic valve manufacturing processes.

Parker Hannifin Corporation’s Brass Products Division is sponsoring the project of Yashowardhan Gokhale, Laith Kobaissi, and Joon Sau Lee to analyze a five-station work cell that produces brass and plastic fittings and improve its hourly production volume.

Seniors Tariq Ali, John Graver, and Tyeisha Smith redesigned a professional manicure electric nail file to improve functionality at a low cost in a project sponsored by JayCam Instruments, L.L.C.

Borgess Medical Center sponsored a project done by Erin Brown, Renae Hoglen, and Sarah Smallcombe to design a model for nurse staffing and scheduling in the neuro-ortho unit.

A project done by Elizabeth Evans, Michael Hoonhorst, and Melissa Sitler to effectively schedule and utilize emergency room environmental service associates was sponsored by Bronson Hospital.

Pamela Apotheker, Kayla Goostrey, and Suman Kovuri analyzed passenger flow through an airport security checkpoint in a project sponsored by Kalamazoo/Battle Creek International Airport in cooperation with the Transportation Security Administration.

IME seniors Mike Muller (left) and Paul Schmidt complete the paperwork on a pneumatic-valve-related senior project sponsored by Humphrey Products Co.

Chip Bailey, Jeff DeLlowe, Jason Ruetz, and Mike Tolonen’s project to improve the efficiency of the production of easels was sponsored by Goodwill Industries & Employment Service and by a Learn and Serve America grant.

Brian Ladouceur, Jacob Wegrzyn, and Steven Yurgalonis applied sensors to a robot to improve its safe interaction with humans. James Hnetynka and Ben Jackson developed parameters to achieve the highest part quality and efficiency in low-pressure die casting of a university commemorative seal.

Eliezer Aponte, Charles Ponscheck, and Ryan Whitney used simulation software to compare shrinkage defects in gravity sand castings.

Several IME professors served as advisors for the projects: Drs. Steven Butt, Tycho Fredericks, Tarun Gupta, Azim Houshyar, Pavel Ikonomov, Leonard Lamberson, Sam Ramrattan, and Bob White. CEAS’ Dr. Edmund Tsang also served as an advisor.

The conference features a total of 82 projects by 217 seniors. More information is available at www.wmich.edu/engineer/senior-design-conf.php

WMU chapter attends regional IIE Conference at Purdue

2006-03-20T12:59:00.000-05:00

Last month, 23 members of the student chapter of WMU’s Institute of Industrial Engineers [IIE] traveled to the 2006 IIE Region 4 Conference at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind.

The WMU students were joined by IIE students from not only Purdue University, but also Kettering University, Ohio University, Ohio State University, University of Michigan – Ann Arbor, University of Michigan – Dearborn, University of Louisville, Youngstown State University, and Wayne State University.

Renae Hoglen, president of the WMU IIE chapter, praised the quality of the conference “We had a great time, and we were impressed with the professionalism,” she said. “We went to everything to learn what others are doing so that we could come away with as much of the experience as possible.”

Conference speakers included Michael Eskew, CEO and Chairman of UPS; Charles Armstrong, president of the Seattle mariners; Andy Poosuthasee from Halliburton; Carrie Ehrlich from United Airlines; and Rick McNamee, CEO of Quadrus Consulting.

Hoglen said all the speakers offered valuable insights. She described Eskew, who provided the keynote address at the awards dinner, as “very personable and in touch with” the audience. “He told us what IEs do for UPS, and how he worked his way up in the company,” she said.

Hoglen also enjoyed a presentation on Purdue that was given by Dr. James Barany, a Purdue faculty advisor, who documented the 50^th anniversary of Purdue’s IE department. “He was hilarious,” she said.

The conference included breakout sessions covering career experiences, a technical paper contest, a leadership forum, and a job fair for those in the Purdue area. Also offered were tours of Purdue’s IE facilities, including the machine shop and two human factors facilities.

The WMU group won an award for having more students in attendance than any other chapter. On behalf of the national IIE, IME professor Dr. Steven Butt, one of WMU’s IIE advisors and current IIE Region IV vice president, presented an appreciation award to Purdue for hosting the event.

IME professors Dr. Tycho Fredericks, a co-advisor of WMU’s IIE chapter, and Dr. Kailash Bafna also attended the conference.

WMU hosted last year’s IIE conference at the Parkview Campus. Ohio State University will host next year’s 2007 IIE Region 4 Conference.

2005 graduate is number three Ph.D. in IE

2006-03-09T13:01:00.000-05:00

In December 2005 Yaser Al-Alawi earned the IME Department’s third Ph.D. in industrial engineering (IE) in as many years. Earlier in the year, he also earned a MS in industrial engineering. “I would like to say ‘thank you’ to the IME department for everything,” he said

The native of Bahrain has now begun teaching at the University of Bahrain (UOB), which sponsored his education at WMU. It is also the same university where he earned BS and Associate degrees in mechanical engineering and a MS degree in engineering manage-ment. “I’ve spent all my life studying,” he said.

As an assistant professor in the UOB mechanical engineering department, Al-Alawi is presently teaching two courses. His department currently offers Associate, BS, MS, and Ph.D. degrees in mechanical engineering, and a MS degree in engineering management. It will soon offer a BS degree in industrial engineering.

Al-Alawi is also putting his education to work as a member of many committees aiming to develop new programs and engage UOB with industry. “I am using the tools and knowledge I gained at WMU to improve the industrial and business sectors in Bahrain and the surrounding areas,” he said.

According to coordinator Dr. Bob White, IME’s IE Ph.D. program is designed to combine the traditional research experience associated with a Ph.D. program with course work and laboratory experiences needed to prepare graduates to pursue careers in both academic and industrial settings. “This is the only Ph.D. in IE in Michigan with a core area of engineering management,” he said.

White said the program, which requires about four to five years to complete, emphasizes breadth of knowledge and requires students to conduct a significant, focused field study and to complete a dissertation research project.

The program also includes an industrial internship and a teaching internship. “If someone comes without industrial experience, they have to do one [industrial internship], and every student has to do a teaching internship as well,” White said. “They have to take courses in how to be a college teacher.”

Sang Dae Choi earned IE’s first Ph.D. in 2003. “It was such an honor earning the first Ph.D. in the IME department,” he said. “It was absolutely my good fortune to know and work with the IME faculty.”

According to Choi, the program showed him “how to effectively teach and research” and “how to work well with other people.” He has fond memories of Kalamazoo. “I am so proud to be a WMU-IME alumni,” he said.

Now an assistant professor in the Occupational & Environmental Safety & Health Department at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, Choi teaches courses in ergonomics; construction, systems, and product safety; and analysis and design for safety in industrial operations.

Choi also coordinates the Occupational Ergonomics Emphasis and Certificate programs and serves as an approved OSHA Outreach Instructor for construction and industrial safety and as the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) faculty advisor.
Choi, his wife, and two small daughters enjoy the Wisconsin dairy country life.

The department’s second Ph.D. was earned in 2004 by David J. Meade, who came to WMU from industry and who remains at WMU serving as an assistant professor at CEAS’ Muskegon Center for Higher Education. “Between writing, generating data, and defending during the final months of my formal studies, I had the good fortune to land a position as a full-time, tenure-track faculty in the Manufacturing Engineering Department,” he said.

Meade “thoroughly enjoys” being a CEAS faculty member and working at a “terrific” campus. “I have grown very fond of the students and my co-workers here in Muskegon,” he said.

In his first year, Meade wrote several grant proposals, conducted applied research, wrote several journal publications and a book, developed courses, and interacted with students. “This past year has given me assurance that the switch from industry to academe was the right move,” he said.

The Meade family has settled in Grand Haven and is enjoying the lakeshore area.

About 11 or 12 students are currently enrolled in the Ph.D. IE program. White described the current students as a mix of full-time and part-time students. Some are employees at Haworth and Ford.

A tribute to Henry Beukema, WMU emeritus, alumnus, and fan

2006-02-07T13:02:00.000-05:00

Henry Beukema, a WMU alumnus and an engineering graphics professor emeritus, taught in the Dept. of Industrial and Engineering Technology for 35 years before retiring in 1977. A dedicated WMU fan, he kept a WMU flag in his window until he passed away on Nov. 23, 2005.

Henry Beukema 1938 He was born Feb. 21, 1915, to Johanna (Fisher) and Hilbert Beukema in Grand Haven, MI, where he grew up.

After graduating from Muskegon College of Business and Technology, he came to WMU in 1938, where he earned his bachelor’s degree. He then taught high school courses in industrial education in Algonac and earned a master’s at U of M.

In 1943, Beukema returned to WMU to teach drafting and engineering graphics to 800 US Navy sailors for two years. Over the years, he came to be identified with his drafting classes.

According to emeritus industrial engineering professor Robert Boughner, taking a drafting course from Beukema was standard fare in the program: “Henry was the senior professor in the drafting area for 100,000 years; everyone took a drafting course from Henry.”

Beukema became a full professor at WMU in 1964. In addition to his coursework, he was involved with many societies and organizations, actively recruited for the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences, consulted with the U. S. Department of Defense, and co-authored 23 volumes of high school and college textbooks, primarily in the areas of engineering graphics and welding technology. During his summers and school breaks, he worked with many local companies.

Henry Beukema (front, 3rd from right) with

Bronco Marching Band for Centennial Celebration 2003

Several emeriti professors remember Beukema as a very hardworking professor – a ‘crusty Dutchman’ who always had time to mentor and support students and colleagues. Engineering technology emeritus professor Dr. John Lindbeck, who came to WMU in 1957, described Beukema as “very helpful” as a mentor in both teaching and writing.

“I was fresh out of college, kind of green, and teaching descriptive geometry, and he was always willing to sit down and offer some ideas,” Lindbeck said. “Then when I started writing textbooks and was having some problems with a book on product design, he - as a seasoned writer – told me how to set up a schedule and how to begin.”

Music was one of Beukema’s favorite pastimes. As an undergraduate, he joined the WMU marching band, where he organized a recruitment campaign that increased the size of the band and added WMU’s first female majorette and flag carriers. He continued to support it as an alumnus. For WMU’s 2003 Centennial Celebration, he played his trumpet with the marching band during the halftime ceremonies. His wheelchair prevented the band’s oldest member from marching.

Those who knew him remember that Henry Beukema always enjoyed a good martini. Next summer, his family and friends will celebrate Henry’s life and raise a toast “To the North” in a gathering at his Wall Lake summer home in Delton. According to Henry’s daughter, Susan Trudeau, who also provided the photos in this IMe-News, the inspiration for the “To the North” toast may have been Henry’s annual deer hunting trip to the UP, but it became his standard toast for all occasions.

Sheet extrusion line closes loop to allow plastics recycling

2006-01-10T13:04:00.000-05:00

Thanks to the efforts of a senior design team and the Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE), the IME department has a closed loop plastics recycling project in the plastics processing laboratory at the Parkview Campus.

Last Spring the senior design team of Brian Sather, Lucas Graham, and Ken Lothschutz assembled a sheet extrusion line in the lab. At the time, the line’s three major components – extruder, sheet die, and calendar rolls – were non-functional and required repair or modification.

During the project, the performance of the extruder was evaluated, a die adaptor was constructed to attach the die, and the three-roll calendar was refurbished and modified to modern safety standards. The refurbishment efforts were funded by a $2,000 grant from the West Michigan Section of SPE. A system was also developed to wind the sheet.

The lab now has a complete system for recycling polystyrene thermoforming material.

Brian Sather makes a thermoform license plate from a plastic sheet made on the extrusion machine.

“It allows us to have a closed loop recycling project within our lab,” said Kurt Hayden, an IME doctoral associate who served as a technical advisor to the senior design project. “We make parts, we grind parts, we remake the sheet stock, and we make parts again.”

Two courses are involved with the new system. In IME 2500 Plastic Properties and Process, plates are made, and in IME 3500 Production Plastic Process, the recycling process is used.

Sather, who has earned $4,500 through two SPE scholarships as an undergraduate, is now involved with the new extrusion line as a graduate student in the manufacturing engineering program.

Senior project design teammates Brian Sather (foreground) and Lucas Graham recycle waste thermoforming scrap using the sheet extrusion line in WMU’s Parkview Campus Plastics Processing Laboratory.

Brian Sather (left) and Kurt Hayden show two aspects of the plastics loop. In the photo on the left, Sather holds a thermoform license plate and Hayden’s arm rests on the plastic sheet roll from which license plates are made. The scrap on the table was cut from the license plate. In the photo on the right, Hayden handles plastic that was ground from license plate scrap and that will be recycled into a new plastic sheet roll.

IE senior wins “shiniest” bent award in Tau Beta Pi competition

2005-12-15T13:06:00.000-05:00

Pam Apotheker, a senior IE major, won $50 last month for polishing a Tau Beta Pi (TBP) “bent,” a small replica of the honor society’s symbol.

The task was part of her initiation into the Michigan Kappa Chapter of TBP, the national engineering honor society that was founded in 1885 and that now boasts more than 477,000 members.

During Fall 2005 semester, Apotheker and two other IE seniors – Kayla Goostrey and Elizabeth “Libby” Evans – joined 27 other engineering students as new “Tau Bates.” The trio were also welcomed into the honor society by IE seniors Erin Brown, from Fenton, and Michael Hoonhorst, from Wyoming.

Parkview Campus display of Pam Apotheker’s bent as “the shiniest,
smoothest [Tau Beta Pi] key”

All three IE initiates came to WMU as undecided engineering majors. Kalamazoo native Apotheker wanted a career that would enable her to use her math skills. “I didn’t want to teach, and I knew I wanted to be an engineer, she said. Her choice of IE as her major was based on a recommendation of an older brother. “There’s so much you can do with industrial engineering,” she said. “I like IE a lot because it’s people related.”

Although she is seeking a career in the service area, Apotheker had a summer internship last year at Cook Nuclear Power Co. “It wasn’t exactly industrial engineering, but it was fun,” she said.

Goostrey, from Gobles, tried several majors before coming into the industrial engineering program. When she graduates in April, she plans to join Innotec, in Zeeland, where she had a summer internship.

Evans joined the IE program as a junior. She was inspired by IME professor Dr. Azim Houshyar. When she graduates in April, the Centerville native plans to continue her education at either grad school or law school. She had an internship at Bradford White Corp. in Middleville.

Posing next to the Tau Beta Pi symbol at the entrance of the Parkview Campus are (left to right standing) IME professor Dr. Bob White, IME department representative on the Tau Beta Pi board, IE honors students Mike Hoonhorst, Elizabeth “Libby” Evans, and Kayla Goostrey, and MAE professor Dr. Phil Guichelaar, advisor to the Tau Bates. Left to right, seated, are Pam Apotheker and Erin Brown

According to Dr. Phil Guichelaar, MAE professor and TBP adviser since August, Western’s chapter is about 15 years old. He acknowledged IME emeriti professor Dr. Frank Wolf and ECE Chair Dr. John Gesink as key people who “had a lot to do with making TBP happen and making it successful.”

The honor society, which usually has about 40 members, has planned two community service projects for next semester. In January TBP will set up Martin Luther King projects at the Bernhard Center for Kalamazoo Public School students.

In March, TBP members will be paired with Comstock High School students for career shadowing day. The college engineering students will showcase engineering projects and labs.

TBP membership is limited to engineering students who are in the top 1/5 of the senior class and the top 1/8 of the junior class, and membership is by invitation only.

Three honored in IME 1420 Engineering Graphics / CADKey Competition

2005-11-29T13:08:00.000-05:00

Winners of the Engineering Graphics/CADKey Competition, offered to students enrolled in IME 1420 Engineering Graphics classes during Spring 2005, were announced last week in a lecture class led by IME professor Slobodan Urdarevik, who organizes the competitions.

The first-place winner is Justin Hobart, a sophomore in electrical engineering who has already completed an internship with an automotive plant in Oscoda, his hometown, and whose background includes two high school CAD classes. His goal is to put his CAD skills to work in his future career. He described the three-hour competition as “fun.”

Izuan Hazarul, a junior in mechanical engineering who transferred to WMU from Malaysia, earned second-place honors. His career goal is a position in vehicle dynamics in the automotive industry. The Spring IME 1420 has been his only CAD class, so his winning was a surprise. “It was my first experience with computer drawing, so I really didn’t know if I was good enough” he said.

Third place went to Josh Gress, a sophomore majoring in industrial technology and secondary education who plans to be a high school teacher. His experience included four years of CAD classes at Byron Center High School before coming to WMU.

Standing in front of the winning entry of the Engineering Graphics/CADKey Competition are the winners: (left to right) Josh Gress, 3^rd, Justin Hobart, 1^st, and Izuan Hazarul, 2^nd

IME Chair Dr. Paul Engelmann congratulated the winners and encouraged students in the audience – all members of the Fall 2005 IME 1420 class – to take part in this semester’s competition.

“These guys have done a great job, and maybe the next winner is right here in this room. All of you are headed into disciplines that will require you to use graphics in your careers,” Engelmann said. “This competition allows us to give students recognition for going above and beyond, and it gives those who win a leg up on the competition when they talk to recruiters who want to know what they have done beyond the classroom.”

For the three-hour competition, students were given “a very complicated drawing,” Urdarevik said. “The requirements were to create a 3-D solid model of the part shown on the drawing and to create a layout with the number of views necessary to manufacture the part plus an isometric view with symbols.”

All three winners received engraved plaques acknowledging their accomplishments. The first-place winner also received a $100 certificate. Prizes for the competition were provided by Kubotek (formerly known as CADKey), CIM Solutions, and the IME Department.

Urdarevik plans a similar competition on Saturday, Dec. 10, for the 330 students presently enrolled in IME 1420. Students competing in the Fall 2005 Engineering Graphics Competition will be using AutoCAD, which was introduced this semester.

Urdarevik joined the IME faculty three years ago after teaching eight years at Humber College in Toronto. He earned his master’s degree in mechanical engineering at the University of Skopje in Macedonia.

IME seniors to present design projects at college-wide conference

2005-11-15T13:09:00.000-05:00

In the IME department 25 seniors are busy wrapping up seven projects for presentation at the 37^th Conference on Senior Engineering Design Projects, Tuesday, November 29, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Six College of Engineering and Applied Sciences departments will present 35 projects at the Parkview Campus. The event is free and open to the public.

The IME projects will be presented in Room D-208 from 10 a.m. to noon and from 1 to 2:30 p.m.

Chairing the IME session is Dr. Betsy Aller, coordi-nator and instructor of the IME multi-disciplinary senior proposal and senior project classes.

Bronson Methodist Hospital is sponsoring a project to increase the amount of time that nurses spend delivering direct patient care. To improve nurse efficiency, the team of Jeff Hills, Josh Maes, Corey Semrow, and Carl Utess evaluated current supply processes and studied innovative supply systems based on time and motion studies.

A project to improve the production system for Stryker Medical’s Stair Chair Pro involves Abdullah Al-Abbas, Maria Candela, Deanna Cunningham, and Daniel Grupp, who used work measurement techniques, statistics, and simulation models to evaluate the current production model and propose a re-design to improve the system.

To find a safe and efficient process for moving a bulkhead (pool divider) in WMU’s natatorium, Megan Lamont, Alejandro Rodriguez (in photo), and Justin Vriezema considered safety, time, and cost in their analysis of the existing system and resulting recommendations.

Using virtual reality simulation, Advisor Pavel Ikonomov and seniors Brad Armstrong and Dana Gronau examine the control unit for a robot they used in a senior project that explores interaction between a virtual robot and a virtual human. The robot is programmed with intelligence to determine what humans are doing. “If a human gets in the way of the robot, the robot sensors go off, and the robot backs away and finds another path to keep working without harming the human,” Armstrong said.

Jeff Leppert, Craig Nelson, Michael Perry, Jason Phillips, and Warren White present the results of their investigation of options to meet international electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) requirements that multiple electrical or electronic systems function in the same environment without interfering with each other, for sponsor Kohler Company.

Adam Ritchie, Luka Bacal, Matt Getty, and Ryan Severns will present a ventilation ducting hole cutter in a project sponsored by EZ Concepts and for the heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) industry.

Clint Barnard, Mark Gajsiewicz, and Roger Anthony produced guidelines for using reverse engineering for complex parts.

Advisors for this semester’s projects include Larry Mallak, Steven Butt, Tycho Fredericks, James VanDePolder, Mitchel Keil, Pavel Ikonomov, David Lyth, and Jorge Rodriguez.

UEM student earns Integrated Supply Matrix Management Scholarship

2005-11-02T13:13:00.000-05:00

Quentin Witkowski, a senior in the engineering management (UEM) program, was awarded a $2000 scholarship last month for maintaining high academic standards and for having a minor in the Integrated Supply Matrix Management (ISM) program.

The scholarship, designated for ISM minors, was funded by Kellogg’s.

IME Professor Dr. David Lyth, who is the engineering representative in the ISM program, said that Kellogg’s is one of several companies that are actively involved on the advisory board of the Integrated Supply Matrix Management program. “There is a significant group of advisory board companies that support the program,” he said

Witkowski, 21, did not have to apply for the scholarship. “The award is based on academic performance, so no application was required,” Lyth said. “He [Witkowski] is an outstanding student.”

Lyth, who recommended Witkowski for the scholarship, surprised the senior with news that he had won the scholarship in an IME 4120 Industrial Systems Management class taught by Dr. Larry Mallak. “You have been awarded a scholarship, even though all you get today is a handshake,” Lyth said.

The formal award came in a ceremony at WMU’s business college on the first Friday in October.

Developed in 1989, Integrated Supply Matrix Management combines business with engineering; it leads toward a supply management career. “It’s a joint venture between the business and engineering colleges,” Lyth said. “Business students can take it as a major, and engineering students can take it as a minor.”

The ISM focus is on understanding what the supply chain is, from marketing to purchasing to production to logistics.

IME Professor Dr. David Lyth (left) with scholarship winner Quentin Witkowski, 21, a UEM senior with an ISM minor.

Engineering and technology minors take a 15-hour set of courses while business majors take that same sequence plus others, including those supporting infrastructure, like engineering graphics, manufacturing engineering, and manufacturing processes and materials. “They understand the processes involved in a supply chain,” Lyth said. “The program is directed by representatives of marketing, management, and engineering.”

Witkowski, who came to WMU from Battle Creek and who plans to graduate in December 2006, said that having an ISM minor enhances his engineering management technology degree. “It broadens your appeal to employers,” he said.

Because of his interest in integrated supply management, Witkowski is presently working with others to start a student chapter of the American Society of Engineering Management (ASEM). The first meeting was held this fall. “We’ve filed all the paperwork,” he said.

ASEM is a professional organization, founded in 1979 and “dedicated to the science and art of engineering management,” according to its website.