CEAS showcases engineering in Gagie School outreach

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

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

For the 30^th Annual 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).