Over 100 student members of the Institute of Industrial Engineers (IIE) – from as far away as University of Louisville and Ohio University – traveled recently to the WMU Parkview Campus for “The World Beyond” Region IV Conference and Technical Paper Competition.
Emceeing the program was senior Renae Hoglen, who also served as the lead co-chair of the event, which focused on information and ideas about what industrial engineers can expect after graduation.
About 40 WMU students attended the event, which included an awards dinner at the Radisson.
IIE Region IV Conference Committee: (L-R) Advisor Tycho Fredericks, co-chairs Alana Dumasius, Renae Hoglen, Lindsay Tabbert, Erin Brown, and Advisor Steven Butts
WMU senior Sachet Shah presented a paper on hospital environmental services. Other technical papers were presented by students from University of Louisville, Purdue, Youngstown State University, and Wayne State University.
Judging of the papers was done by Dr. Harvey Wolfe, an IE professor from University of Pittsburgh, Larry Ellison, a consultant for Borgess Medical Center, Kalamazoo, and Brian Hicks, from the Steelcase Supply Chain Management Department in Grand Rapids.
Wolfe presented information on the vast array of careers open to industrial engineers, and Dr. Teresa Bellinger, Senior Corporate Ergonomist for Haworth, Inc., explained the complexities of chair design.
Answering questions about their post-graduate lives was a panel of four WMU alumni: Courtney Miller (2004), an applications engineer at TRW Occupant Safety Systems, Washington, MI; Jason Hart (2001), a team leader of Stryker’s largest assembly team; Joe Seestadt (2000), Delphi Corp., who’s on special assignment at Ambrake Corp., Elizabethtown, KY; and Nikki Crocker (2004), who is seeking her master’s degree at WMU.
WMU alums answer questions about life after college, left to right: Courtney Miller, Nikki Crocker, Jason Hart, and Joe Seestadt
R. David Nelson, Global Supply Management VP for Delphi Corp., gave the keynote address, “What Does it Mean to be Lean?”
Morning breakout sessions provided attendees with three topic choices. IME professors Dr. Bob White spoke on “Life after Graduation” and Dr. Betsy Aller addressed “What to Do in an Interview.” Dr. Peter Parker, from the Department of Paper Engineering, Chemical Engineering, and Imaging, offered “Engineering Ethics.”
Dr. Teresa Bellinger, Senior Corporate Ergonomist for Haworth, Inc., explains the complexities of chair design.
IME’s Drs. Steven Butt and Tycho Fredericks serve as advisors to the WMU IIE Chapter.
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