The MacEngineer - Faculty of Engineering

Transcription

MacEngineer
The
VOLUME 29
FACULTY OF ENGINEERING
Brothers
give back
to Mac
See page 5
NUMBER 3
MCMASTER UNIVERSITY
FALL 2004
A message from the Dean
Recruiting top engineering students
F
ollowing the double-cohort year, the
competition for top engineering prospects from high schools has been
particularly aggressive. Clearly with a
decreased pool of applicants, the Faculty
needs to focus on additional strategies to
reach our enrolment targets while continuously improving the quality of the undergraduate recruits. During the past three years,
we have significantly improved Year 1
curriculum, created new and innovative
undergraduate programs such as chemical
and bioengineering, electrical and biomedical engineering and environmental engineering, for example. In addition, we have
created new scholarships for highly qualified high school students and initiated a new
inside this issue
Applause & Accolades ............4
Alumni Profiles .......................6
Upcoming Events .................14
Engineering Co-op
and Career Services..............23
Hey Alumni! Have you got something to
say, or any other news? We would like to hear
from you. Contact Carm Vespi:
Tel: (905) 525-9140 ext. 24906
Fax: (905) 546-5492
e-mail: vespi@mcmaster.ca
website: www.eng.mcmaster.ca
The MacEngineer is published by the Engineering
Faculty for its alumni. Distribution assistance is
provided by the Alumni Office.
PUBLICATIONS MAIL AGREEMENT NO. 40063416
RETURN UNDELIVERABLE CANADIAN ADDRESSES TO
CIRCULATION DEPTARTMENT,
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e-mail: vespi@mcmaster.ca
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The MacEngineer
undergraduate research opportunity program.
While these initiatives certainly have
helped in making McMaster Engineering
attractive, we need to continue to improve
and strengthen our recruitment efforts. To
this end, we are in the process of strengthening our recruitment and marketing functions. This summer, we have also been
engaged in developing new initiatives to
enhance our recruitment efforts. These
initiatives include:
1. Developing plans for expansion of the
enrolment in our flagship programs in
engineering and management as well as
engineering and society. These programs
continue to be in high demand and it is
important to create new educational
opportunities for our prospective students to meet this demand. Currently the
Level 2 enrolment for the engineering
and management program is 136 students, and approximately 60 students for
the engineering and society program.
Our plan is to increase Level 2 enrolment
to 200 and 100 students respectively.
2. The development of an advanced engineering program for high school students.
This program will offer outstanding grade
10, 11 and 12 students pre-university
courses, which will expose them to
Engineering. This program will include
courses in fundamental engineering
sciences such as engineering physics,
chemistry and mathematics as well as
some selected subjects that may include
design, robotics, and biomedical engineering. This program will also offer
opportunities for improved educational
experience in Year 1 including access to
more advanced honour classes for students
with exceptional performance in these
courses. For example, a student who is
interested in information technology could
have the opportunity for more advanced
programming experience in Year 1.
Mo Elbestawi, Dean of Engineering
3. Preparing our undergraduate students to
work in a global economy by offering
increased opportunities for participating
in international internships and projects.
We will be working on developing
opportunities in some selected U.S.
universities, as well as universities in the
U.K., France, the Netherlands, and
possibly Germany.
4. We continue to work on developing our
concept for integrated learning. The integrated learning centre will be a part of the
new engineering building, for which we
are currently fundraising. It is aimed at
promoting interdisciplinary, project-based
learning for our undergraduate students.
I believe that these combined initiatives
will help us maintain and improve the
Faculty’s reputation as one of the leading
engineering faculties in the country.
Mo Elbestawi
The MacEngineer welcomes your comments...
Send your news and views to the editor at vespi@mcmaster.ca
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A message from the Associate Dean
Developing meaningful projects
L
ast year, we introduced a new
common Engineering 1 curriculum
that was designed, among other
reasons, to better introduce students to the
engineering profession prior to them
selecting a program. It included a new
course, ENGINEER 1P03 – Introduction
to Professional Engineering, that dealt with
legal and ethical aspects of the profession
and included group design projects that
immersed the students in the various engineering disciplines.
First year design projects have always
been a challenge to develop so that the
right balance of relevance and difficulty is
achieved. If this balance is not achieved,
students quickly lose interest or become
frustrated. Also, to maintain their motivation, it is important to be able to assure the
students that their designs are not simple
‘academic exercises’, but that they will be
used for some useful purpose.
I am happy to report that we are now
working with Engineers Without Borders
(EWB) to identify projects that will address
problems in Third World countries. EWB
was formed in 2000 to promote human
development through access to technology
Engineering to develop a set of projects
that meets both of our needs.
The very limited resources that are available to residents of many poor countries
demand solutions that are technologically
simple yet cater to the cultural environment, and that employ locally available
raw materials. Whether it is the design of
ceramic water filtration systems for
Cambodia, cooking appliances for
Indonesia, water catchments for India,
water pumps for Zambia, fish dryers for
East Timor, or engine modifications for the
use of Jatropha seed oil as fuel in Ghana,
these design projects will have a definite
impact on the lives of those who are less
fortunate than we are. Our students in turn
will have meaningful projects that are
appropriate to the level of their technical
knowledge and will gain the satisfaction of
having improved the lives of others!
If you would like to contribute to this
undertaking, please give us a call. We are
always looking for the participation of our
former students in the development of the
next generation of engineers!
Peter Smith
(adeaneng@mcmaster.ca)
Dr. Peter Smith,
Associate Dean of Engineering
and it is currently Canada’s fastest growing
development organization. Modelled on
Médecins Sans Frontières, it strives to join
Canadian engineering students, professionals and companies in an effort to
reduce poverty throughout the world. Over
the past few months, Anna Robertson
(Civil Engineering) has been working with
EWB on behalf of the Faculty of
Faculty establishes new position
With the creation of an Associate Dean
of Engineering for Research and External
Relations, the Faculty of Engineering
hopes to pursue new opportunities and
partnerships, both in the academic environment and with industry. Engineering
Physics professor Peter Mascher was
appointed to the position in May 2004.
Mascher will act as a spokesperson and
advocate for the Faculty outside of the
University. Internally, he will be a liaison
with the Office of the Vice-President
Research and International Affairs, and
will work with other Faculties to identify
and initiate large, multi-faculty initiatives
to enhance McMaster’s research capabilities and reputation.
He will be especially concerned with
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initiatives in the areas of biomedical
engineering, micro- and nano-systems,
engineering design, energy systems, and
environmental engineering and public
policy.
Mascher, who has a PhD in engineering
physics from the Technical University
Graz, Austria, joined McMaster University
in 1989 in a position initially funded by
the Ontario Centre for Materials Research.
He was chair of the Department of
Engineering Physics from 1995 to 2001.
His research focuses on the fabrication
and characterization of thin films for optoelectronic applications and the characterization of defects in semiconductors by
positron annihilation spectroscopy.
A much-published author of research
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papers, he is the former program director
of the Ontario Photonics Consortium, an
ORDCF-supported initiative, centered at
McMaster and involving participation of
research teams from The University of
Western Ontario, the University of
Waterloo and Queen’s University.
The chair was established through a
donation to the Department of Engineering Physics by William Sinclair, one
of the co-founders of JDS-Fitel, now part
of JDS-Uniphase.
Mascher says that the creation of the
new position “signals the Faculty’s
commitment to maintaining and further
enhancing its status as one of the most
research-intensive engineering schools in
the country.”
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Special recognition
Gala highlights engineering successes
“Success is not the result of spontaneous combustion. You must set yourself on fire.”
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n Wednesday May 12th, 200 people
filled the Liuna Station banquet
centre in downtown Hamilton to
recognize and honour the collective achievements of the Faculty’s engineering
researchers. The first ever Applause &
Accolades Awards Gala attracted a stellar
number of local dignitaries and community
and corporate notables.
Well-known television personality
Connie Smith, anchor for News at Noon on
CH-TV, was emcee and following her
opening welcome, she introduced the Dean
of the Faculty of Engineering, Mo
Elbestawi, the first of a number of speakers.
In welcoming University officials and
faculty members, alumni, community and
corporate leaders and special guests,
Elbestawi remarked that the Applause &
Accolades evening “is an opportunity to
acknowledge publicly the success of our
corporate partnerships and our many
internal successes within the Faculty”.
Then Janet Walden, Vice-President,
Research Partnerships Program Directorate
for the Natural Sciences and Engineering
Research Council of Canada (NSERC),
announced the four new McMaster
NSERC Industrial Research Chairs.
Totaling $5.6 million, this investment into
research at McMaster is jointly funded by
NSERC with matching funding from
industry partners and the University.
She introduced the industry partners and
chair holders, making particular note of the
“wonderful work being accomplished here
at McMaster”. She commented on the fact
that 2004 is the 20th anniversary of the
Industrial Research Chairs Program and
that McMaster has had an on-going
involvement with the Program since its
inception. In congratulating the four
newest chair holders, Walden concluded:
“I am sure we will be hearing good things
from you very soon.”
• The NSERC/UNENE Industrial Research
Chair in Nuclear Safety Analysis, led by
John Luxat
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John Mayberry, former chairman and CEO
of Dofasco
• The NSERC/RIM/CITO/McMaster Industrial Research Chair in Pico-Cellular
Wireless Internet Access Networks, led
by Terry Todd
• The NSERC/Dalsa/McMaster Industrial
Research Chair in Digital Cinema, led
by Xiaolin Wu
• The NSERC Industrial Research Chair
in Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Systems, led by
Tony Petric
Following a sumptuous meal beautifully
prepared and served by the Liuna staff, Dean
Elbestawi made presentations to the recipients of provincial, University and professional awards including four Premier’s
Research Excellence Awards (PREA), one
teaching award, three University Honour
awards, two Canada Research Chairs, and
17 who had received professional association and society recognitions.
He then made a special presentation to a
“great friend of McMaster”, which proved
to be a highlight of this year’s gala affair.
Industry leader John Mayberry, former
chairman and CEO of Dofasco, received
the first Faculty of Engineering Leadership
Award. The award recognizes Mayberry’s
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efforts as a corporate partner that have had
a profound impact on McMaster’s research
and educational programs. He was a key
volunteer with the Changing Tomorrow
Today fundraising campaign and encouraged Dofasco’s contribution in the form of
two endowed chairs in the Faculty of
Engineering. He personally established a
scholarship for a student studying in the
field of chemical, mechanical or materials
science engineering.
In making the presentation, Elbestawi
noted that Mayberry “is a dynamic and farsighted corporate and community leader
and as such, we are pleased and delighted to
honour John with the McMaster University
Faculty of Engineering Leadership Award”.
Attendees at the event, which it is hoped
will become an annual one, included
University President Peter George; Murray
Martin, President and CEO of Hamilton
Health Sciences; Ken Norrie, Provost;
Mamdouh Shoukri, VP Reserach and
International Affairs; Roger Trull, VP
University Advancement; and Karen
Belaire, VP Administration. Corporate
guests included Ian O’Reilly, Ed
Cocchiarella, Ebdel Sherik, Fred Goetz
and Norm Lockington, all from Dofasco;
David Litster from MIT; Doug Barber,
retired founder of Gennum Corp.and Chair
of the Dean’s Council; RIM’s Dave
Jarowsky and colleagues; Joe Ng, Dave
Scime and Bassam Halabieh of JNE
Consulting; a table of MDSciex representatives; Brian Doody, President and CEO
of DALSA; Richard Koroscil, President
and CEO of TradePort International
Corporation; Ed Minich, President of Otis;
Tim Valters, President of Selkirk; Sandy
Thomson, President of Gordon-Thomson;
Gerald Hatch and colleagues from Hatch
Associates; and MMO’s George Wright.
Marjorie Walker attended, representing
the Mayor’s office of the City of Hamilton.
MP Beth Phinney, who represents the
riding of Hamilton Mountain, also
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Honorary Engineering Degrees
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he Faculty of Engineering conferred
two honorary Doctor of Science
degrees at its Spring 2004
Convocation ceremonies. Astronaut Julie
Payette, the first Canadian to board the
International Space Station (ISS), and
Kenneth O. Hill, a three-time McMaster
graduate and former researcher at the
Communications Research Centre (CRC)
Canada were recognized for their leadership and achievements.
Payette, who knew from an early age
that she wanted to be an astronaut, was
selected from thousands of applicants by
the Canadian Space Agency in 1992. She
received basic training in Canada prior to
becoming technical advisor for the Mobile
Servicing System (MSS), an advanced
robotic system and Canada’s contribution
to the ISS. In 1999, she flew on Space
Shuttle Discovery to the space station,
serving as mission specialist with responsibility for the station’s systems and for
operating the Canadarm robotic arm.
Hill’s groundbreaking work in photosensitivity, Bragg gratings, the study of the
non-linear effects in fibre and fused fibre
compiling all helped to lay the foundation
for broadband communications networks.
He conducted research at CRC, an agency
Julie Payette
of Industry Canada, for more than three
decades, leaving in 2000 to enter private
enterprise as a consultant. He is currently
senior scientific consultant with OZ
Optics. He is the recipient of numerous
awards including the Manning Principal
Award, the Tyndall Award, the CRC’s
President’s Award, the Canadian
Association of Physicists and the National
Optics Institute Medal for Outstanding
Achievement in Applied Photonics, and
the Rank Prize from the Royal Academy
of Medicine.
Engineering Dean and three
alumni inducted into CAE
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ongratulations are extended to
Dean of engineering Mohamed
Elbestawi and alumni members
Paul Watkinson, Peihua Gu and Thomas
Harris who have been inducted as Fellows
into the Canadian Academy of Engineering. A total of 30 Canadian engineers
were inducted during the Academy’s
Annual General Meeting in Toronto on
June 4th.
The citation for Elbestawi recognizes his
contributions to manufacturing engineering
research and commends him for being a
champion for university/industry partnerships. He was the driving force in the establishment of the newly created $19-million
McMaster Manufacturing Research Institute
(MMRI) and was appointed as its first
director in 2000. Elbestawi holds the
NSERC Industrial Research Chair in
Precision Machining and was the first
Braley-Orlick Chair in Advanced Manufacturing Engineering.
Paul Watkinson (’62, chemical) is
currently a professor at the University of
British Columbia. He is a highly respected
expert in reactors for high-temperature reactions such as pyrolysis, gasification, and
metallurgical operations. Working in laboratory and pilot reactors, he and his colleagues
have established several processes in rotary
kilns, spouted bed reactors and fluidized
beds, which have contributed to numerous
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Ken Hill
industrial applications. Watkinson is also
world-renowned for his leading research on
heat exchanger fouling.
A professor at the University of Calgary,
Peihua Gu (’90, mechanical) is an internationally recognized expert in manufacturing and design, with several research
and education awards. He was twice
awarded an NSERC Industrial Research
Chair. He has published two books and
numerous papers with many citations. His
service to the profession includes establishing the Canadian Design Engineering
Network, and serving on the editorial
boards of several International Journals. He
has been department head since 1999, and
was associate dean from 1997 to1999.
Thomas Harris (’77, ’80, chemical) of
Queen’s University is widely cited for his
seminal work in variance-based performance monitoring and assessment of control
systems; he has not only made significant
research contributions, but has also
advanced the industrial practice of control.
Drawing from cutting-edge approaches in
econometrics to address structural analysis
in time-series models, as well as multivariate systems analysis, his methodology
is utilized internationally by several
companies in a diverse range of industrial
control applications. As dean of applied
science, Harris has also championed the
Royal Society
Inductee
In July, John Brash, Department of
Chemical Engineering, was inducted
into the Royal Society of Canada, one of
Canada’s most prestigious academic
organizations. Brash is an internationally recognized pioneer in the science
and technology of biomaterials. For
over four decades, his research has
contributed to the development of
advanced medical devices such as artificial arterial grafts, blood pumps and
heart valves. He has also served on
many policy and granting committees,
been involved as collaborator in
research projects and been an innovative educator.
Now officially a Fellow of the Society,
Brash was inducted along with William
Harris, a professor in McMaster’s
Department of Physics and Astronomy.
Currently sixty McMaster professors are
Fellows of the Society.
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Alumni profiles
Nick Javor – engineering the perfect donut
N
ick Javor graduated in 1980 with a
B.Eng.Mgt. from the Engineering
& Management program. That
date places him and his five fellow students
in the inaugural class!
Javor, who also obtained his MBA from
McMaster in 1981, says he decided to take
engineering because his maths and sciences
had always been strong subjects in high
school. “I’m from Hamilton and Mac
seemed like a good fit. But also there was the
reputation, and the fact that this was the only
university in Canada offering the combined
(engineering and business) program.”
The Vice President for Corporate Affairs
at Tim Hortons, Javor says he has no
regrets. “The degree brought me a sense of
preparedness and confidence. Engineering
is very demanding; if you can survive engineering, you can survive anything!”
Of all his professors, he especially
remembers Don Woods (“Woodsy”). “He
brought the people side to engineering. He
taught that problem solving and communication are key. And he taught how to
communicate in a way that engages people,
motivates them and adds value to the whole
experience. He really built your confidence
in this area and stressed that engineers can
and should communicate well.”
Tim Hortons, founded in Hamilton, is
Canada’s largest chain of coffee and baked
goods stores. The company currently has
over 2,600 franchised outlets and by yearend 2004, it expects to have sales of over
$3.3 billion.
Javor, 47, joined the company in the fall
of 1994 as Vice-President, New Business
Development. He is one of the reasons why
you can buy a Tim Hortons coffee and
donut while paying for your gas at an Esso
On The Run convenience store! During his
time in this division, he helped to establish
300 non-traditional locations in hospitals,
universities and airports as well as inside
retail settings.
Javor’s current responsibilities include
corporate communications, public relations,
corporate social responsibility, and government and environmental affairs. He is the
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Nick Javor
official spokesperson for the company.
In January 2004, he was named Vice
President of the Tim Hortons Children’s
Foundation (THCF). The THCF operates 6
camps in Canada and the United States that
provide a 10-day camp experience to over
9,000 children each summer. As many Tim
Horton coffee lovers know, Camp Day is
the annual in-store fundraiser; over $6.0
million was raised in 2004. ($4.6 million
was raised in 2003).
After obtaining his B.Eng.Mgt., Javor
decided to stay the extra year and complete
his MBA. “I had always had an affinity for
the business side of things.” The degree
combined with the engineering courses
were invaluable for his successes at
Imperial Oil (1981-1987) and Mr. Lube
Canada Ltd (President, 1988-1994).
A Certified Franchise Executive, he
served as Chairman Of The Board of the
Canadian Franchise Association from
1992-1994. This position provided him
with numerous opportunities for making
presentations and public speaking. He was
awarded the Executive of the Year by the
CFA Board in 1994. Nick has volunteered
with Big Brothers of Canada and served
as Chariman of his local school council.
Javor is married to Lisa, also a McMaster
grad (B.Comm. ’81). They have two children, Laura 14 and Ryan 11.
Jerry Uvira – english grad +
coffee franchise = success
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echanical engineering grad Jerry
Uvira (’79) is flying high these
days, but his euphoria has little
to do with his pilot’s licence. Uvira has left
the corporate world with its intense stresses
and frequent travel, and now runs three Tim
Hortons stores in the United States.
“I had achieved my goal of being in a
senior management position in a large multinational corporation. But, after a few years it
lost it’s appeal!”
Uvira, 48, has enjoyed a successful but
busy career since graduation. He started at
Hamilton-based Stelco in manufacturing,
then moved to Westinghouse to sell power
generator equipment around the world. At
Alcan, he ran an international sales division, transferring from Toronto to Atlanta,
Georgia in 1995 to be Director of
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Marketing for North America. In 1999, he
became Corporate VP for North America
at Pirelli, the company known for both tire
and cable manufacturing.
By 2003, it was time for a change. Uvira
says the Tim Hortons brand is well established in several markets but is still quite
new in the U.S. as a whole. There still is a
lot of opportunity for good franchisees to
grow with the company. He currently operates three Tim Hortons restaurants in the
Columbus, Ohio area, the latest being a Tim
Hortons under the same roof as a Wendy’s –
a combo store.
“It’s been liberating, from a personal
standpoint,” he admits. “Sure, it’s a lot of
work. But it’s a lot of fun, too. I love it!”
Although over the years he has never
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Grateful grads give generous gift
T
wo brothers, both graduates of the
civil engineering program, have
made a significant contribution to
McMaster University.
Vladimir (’80) and Chedo Sobot (’84,
Civil & Management) donated $100,000 to
the University’s Centre for Effective
Design of Structures. The gift, announced
in April 2004, will be used to prepare structural engineers for the challenges of
building in the 21st century.
In making the donation, Vladimir noted
that he and his brother “were grateful to be
part of this great institution and finally being
able to give something back.” He also paid
tribute to his parents who immigrated to
Canada from Bosnia, providing the opportunity for a bright future for their sons.
In accepting the gift, University president
Peter George said it is critical for civil engineering students to have access to modern
technologies and the most current research.
In 1988, the brothers founded Sobotec
Ltd., a Hamilton-based company that
produces high-tech and visually appealing
aluminum panel wall systems for commercial buildings. The company has grown
from a 5,000 sq. ft. plant employing five
From left to right: Vladimir Sobot, Mo Elbestawi, Peter George, Chedo Sobot and Bob Drysdale.
people to a 72,000 sq. ft. building and 180
employees.
Sobotec uses a material called Alucobond
which is made of two aluminum cover
sheets with a core of plastic between. It is
corrosion resistant, light weight, and gives
a high-tech look. “We can take an old
building and completely retrofit and renovate it and it looks brand new – very clean
and very bright,” Vladimir explains.
The Centre for Effective Design of
Structures was established in 2002. The
Sobotec donation will assist the Centre in
its efforts to link research and education.
Graduating engineers will be able to understand durability of materials, develop
advanced analytical skills, identify clientspecific needs, and address sustainability
concerns including reduced maintenance
and extended service life of structures.
Mac engineers heed call of the wild
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lenges. The basic skill set is
ummer vacations spent
very valuable.”
in the Muskoka area of
Loon Call (www.looncall.ca)
Ontario can result in
has three divisions: barge
more than a tan. If you are the
transportation (pickups and
entrepreneurial type, it can get
deliveries over land and water;
you thinking about turning
weekly garbage & recycling
those hazy, lazy, sunny days
collection services); painting
into a business venture.
and staining of cottages, boatDavid Nagel (’02, Biology
houses and decks; and prop& Psychology), a fourth-genererty maintenance (spring &
ation Muskoka cottager, got the
fall cleanups, lawn/garden
idea for a barge and maintecare). Each is headed by a
nance service that would assist
manager and services are
seasonal residents with such
offered seven days a week,
chores as garbage disposal,
May through October, to
and deliver furniture and
cottagers on Lakes Joseph,
project supplies such as
From left to right: David Nagel, Darryl Dietrich and Craig Thornton
Rosseau and Muskoka. This
lumber. He contacted Craig
was launched with 2 boats and a truck.
summer, Loon Call will employ 16, not
Thornton (’02, Computer Eng.), a longIt’s not such a leap from engineering to
including company mascot Mel-Dawg (see
time area cottager, who thought the idea
a service company, according to Thornton.
website for bio!).
had great promise. In 2003, with co“In engineering, you learn how to solve
The biggest start-up challenge was the
founder and director Darryl Dietrich
problems and to not back down from chalcontinued on page 12
(’01, Mech.), Loon Call Dockside Services
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Greg Schneider – keeping it in the family
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lumnus Greg Schneider ’76 has a
rare – maybe even a unique –
family situation. Both his sons,
Chris ‘04 and Dan ’04, along with their
grandfather, chose to take engineering at
university. Not only that, but Chris and Dan
also graduated from McMaster!
Admitting that the boys may have
secretly preferred to go away from home
for their university experience, Greg says
having the three of them in the family as
Mac grads is really special. “At least I let
them choose their own disciplines!”
There is much good-natured joshing
between the three as they reminisce about
student days. Greg took mechanical engineering (“That’s the easy one,” Dan interjects.) combined with management. “It
was a forward-thinking program and the
reason why I chose McMaster,” says
Schneider senior.
Dan, 22, admits there may have been a
bit of subtle pressure to attend McMaster
but seems pleased to be part of the family
tradition now. “I was born at Mac
(MUMC) and both my parents are Mac
grads, so it was a natural choice.” Mom,
Carol, graduated in 1980 with a BA in
psychology and received her B.Sc. in
Nursing in 1985. (Carol has since obtained
a B.Ed. from Brock. Dan’s grandfather
graduated from McGill.)
He elected to take engineering physics
(“The most difficult one,” laughs Chris). “I
enjoyed learning the math and sciences in
engineering physics, and the course taught
me skills such as management and
problem-solving.”
Chris, 24, chose computer engineering,
with a minor in business. He originally
enrolled in the software engineering and
management program but switched when
the economy suffered a downturn in that
field. Although he did well in the program,
he missed group project work. “The software program was a lot of fun. We got to
do group projects which meant you got to
know everyone.”
Both Chris and Dan have been working
at Precision Rolls Inc. of Grimsby
(formerly Metal Spray-on), a company
Greg bought after leaving his position as
President of Hodgson Steel in 1990.
The company designs and builds high-
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The Schneider family, from left to right: Chris, Greg and Daniel.
quality custom-manufactured rolls for a
variety of industries including steel, glass
and paper. Originally, it made repairs to
rolls, primarily for the local steel industry,
but Greg expanded the focus to include
design and manufacture. His first set of new
rolls was sold to Hamilton-based Dofasco –
the company that hired him after graduation
and where he worked until 1985.
Under the name Precision Surface
Technologies, the firm continues to do
repair work.
Since almost anything that is flat
requires rolls for its manufacture, the
company has grown steadily and now
employs 15, and reports annual sales of $4
million. North American clients include
Alcan, Owens Corning, GAF and General
Mills, as well as local steel companies.
Dan has been working during the
summers on ISO certification requirements, while Chris analyzes industrial roll
drawings, obtains pricing on components,
manages the manufacturing and acts as the
all-round computer guy. Both are upfront
about their future plans, which do not
necessarily include Precision Rolls, something Schneider senior seems to be taking
in stride.
Dan, who is attending the University of
Miami, has decided to go into law. “I have
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learned from my Dad how rewarding it can
be to pursue one’s own career and
dreams,” he says. “So I have chosen to
chase after mine.” Besides, he adds, it
would be hard to move back to Ontario
after those warm winters in Florida!
Chris would like eventually to work in
digital hardware or firmware design – his
first love is really computers.
Greg notes that the firm’s succession
plan is not yet in danger because he still
has three more kids! Although daughter
Trisha is studying to be a doctor, there
remains Andrew (“the athlete”) and Mark
(“the mechanical one”).
Engineering has proven to be a good
choice for the father and eldest sons. Greg
notes that “engineering has given Dan the
study skills he’ll need for law and has
provided Chris, who has done almost every
job at Precision Rolls, the skill set he can
use throughout his career.” He adds that it
provided him with the business skills that
have helped him grow the business and be
successful.
Perhaps Dan sums it up best. “My Dad
is the hardest working man I know.
Through all his hard work and determination, he has shown us what we can accomplish and how successful you can be if you
truly love your profession.”
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Shafique Shamji – president of Time iCR
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n Ottawa-based company, Time
Integrated Communications Research (Time iCR) is a service
bureau offering advanced integrated voice
response (IVR), Speech Recognition, and
call processing solutions to business
customers and the Federal Government. In
October 2003, Computer Engineering grad
Shafique Shamji (’89) became the new
President of Time iCR. He is responsible
for the strategic direction and management
of operations and will serve on the
company’s board of directors.
Since graduating from McMaster
Engineering, Shamji has spent over 15
years working in the areas of telecommunications and information technology.
Most recently, he was vice-president of
network services for Fidelity National
Information Solutions (FNIS) in Santa
Ana, Calif., where he was responsible for
numerous departments within the organization, including network architecture,
engineering and services, field operations
for desktop and server installations,
computer telephony solutions, telecom
operations, data center operations, and
project management. He has also worked
in executive management positions for
IVR/Speech Recognition solutions for
customers in a host of different industries
and in a number of different languages. As
a service bureau, Time iCR not only
designs and develops the application but
also houses the equipment to host the solution and manages the daily maintenance
and updates. Time iCR was founded over
30 years ago. In September 2002, Call-Net
Enterprises Inc. (which also owns Sprint
Canada) acquired a majority interest in the
company and purchased the remaining
shares of the company earlier this year,
thus, making Time iCR a fully-owned
subsidiary of Call-Net Enterprises.
As part of his mandate at Time iCR,
Shamji will develop and implement a
strategic business plan, identify key areas
and opportunities for growth, and develop
key strategic relationships and alliances.
He has already started working with the
Sr. Management team at Call-Net on a plan
to bundle the best products from both
companies in order to bring turnkey solutions for their collective customers.
Born in Uganda, he emigrated to
Canada in 1972. Currently, Shamji
resides in Ottawa with his wife and two
children.
Shafique Shamji
TeleHub Network Services in Chicago and
Advanced Network Solutions at AT&T
Canada (now Allstream in Toronto), and
spent a number of years at Nortel in both
engineering and marketing.
IVR/Speech Recognition technology
has the ability to bring the power of
automation and increased customer service
to any size call center. Time iCR
(www.timeicr.com) designs, implements,
administers and maintains an extensive
variety of state-of-the-art network
Adam Forte – building high performance cars
Y
o, Alumni – Adam Forte has got
THE BEST job! Currently, Forte
(Mech. ’98) works for the Body
Engineering Department at DaimlerChrysler’s Performance Vehicle Group,
known as Team SRT, and is based at the
company’s world headquarters in Michigan.
Team SRT (Street and Racing Technology) was created to bring high performance cars to the public in record time and do
it at a cost that left competitors in the dust.
In 2000, the SRT group was working on a
redesign of the Dodge Viper. At the time,
Forte was working in the Body Engineering
group at the Brampton Assembly plant –
having gone direct to DaimlerChrysler
following graduation from Mac. His manufacturing experience proved to be a foot in
the door at SRT. The group was expanding
to accommodate the ever-growing list of
new parts for the new car.
“Working here in Michigan for the SRT
team is a very rewarding job. My days are
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Adam Forte and the Viper SRT10.
spent in our Viper Garage, at our test tracks
and tooling/build shops, verifying new
design concepts for new products. “
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He explains that the small number of
people involved on Team SRT bring to the
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Engineering news
McDermid’s strengths assist steel industry
N
ew technology and groundbreaking research at McMaster
will help Canada’s steel industry
and could result in more environmentallyfriendly cars.
Associate professor Joe McDermid of the
Department of Mechanical Engineering is
an expert in steel galvanizing, a zinc coating
process that gives steel corrosive-resistant
properties and improved surface quality. His
current research is involved with finding
ways to make this process work with the
new generation of high-strength dual phase
and transformation induced plasticity alloy
steels being developed for application in
automotive design. The problem is that, to
date, these new steels are resistant to the
galvanizing process.
The auto industry faces increasing
demands from environmental protection
agencies to build more fuel-efficient vehicles. One option is to build lighter-weight
vehicles using high strength-to-weightratio steels. However, the high alloy
content of these products results in a
surface structure that resists the zinc
coating process.
To study the problem, McMaster’s Steel
Research Centre has acquired two galvanizing simulators, one donated by Noranda
Inc., and a state-of-the-art Rhesa machine
purchased with the assistance of a $1.8
million Canada Foundation for Innovation
grant. This simulator is one of only three in
use in academic institutions world-wide
and the only such device in North
America. They will be used to explore the
science behind the metallic coating
process and its effect on material properties and manufacturing.
McDermid, who is a member of the
Steel Research Centre, holds the
Stelco/NSERC Industrial Research Chair
in Steel Product Application. Hamilton-
based Stelco is providing a significant
portion of the steel for processing in the
simulator and will benefit from the
research along with the other companies
participating in the Centre: Dofasco, Ipsco,
Bluescope Steel, Iron Ore Company of
Canada, Hatch, Air Liquide, Reference
Metals and Noranda Inc.
New school a Canadian first
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t its regular meeting in May, Senate
approved a proposal for a McMaster
School for Engineering Practice
(MSEP). The School would be the first of
its kind in Canada.
MSEP will provide a focus for highprofile research and interdisciplinary
education initiatives in three areas of engineering practice: engineering and public
policy, engineering entrepreneurship and
innovation, and engineering design. To
achieve this, two associated centers are
proposed: a Centre for Engineering and
Public Policy, and the Centre for Entrepreneurship and Innovation. (A proposed
Centre for Engineering Design will be
brought forward at a later date.)
The school and associated centres will
work with other McMaster faculties and
partner institutions internationally to
advance multidisciplinary research and
education in engineering practice. MSEP
will also facilitate differentiated educational programs for future engineers who
will have the necessary mix of skills to
recognize and develop new technologies,
and to take those new technologies to
market in a safe, efficient, and environmentally sound manner.
The initiative will help propel McMaster
into the pre-eminent position in education
for engineering practices. The benefits
include attracting top-quality faculty and
bright students, strengthening interdisciplinary research and education partnerships
between the Faculty of Engineering and
other faculties such as the Faculties
of Business and Social Sciences, and
building strategic research partnerships
with industry and government.
The MacEngineer
welcomes your
comments...
Send your news and views to
the editor at vespi@mcmaster.ca
Mac’s engineering innovations make news
hemical engineering professors
Heather Sheardown and John
Brash were quoted in a feature
article on Canadian university engineering schools in the May 29, 2004 issue
of the National Post.
In addition to comments about
McMaster’s engineering programs,
Sheardown and Brash were photographed
along with students in the University’s
bio-engineering laboratory.
The feature, jointly sponsored between
the newspaper and the Canadian Council
of Professional Engineers (CCPE),
focused on recent developments in the
field of engineering and the innovations
being initiated by Canada’s schools of
engineering to prepare students for future
challenges. The article covered issues
such as the emergence of new fields
(tissue engineering, nanotechnology) and
the adaptation of existing programs to
include courses on non-technical or “soft
skills” (interpersonal communications,
leadership).
The article noted that many Faculties of
Engineering, McMaster included, maintain close contact with industry partners,
engage students in team projects, and
provide opportunities for internships.
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Engineering Practice & BioEngineering
building campaign
P
artnerships with industry and alumni
contributions are being sought for
the necessary funding for the
creation of the Engineering Practice and
BioEngineering building to house the two
new McMaster Schools. The three centres
in the School for Engineering Practice will
be aligned with key companies, as will the
laboratories in the BioEngineering school.
Discussions are currently underway with
major funding announcements expected
this fall.
The McMaster School for Engineering
Practice will comprise three new research
and academic centres: Engineering Entrepreneurship and Innovation, Engineering
and Public Policy, and Engineering Design.
The three centres aim to provide a muchneeded interdisciplinary education that is
informed by engineering problem-solving
expertise. The principal activity will be to
Each center will emphasize interdisciplinary education and research in its area of
specialization. Together, they will offer a
dynamic, integrated learning experience
for undergraduate and graduate students of
all engineering disciplines.
The new space will be deliberately
welcoming to encourage students and
faculty from the various programs to linger
and learn about the allied work in their
building. The design concept for the
proposed School for Engineering Practice
and BioEngineering building effects
collaboration between diverse disciplines,
and facilitates sharing of knowledge and
understanding between experimental, theoretical and computational researchers.
In its simplest form, the Engineering
Practice and BioEngineering building can
be viewed as a place where the various
innovation functions ‘wrap’ around a
central core of collegial interaction.
The McMaster School of BioEngineering
will provide a unique collaborative environment as well, that takes full advantage of our
existing expertise in medical sciences and
engineering and links current and emerging
areas of molecular, medical and bioengineering research. At this time, several labs
have been identified in the area of Integrated
Systems, Medical Robotics, Medical
Devices, Bio Photonics, Bio Materials, Bio
Mechanics and Medical Imaging.
offer professional education at the Master’s
degree level, the programs of which will
complement the undergraduate engineering
programs in Engineering Management,
Engineering and Society, and the existing
curriculum.
Auto investment announcement
M
cMaster University was the site
of the provincial government’s
spring announcement of a new
$500-million investment in the auto industry.
On April 14th, Premier Dalton McGuinty
toured the research facilities at the John
Hodgins Engineering Building before
making the announcement in the McMaster
Manufacturing Research Institute.
The Ontario Automotive Investment
Strategy is designed to strengthen the
industry’s competitiveness and train highly
skilled workers for the next generation of
innovation in the automotive industry, the
largest manufacturing sector in Ontario.
The funds will be used to partner with
industry for advanced skills training,
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improved environmental and energy technologies, public infrastructure, and investments in research and innovation.
The five-year initiative will provide
support for leading-edge auto manufacturing projects having more than $300
million in investment, or those that create
or retain more than 300 jobs. It is estimated that the $500 million has the potential to spur up to $5 billion in automotive
investments.
The Ontario auto industry accounted for
45 per cent of the province’s exports in
2003, and directly employed over 300,000
people. Many thousands more are
employed in supplier industries such as
steel, plastics and glass.
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For more information about the
campaign contact Terry Milson, Faculty
Advancement Officer at 905.525.9140 ext.
27391 or email: milsont@mcmaster.ca.
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Alumni profiles (continued)
Craig Wilkie – finds his niche in recycling
W
hen Craig Wilkie graduated in
1980 from the Chem Eng
program, he never dreamed his
career path would lead to a prominent position with a major Canadian recycling
company.
“The sciences always intrigued me and I
saw engineering as a practical application
of the sciences,” he says of his choice of
university program. He adds that the engineering courses offered at McMaster give
students exposure to technical knowledge
and experience using problem-solving and
analytical skills. “I’ve been able to translate
these into any type of work I’ve done over
the years.”
Currently Wilkie is Vice President of
Newalta Corporation, a waste management
company that focuses on recycling and
resource recovery. Founded in the 1980’s
and based in Calgary, Alberta, Newalta has
40 facilities in Western Canada and 600
employees.
Using the latest technology, the
company recovers and recycles valuable
products from a broad range of industrial
wastes including sludges and wastewaters,
and consolidate waste solvents, waste
lubricating oils and spent antifreeze. It
recycles antifreeze, solvents, diesel distillates and lubricating oils, and manufactures
and markets a line of lubricant products,
including base oils, motor oils, and
hydraulic fluids to customers throughout
western Canada and the USA
Wilkie jokes that his company, which
recovers 1.2 million barrels of crude oil
annually, could be considered “a junior oil
company except we don’t do any drilling or
have any wells!”
The crude oil is refined using Newalta’s
centrifugation technology. The company
employs 40 centrifuges of various types
and sizes, and has extended this capability
to on-site where it processes the material
on the customers’ site either as a short-term
project or a long-term contract.
Wilkie, who has an MBA from Harvard
(1989) established and built Newalta’s
Industrial Services sector when he joined
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the Company in 1993. Today, he is responsible for business development. “I run both
the acquisitions and the technical side in
this area. The Mac engineering experience
has given me the skills and tools to bridge
between these two sides.”
Loon Call
continued from page 5
fact that none of the three principals had
any business background, Thornton says.
But they developed a business plan,
secured financing, and are now poised for
a successful second season. In addition to
quadrupling in size, Loon Call has bought
out its biggest competitor and expects to
realize $1/4 to $1/2 million in sales during
summer 2004.
In addition to supportive family and
friends, Thornton says that customers
have been great, too. “Many have become
good friends.” He credits this to the
company’s insistence on hiring hardworking qualified people who are polite,
friendly and reliable. “Our customers can
see that we are working to be the best.
People have said they are very pleased
with our services which are offered 24
hours-a-day.”
Thornton, 26, says the partners go their
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One of the division’s objectives is to
develop and commercialize innovative
technologies to recover and recycle products from wastes. The company investigates processes from around the world in
order to expand the wastes that the
company processes, to expand services and
to diversify markets.
Wilkie remembers his McMaster years
fondly. His was a relatively small class, he
says, which became a tight-knit group that
worked well together and got along very
well with the professors. He especially
remembers three great profs: Drs.
Cameron Crowe, Don Woods and John
Vlachopoulos.
The relatively small, tight-knit 1980
graduating class has kept in touch on and
off over the years. “It’s a measure of the
connectedness of the class that I can pick
up the phone and start talking with any one
of them.”
Married with two boys aged 10 and 12,
Wilkie spends his free time skiing or
golfing.
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own ways during the winter months. Last
year, Nagel traveled around Europe and
Dietrich spent time in Vancouver. Thornton
was busy working on his masters in
Electrical & Computing Engineering at
McMaster where supervisor Terry Todd
has been truly supportive. “Dr. Todd has
been key in helping me through grad
school. I wanted a practical experience in
the field of wireless communications and
Dr. Todd has modified my program to
achieve just that.” The ECE department has
also been very supportive, he adds.
Thornton hopes eventually to start a wireless communications company.
For the next few summers, however,
Loon Call suits him just fine. “It’s really
nice to wake up to the lake and know that’s
where you are going to spend most of your
day. For now, my summer office is a barge
on the Muskoka Lakes!”
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Eric Sit – Mac Engineer assists in NASA project
E
ric Sit, ’78 (Elec.), never dreamed
he’d be working on a space project
one day. After graduation, he
attended the University of Minnesota in
Minneapolis/St. Paul and received an MSc
in Electrical Engineering. In 1980, he
started working at an American pacemaker
company Medtronic and, after passing two
eight-hour engineering tests, received his
Professional Engineer registrations in the
States of Minnesota and Wisconsin.
“The tests were much tougher than the
Canadian PE at that time,” he recalls.
However, he adds that being an EE
employee for corporations means he has
never once used his PE signature!
Following his time at Medtronic, he
spent 17 years at ADC Telecommunications before joining General
Dynamics in Bloomington, Minnesota in
2003. He currently works in the Advanced
Information Systems division as a technical
manager in systems engineering. And it is
with General Dynamics that he got the
opportunity to work on “a very exciting
project” involving NASA.
Virginia-based General Dynamics is a
leader in business aviation, mission-critical
information systems and technologies, shipbuilding and marine systems, and land and
amphibious combat systems, employing
approximately 68,400 people worldwide.
Established in 1952, it is now comprised of
four main divisions: aerospace (business
aircraft), combat systems (land and
amphibious), information systems and technology, and marine systems (submarines
and surface combatants).
Recently, the company contracted to
work on the mission control computers to
be used in NASA’s X-37 demonstrator - an
advanced technology flight demonstrator
designed to test and validate technologies
in the environment of space as well as test
system performance of the vehicle during
orbital flight, reentry and landing. Results
from the X-37 will aid in the design and
development of NASA’s Orbital Space
Plane – which will provide crew rescue and
crew transport to and from the International
Space Station.
Of his part in this project, Sit says: “I
gained a huge appreciation on the strict
discipline in the designing, testing and
qualifying of the system under various
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fulfilling to know that the product I helped
to produce is going to be used in space
exploration.”
However, he has only positive comments of his time at Mac. “The EE training
I received at Mac really paved the road for
me. EE is my passion and I appreciate the
foundation that Mac gave me. Dr. Sinha was
my senior project advisor and I remember
working on the feedback control robotic
system, soldering the circuit in the lab,
trying to get it to work. I still have the
system in a box in my garage!”
Sit feels extremely lucky, both in his
choice of university and in his career path.
He also believes that in addition to getting
a job and putting one’s education to work to
better humankind, real success comes when
you are happy in your work. “Follow your
heart and passion,” he advises. “You’ll be
happier and stay in the job much longer if
it’s something you like to do.”
Married to Rose for 22 years, the
Eric Sit hiking at Philmont National Scout
Ranch in New Mexico, June 2004.
stringent standards and operating and environmental requirements, that an engineer in other commercial electronic
industries may not usually see. It is very
Doug Gierula – out of the lab
A
t 26, Doug Gierula (Chem.Eng.)
just might be the youngest engineering grad holding the position
of company president. Shortly after graduating from McMaster in 2003, Gierula
became president (and owner) of Grimsbybased Klacko Marine.
Even before he finished the engineering
degree, Gierula was actively involved in
the company. It all started with a summer
job. At the end of his final high school year,
he was working in the shop and caught the
eye of owner, Martin Klacko. “He saw a lot
of potential in me and sort of took me
on as an apprentice,” Doug says. After
completing a degree at Queen’s and
returning to Hamilton to attend McMaster,
the ambitious student began working parttime during the year, too
Klacko Marine (www.klackomarine.ca),
founded in 1964, designs and fabricates
custom metal work for all type of watercraft. Products include spars, castings,
rails, bow fittings, stanchions and braces.
The company currently employs three
people. Gierula is expanding the company’s line to include custom items for
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Doug Gerula
trial applications. The next time you are at
a Silver City movie theatre, look way up at
those giant cokes, chip containers and
straws – all items designed and produced
by Klacko! However, 95 per cent of the
production is still marine work, he says.
Gierula, who is from Grimsby, realized
after getting his BSc degree in biocontinued on page 17
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Don’t miss any of the
Monday, August 23, 2004
Thursday, September 23, 2004
McMaster Materials
Engineering Alumni
Reception
2nd Annual Wine
Tasting Event
East Dell Estates
4041 Locust Lane, Beamsville
Gathering at 6:00 p.m.
Registration fee: $40.00 per person
Space is limited. Please register by Sept. 13th
Convention Centre, Hamilton
5:00 - 7:00 p.m.
This event is part of COM 2004
Sunday, August 29, 2004
Saturday, October 2, 2004
1st Annual Engineering
Family Day
Engineering and Society
Homecoming Weekend
Free hotdog and drink
Bring the kids to see the McMaster Solar Car
and SAE Formula Car
Cameron Motor Sports, Mount Hope
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Buffet Dinner & Silent Auction at
the University Club at 5:00 p.m.
$30 per person (guests are welcome)
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ese upcoming events!
Football Game starts at 2:00 p.m.
Please register before Sept. 17th
Friday, November 19, 2004
McMaster
Engineering Society
Past Presidents’ Gala
Tuesday, October 7, 2004
Social Connection Night
Alumni and Class of 2005
7 p.m. to 9 p.m., CIBC Hall
6:00 p.m.
Faculty Club, Formal Attire
Thursday, October 21, 2004
Tuesday, November 30, 2004
Oakville Alumni Event
Scotch Tasting Event
Guest speaker: Nick Javor, Chem.Eng. & Mgt. ’80
Topic: Diversity in Engineering
5:30 p.m.
Scottish Rite of Hamilton, Round Room
4 Queen St. South
$40 per person (includes traditional Christmas
Dinner and three Scotch Tasting samples)
Please register by Tues., Nov. 16th
For more information contact Carm Vespi,
e-mail: vespi@mcmaster.ca or visit the website:
www.eng.mcmaster.ca/engalumni
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Mac engineers play to success
M
ike Paddags, ’03, Mech. &
Society, is pretty darn excited.
This Crooked Mile, the threepiece band he and fellow engineering
students Geoff and Dan Olsen brought to
life in 1999, has taken a big step toward
immortalization with its first studio album
pressed earlier this year.
Now a seven-member synthesis of
guitars, drums, trumpets and keyboard,
This Crooked Mile finds its own space
between the boundaries of rock and pop,
folk and funk. “Proof That Things Are
Changing” is the title of TCM’s premiere
offering and it can be yours, hot off the
presses, at www.thiscrookedmile.ca or
from any member of da band if you ask
very, very nicely.
“The band’s name comes from a lyric in
a Dave Matthews Band song,” explains
Geoff (’01, Mech. & Management), the
group’s designated mouthpiece. “When
TCM started, we were an acoustic cover
band playing a lot of Dave Matthews tunes.”
In a highly un-rockstar-like twist, the
band first broke on the scene playing
dinner music at a McMaster residence
formal. The thrill of performing live and
the enthusiastic response they received
from the crowd convinced those original
three to sink their teeth in, and over the
next few years TCM perfected its acoustic
set on stages from Hamilton to Waterloo
and Toronto. It was during the 2001
McMaster University Battle of the Bands
that the trio expanded to seven members,
taking in new recruits from the McMaster
Engineering Musical’s band where Geoff,
Mike and Dan had held membership for
most of their engineering degrees. TCM
made the most of their few weeks of prep
time and landed feet-first in the finals. It
was during this event that the band developed its signature sound – a solid foundation of tried and true rock format overlayed
with rich vocal harmonies, textured with
vivid layers of trumpet and keyboard.
In 2003 TCM returned to the MSU
Showoff, and this time their momentum
carried them all the way to victory and on to
the South Western Ontario Finals in London.
Here they found themselves a standout act
among the plethora of alternative and
pop/punk bands, and TCM held their own
with an excellent second place finish.
These days the band has depth aplenty;
in addition to Mike on drums, Geoff on
vocals/electric guitar, and Danny (’03, Civil
& Management) on acoustic guitar/ vocals,
TCM employs the skills of bass guitarist
Allan Raun (’04, Mech. & Management),
Geoff Boyd (’04, Chem.) and Dave Olsen
(’06, Chem. & Management) on trumpet,
and keyboard/vocals by Bryan Hall, the
group’s “engineer by proxy” (secretly a
Philosophy grad from York University, but
we won’t tell if you don’t).
The sound has evolved over the past four
years, too. These days you’ll hear the influences of Coldplay, Rufus Wainright, The
Beatles, and Radiohead in TCM’s distinctive melodies.
Geoff Olsen claims that the life of the
band is uncomplicated by brotherly rivalries – at least not in the actual biological
sense. “Over the past four-and-a-halfyears the rest of the guys in the band
have pretty much become like brothers,
so any problems associated with working
with family members extend to the rest
of the band.”
He says that as various members of the
band graduate, it actually becomes easier
to find time to rehearse and record. “It was
hard to be in a band while at school
because, between classes and homework,
there didn’t seem to be much time left over
for music. That’s engineering for you!”
This Crooked Mile is revved up to spend
the next year promoting both the album
specifically, and their music generally,
across Canada and in the spring they hope
to hop the pond (figuratively) and introduce themselves to the fine, music-loving
audience of England. They also love
hearing from devotees, both new and old,
so get a-typing with emails to info@this
crookedmile.ca if you have questions or
comments. And don’t forget to bring those
freshly pressed undies to their next gig.
Even clean-cut rock stars love a little panty
tossing.
This Crooked Mile from left to right: Bryan Hall, Dan Olsen, Mike Paddags, Geoff Olsen, Geoff Boyd, David Olsen and Allan Raun
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Jerry Uvira
will find the traditional and familiar
format and product mix, but Uvira says
he does much more business on the
bakery and soup/sandwich side than with
coffee sales.
Speaking with him, it’s clear that he is
obviously happy with the career change and
excited about his new business venture. “My
only regret – not doing it 10 years ago!”
Uvira, who lives in Columbus, is dad to
two teenagers, John and Jennifer, who
shuttle between California and Columbus.
He still flies and “plays bad golf”!
actually done any engineering, he has
always used the engineering degree indirectly. He credits the B.Eng. degree with
giving him the analytical skills that benefited him throughout his career. The
degree, he says, allowed him to get the jobs
that helped him acquire comprehensive
business knowledge and expertise – skills
that he now uses in managing the Tim
Hortons stores.
Mechanical engineering was a good
choice, he adds. Because the program
allows you to become a generalist, it is one
of the most diverse engineering degrees
available. Besides, at 19, he already had
his commercial pilot’s licence and was
working on his instructors rating and saw
the mechanical courses as being the closest
to aeronautical engineering as he could get
in Hamilton!
Mac Engineering was four years of hard
work “and a lot of intensive drinking,” he
jokes. He says the class of ’79 kept in touch
for many years after graduating, before
slowly drifting apart. However, many made
the effort to attend the 25-year Reunion this
past June.
Doug Gierula
chemistry that “working in a lab was not for
me!” Also, he wanted to establish some
credentials for business reasons. He chose
McMaster because Hamilton is near
Grimsby, allowing him to continue his parttime job at Klacko. But he has no regrets.
“We were a small class and became
quite close-knit. It was great. There was a
different learning system than Queen’s,
with a lot of emphasis on presentations and
problem-solving. It gave us good realworld experiences.”
The size of the class meant that they
became good friends and did everything
together, both socially as well as academically. “We were able to be close to the
profs, too. We got to know them and
could have conversations with them in
the halls.”
His Mac experience left a good impression. As part of Kipling 2003 celebrations,
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Jerry Uvira
Uvira, who always wanted to run his
own business, says the Tim Hortons organization has been “first class”. He mentions
that Columbus is known in the restaurant
business as a tough market. In fact, many
restaurant companies will test their
concepts here. In spite of the competitive
nature of the market, Tim Hortons is doing
very well.
Interestingly, people in the southern
United States don’t drink as much coffee
as Canadians, preferring a nice cold pop
with their donuts. Any Canadian Mech
Eng grad who visits one of his stores
group individual core expertise from their
own disciplines. The result is a group able
to break the kind of traditional political
barriers that exist in other large automotive
companies, and get the public what they
really want – “kick ass performance at a
fair price”. Traditional design/release engineers work on 3- to 4-year projects. The
SRT group is very different, designing and
releasing in one year! This, he adds, “drives
dynamic decision making and no-nonsense
approaches to problem solving.”
For that first job in 2002, Forte worked
as a body engineer on the Viper SRT10
(500 hp V10) with responsibility for
design, testing, production tooling and
final part release for the rear clip. From
2002-2003, he had responsibility for the
development, design, production tooling
and final part release for new front and
rear fascias, a rear deck lid spoiler and
reinforcement bumpers for the Dodge
SRT4 (230hp 14 Turbo). And the next
year, he had the same responsibilities for
new exterior body component assembly
for the RAM SRT10 (500 hp V10) –
which had not been released as of time
of printing.
Most recently, he is the Lead Synthesis
Engineer responsible for creating and
maintaining all vehicle level performance
and endurance testing for the newest and as
yet un-named SRT vehicle. “In a nutshell,
a synthesis engineer owns every aspect of
the vehicle from a customer perspective
and is the voice behind product enhancements, performance, feel and overall customer appeal of a vehicle.”
Gierula built and presented to the department the large chemical engineering sign
now located on the third floor of JHB.
Having credentials is important in an
industry where most of the players are much
older. The boat building industry in Canada
virtually collapsed during the 1980’s, so
there are very few young people working in
the field. All are middle aged or older.
“It helps a lot when these (older) guys
see I have an engineering degree and practical experience,” he adds.
Gierula, who is single, actually began
the process of taking over the company in
2000, during a slow transition that benefited both the business and the plans of the
original owner. One of the challenges that
concerns him is the lack of skilled workers
in this field. “We pretty well have to take
high school graduates and train them here
ourselves.”
Despite the responsibilities, he does get
some free time, and enjoys outdoor activities like sailing, windsurfing, kayaking and
downhill skiing.
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Alumni news
2004 golf tourney a success
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wenty-nine teams were registered
for this year’s annual Mac
Engineering Golf Tournament, held
at the Tyandaga Golf Course in Burlington
on May 27th. The day was gorgeous, and
the 116 duffers enjoyed Mac anecdotes and
Gary Moore, Ron Scheckenberger, Peter Crockett and Paul Cripps, all Civil ’81
Personal Invitation!
by Pat (King) Stevens, Chem Eng ’80
Please consider this a personal invitation to attend any
upcoming McMaster Engineering Alumni event. Carm Vespi
and her team, along with the Engineering Alumni Advisory
Committee, have been working feverishly to pull together a
series of events which are spread out across the next calendar
year and have been designed to appeal to a variety of interests.
Pat Stevens
These events include:
Engineering Family Day – August 29th at Cameron Motorsport
Wine Tasting at East Dell Estates – September 23rd
Diversity in Engineering with Guest Speaker Nick Javor (Chem Eng
& Mgmt ’80) on October 21st (Location TBD)
Engineering MES Past Presidents Gala – November 19th Faculty Club
Scotch Tasting – November 30th at the Scottish Rite in Hamilton
Toronto Alumni Dinner Event – February 24, 2005 (Location TBD)
3rd Annual Golf Tournament – May 26, 2005
Alumni Weekend for ’65, ’80, ’85 – June 4, 2005
Attending any one of these events will provide you and your partner with an enjoyable outing and enable you to hook up with old friends. You will note on the alumni
website, that Carm and her crew provide a listing of those who are planning on
attending each event, so you know in advance if any of your former classmates will be
attending. If there is an activity or location that would have greater appeal to you than
those listed above, please feel free to contact Carm or me so that we can include your
ideas in future plans!
Please accept this invitation to attend any of the events we have to offer.
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sharing golf tips as they made their way
around the challenging course.
Team 13 (Anton Osfolk, Mechanical &
Mgt. ’01, Ryan Mendell, Eng. Physics ’02,
Ian Karas, Chemical & Mgt. ’02, and
Derek Macpherson, Materials & Mgt.’04)
were the winners of Lowest Score. Other
winners included Andy Kurelek,
Mechanical ’81 (Putting Competition), Jeff
Brace (Men’s Longest Drive), Cathy
Taylor, Civil & Mgt. ’82 (Women’s
Longest Drive), and Walter Veckie, Unified
Engineering (Closest-to-the-Pin).
The record number of teams participating (31) included an all-Dofasco team
and a CivEng emeritus professors team.
The 21 raffle prizes donated by our fine
sponsors and supporters were very much
appreciated. (see website for full list!)
http://www.eng.mcmaster.ca/engalumni/
Thanks to everyone for supporting this
annual event. See you next year on
Thursday, May 26, 2005 at Crosswinds
Golf and Country Club, Burlington.
www.crosswindsgolf.com . Book Early!
David Rosato (Computer & Mgt. ’07),
Matthew Rosato (Computer ’03), Jason Little
(Electrical ’03) and Pete Patskoviak (Eng.
Physics ’03)
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Faculty of Engineering Advisory Board
2004 Membership
Five new members have joined the Dean’s Advisory Board
due to vacancies arising from the retirement of Vince Smith
(Dow Chemical Canada) and Norman Toms (Sierra Wireless),
and an out-of-country move by Claudine Simson (Motorola).
We welcome Don Black, Bob Magee, Amit Monga, Tim Valters
and Ed Whitehead.
Formed in 2002, the Board meets twice a year to share their
experience and wisdom with the Dean. For example, the group
has provided important advice on issues relating to the creation
of the Schools of Engineering Practice and BioEngineering. If
you wish more information about the Board, please e-mail Terry
Milson at milsont@mcmaster.ca
Dr. John Reid
JDS Uniphase (retired)
Dr. David J. Litster
Professor, Department of Physics
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Dr. Doug H. Barber (Chair)
Gennum Corporation (retired)
Mr. Dietmar Reiner
Chief Information Officer
Ontario Power Generation
Mr. Don Black
Deputy Minister
Ministry of Economic Development
and Trade
Mr. Norm Lockington
Vice President, Technology
Dofasco Inc.
Mr. Walter Booth
Chairman & CEO
Timberland Equipment Limited
Mr. Bob Magee
President & CEO
The Woodbridge Group
Ms. Maryann Combs
General Director of Engineering &
Product Planning
General Motors of Canada
Dr. Amit Monga
Vice-President, Technology Investing
MDS Capital Corp.
Mr. Tim Valters
Vice President & General Manager
Selkirk Canada Corporation
Mr. Ed Whitehead
Director of Engineering
Motorola Canada
Dr. Joe Wright
President & CEO
Pulp and Paper Research
Institute of Canada
Mr. Joe Ng
President
JNE Consulting Limited
Mr. Bob Crow
University & Government Relations
Research in Motion Limited
Mr. Michael Pley
President
COM DEV Space
Mr. Mike Fielding
Chief Executive Officer
StrataFlex
Twelfth Annual Engineering Physics forum
T
he Twelfth Annual Forum of
Engineering Physics Alumni and
Undergraduates was held on
Friday, April 2, 2004 – and was a rousing
success.
An advance notice of the event was sent
by e-mail and responses were received
from around the world; over 125 people
attended.
Members of this year’s alumni panel
outlined their careers since leaving
McMaster and described how the Engineering Physics program had prepared
them for the workforce.
Panel members included: Victor Barreto
(’97) from ITC Systems Inc., Gord
Cormick (’74) of Fibre Laminations Ltd.,
Mandy Jandu (B.Eng. Mgt.’02) from
Ontario Power Generation, Brian Mitchell
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from Sobotec Ltd. (B.Eng.Mgt. ’03),
Karen Owen (B.Eng. Society ‘02) from
Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission,
Horatiu Pop (’98) from MD Robotics and
Stephen Szabo (B.Eng. Mgt. ’91) from
Stantec Consulting. Paul Jessop, Chair of
the Department, acted as Moderator.
The forum was followed by a social at
Wentworth House where undergraduates
had an opportunity to talk informally with
faculty and alumni.
Alumni who missed the event but
who are interested in participating in
the forum or other seminars, please
contact Fran Allen, Engineering Physics
Department, McMaster University, L8S
4L7, Tel (905) 525-9l40, Ext. 24548,
E-mail, allenf@mcmaster.ca.
Canadian Academy of Engineering inductions
advancement of engineering education and
training for the 21st century.
The Canadian Academy of Engineering
(CAE) is an independent, self-governing
and non-profit organization established in
1987 to serve the nation in matters of engi-
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neering concern. The Fellows of the
Academy are professional engineers from
all disciplines and are elected on the basis
of their distinguished service and contribution to society, to the country and to the
profession.
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Fun for all – Alumni Weekend 2004
T
he 2004 Engineering Alumni Weekend, held on Saturday June 5th, featured
alumni classes of ’64, ’79, and ’84. The Meet and Mingle event held in the
Engineering Lobby prior to dinner, provided everyone with an opportunity to
tour a number of the Faculty’s new or newly renovated departments: the McMaster
Research Institute (MMRI), Information Technology Building (ITB), Engineering
Student Services and the University’s Student Centre. Following a welcome by Dean
Mo Elbestawi, over 75 alumni, faculty and staff and their guests tucked into a scrumptious dinner buffet.
Alumni tell us they appreciate an occasion to reunite with classmates, touch base with
former profs and generally become re-connected with Mac. Why not plan to join us next
year and re-connect with Mac!
Jackson Wiegman (Super Plumber) holding Ben
Sproule MES President ’79.
Class of ’84: Front row: Chris Wolfe (Chemical), Ian Kennedy (Mechanical), Antero Gomes
(Electrical & Mgt.), Carol Wilson (Mechanical & Mgt.), Chuck Taylor (Mechanical). Back
row: Dr. Les Shemilt (Chemical), Dr. Don Woods (Chemical), Erwin Bluemke (Civil), David
Hiemnstra (Electrical & Mgt.), Sam Luinstra (Mechanical), Craig Pappin (Mechanical &
Mgt.), Harry Laiconis (Mechanical), Tom Grice (Mechanical & Mgt.), John Walma
(Mechanical)
Mechanical ’79: Art Cooper, Dave Petherick,
Peter Young, Mark Ryc, Dr. Ross Judd, Tom
Magyarody, John Shimmell, Jerry Uvira, Paul
Schurter
Class of ’64: Gene Riley, David Parkes, Tom
Ricker and Don Jones. Missing: Mimmo
Lostrocco and John Buchan
Class of ’79: Front row: Rick Moreau (Civil), Ben Sproule (Civil), Gwen Rousseau
(Chemical), Janet Major (Chemical), Warren Bridle (Chemical), Neil Crawford (Chem.
Eng.). Second row: John Monkman (Civil), Dave Petherick (Mechanical), Peter Young
(Mechanical), Dr. Ross Judd (Mechanical), Dr. Les Shemilt (Chemical), Tom Magyarody
(Mechanical & Mgt.), John Shimmell (Mechanical), Jerry Uvira (Mechanical), Paul Schurter
(Mechanical & Mgt.), Dr. Terry Hoffman (Chemical). Back row: Al Pluim (Electrical), Juha
Kantovaara (Eng. Physics), Mark Ryc (Mechanical), Art Cooper (Mechanical & Mgt.).
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Interfaces – George C. Weatherly Symposium
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bout 60 friends, colleagues and
former students of the late
Professor George Weatherly gathered at McMaster University May 5-7,
2004 for the first annual Weatherly
Symposium. This symposium was instituted as a memorial to his life and a trust
fund was established for this purpose. In
future, the venue will alternate between the
University of Toronto and McMaster
University to reflect the fact that George
Weatherly worked at both institutions
during his distinguished career.
It was George’s wish that something be
done to enable students of Materials
Science to come together to collaborate
and present their work. The study of
Material Science encompasses almost all
of the natural sciences from math, physics,
chemistry, biology, to most of the engineering disciplines and therefore, crossdiscipline collaboration is important to
solving materials problems. George
Weatherly clearly understood this requirement. From 1996 to 2001, he was Director
of the Brockhouse Institute for Materials
Research, established to bring together
researchers from all the disciplines touched
by materials science and to provide a
University of Toronto. He will be
cherished by his friends, colleagues
and students for the richness of his
life, his quiet humour, his humanity
and care for others and, above all, for
his unfailing honesty. His contributions were many and are written
clearly in the lives of those with whom
he taught and worked.
collection of state-of-the-art facilities for
this research.
Papers presented at the Interfaces
symposium offered a wide range of topics:
mathematical models, the physics and
chemistry of interfaces and grain boundaries, the biological interfaces of
membranes and bones, and the application
of electron microscopy to the study of hard
and soft materials. Six current PhD
students, two from the University of
Toronto and four from McMaster,
presented papers on their work. Andi
Limanga and Kevin Spencer (Mat. Sci. &
Eng., McMaster) were presented with
awards of $300 each for the best presentations. Eleven students presented posters on
work being done in the area of materials
science and Ye Zhu (Mat. Sci. & Eng.,
McMaster) received the prize for the best
poster. In total, 29 papers and 14 posters
were presented.
The outstanding impressions of the first
symposium are captured eloquently in the
memorial written by David Wilkinson:
George was a devoted scientist in the
field of electron microscopy and an
educator with a distinguished career
at McMaster University and the
Eric Sit profile
couple have three children. Nathan, an
Eagle Scout, is studying biological chemistry at UC Berkeley; Leeann is going to
the U. of Minnesota to study anthropology
and sociology; and Tyler, who is
passionate about drama and choir/band,
will be a sophomore in Eden Prairie High
School. In his spare time, Sit is active in
scouting and is currently training to be
a Commissioner.
“We have to leave the trail in better
shape than when we found it. Fame and
money are only by-products. If you do a
good job, things will happen.”
Alumni Gallery Inductees 2004
Three engineering alumni have been inducted into the Alumni
Gallery of Distinction.
A graduate in electrical engineering (B.Eng. ’89 and
M.Eng.’92), Steve Mann is the inventor of WearComp, a wearable computer, and WearCam, an eyetap camera and reality mediator. In 1991, his inventions and ideas were snapped up by MIT
and he can be credited with planting the seeds that developed into
the MIT Wearable Computing Project. He has also constructed a
device that will record every moment he sees, and connect with
the Internet 24 hours a day.
At the age of 22, Eva Marsh was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS). Not one to be defeated by this news, the electrical graduate (’81) began to investigate this typicaly debilitating disease,
determined that it would not slow her down. In the succeeding 37
years, Eva has raised a family, graduated from university and worked
in industry. Public speaker, researcher and author of two books, the
single mother works actively to help others living with MS.
An internationally known and respected researcher in the field
of microstructure development in engineering materials, Gary
Purdy graduated from material science and engineering in 1962.
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Eva Marsh
Gary Purdy
Currently he is a professor in McMaster’s Materials Science &
Engineering department. During his career, he has made major
contributions in the areas of multicomponent effects in diffusion
and phase transformatives, structures and properties of solidsolid interfaces, and phase transformations involving interfacial
diffusion. Current research projects include: equilibrium and
dynamic properties of interfaces as they relate to the development
of microstructure; liquid film migration in solids, liquid phase
bonding, coherent equilibrium, reaction and diffusion in thin
films and heterostructures, phase transformations in steels, cast
irons, light alloys, machinability of materials.
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New Faculty Members
Civil Engineering
Michael Tait joined the
Department as an assistant
professor in July 2004. Dr.
Tait received his Ph.D.
from the University of
Western Ontario. His research interests include
Michael Tait
experimental testing and
numerical modelling of passive vibration
control devices, the retrofit/rehabilitation
of structures, and full-scale monitoring of
structures. Dr. Tait has been involved in
several commercial research projects at the
Boundary Layer Wind Tunnel Laboratory
in London, Ontario.
Computing & Software
The Department welcomes
Tom Maibaum who
joined us in June from
King’s College London,
where he was Professor of
the Foundations of Software Engineering in the
Department of Computer Tom Maibaum
Science. Maibaum received his B.Sc. in
Pure Mathematics from the University of
Toronto and his Ph.D. in Computer Science
from the University of London, and has
held appointments at various other institutions including the Imperial College of
Science and Technology and University of
Waterloo. He has an extensive and impressive list of publications, professional
contributions and administrative experience, and we are very pleased that he has
Applause & Accolades
attended and brought congratulations to the
NSERC chair holders.
The many speeches and announcements
couldn’t dampen the evening’s festive
mood! The overwhelming success of this
celebratory gala combined with the realization that world-class research continues
at McMaster, means we can look forward
to another Applause & Accolades Awards
event in the near future.
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decided to join our department. Software
Engineering students will benefit from his
experience. He will be teaching two of our
core Software Design courses.
Electrical & Computer
Welcome to Aleksandar
Jeremic who joined us in
July 2004 as an Assistant
Professor. Dr. Jeremic
received his BSEE from the
University of Belgrade,
Serbia and Montenegro,
and his M.S. and Ph.D. in Aleksandar Jeremic
electrical engineering from the University
of Illinois at Chicago. His research focuses
on different areas of biomedical modeling
and signal processing. In addition, his
research interests include medical image
analysis, visualization of biomedical
systems using spatio-temporal models, and
biochemical sensing.
University of Windsor. He has extensive
experience in all aspects of nuclear safety
analysis gained from many years with
Ontario Hydro, Ontario Power Generation
and, more recently, Nuclear Safety
Solutions.
His research interests include best estimate and uncertainty analysis methods for
reactor accident analysis, nuclear safety
thermalhydraulics, and thermal-mechanical
behavior of reactor components under accident conditions.
The IRC in Nuclear Safety Analysis is
an industrial partnership with the
University Network of Excellence in
Nuclear Engineering (UNENE) – a consortium of Canadian nuclear organizations
including Ontario Power Generation
(OPG), Bruce Power, Atomic Energy of
Canada Ltd. (AECL), the CANDU Owners
Group (COG) and the Canadian Nuclear
Safety Commission (CNSC).
Mechanical Engineering
Engineering Physics
John C. Luxat, NSERC/
UNENE Industrial Research
Chair (IRC) in Nuclear
Safety Analysis, joined the
Department in May 2004.
Dr. Luxat received his B.Sc.
and M.Sc. in electrical engineering from the University John C. Luxat
of Cape Town, South Africa, and his Ph.D.
in electrical engineering from the
Sumanth
Shankar
joined the Department on
July 1, 2004 as the BraleyOrlick Chair in Advanced
Manufacturing. Dr. Shankar
was previously employed
as a Research Scientist in
the Advanced Casting Sumanth Shankar
Research Center, Metals Processing Institute at Worcester Polytechnical Institute in
Worcester, MA.
Can you help us find?
Brian Damato, Chemical ’82
Kenneth Agler, Mechanical & Mgt. ’91
Paul Alexander, M.Eng. Chemical ’70
Frederic Allan, Eng. Physics ’67
Kenneth Ametewee, Computer ’97
Eric-Alexander Achig, Electrical ’03
Lisa Anderson, Chemical ’84
David Arnott, Civil ’81
John Arvanitis, Materials ’98
David Atkins, Civil ’79
Jodie Atkins, Civil ’96
George Augustyn, Mechanical ’80
Jesse Awai, M.Eng. Civil ’83
Hussein Azmi, M.Eng. Civil ’75
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Mohsen Azari, Electrical ’95
Michael Ball, Electrical ’84
Jeffrey Balmer, Eng. Physics ’83
Marc Bender, Software ’02
David Betel, Eng. Physics ’68
Roy Bilic, Civil ’89
Mike Binder, Chemical ’94
David Black, Mechanical ’94
Ken Black, Manufacturing ’02
Ricky Blacker, Mechnaical ’94
Anne Duncan, Eng. Physics ’87
Brian Eady, Electrical Eng. & Mgt. ’80
William DiDiodato, Mechanical ’99
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Engineering Co-op & Career Services
New Program:
On-Campus Recruiting:
Advice:
Engineering Co-op & Career Services
is the new name of Engineering Career
Services. As of September 2004, we will have
an official co-op program. Students graduating from the co-op option must accumulate
a minimum of 12 months experience prior to
term 2 of their final year.
The Co-op requirement may be completed
through:
• Three four-month summer experience terms
• One four-month summer experience term
and two back-to-back four-month experience terms (8-month September to April
placement)
• Three four-month back-to-back experience terms (May to May, September to
September).
January starts are not available because we
aren’t a trimester school. In building the
Engineering Co-op program, we’ve tried to
offer the maximum flexibility to both
employers and students.
As always we would appreciate an opportunity to discuss the Engineering Co-op
program with you. Please contact Anne
Markey markeya@mcmaster.ca to arrange an
appointment.
Career’s Day kicks off on-campus recruitment on Monday, September 20 this year. If
you haven’t yet registered – call me. We’re
also booking space for corporate information
sessions targeted to members of the graduating class. The following companies have
reserved dates. Evertz Microsystems, IBM
Canada, Ontario Power Generationm
Imperial Oil, Enbridge Consumer’s Gas, GE
Canada, Dofasco Canada, Apotex Canada,
Accenture Canada, Research In Motion,
Nortel Networks, Nuclear Safety Solutions
I hope that, as alumni, you’ll be on campus
as part of the recruiting team. If you are, stop
by and visit us in JHE A214. I’ll be at most
sessions; please say hello. To arrange an
information session, or to post positions for
members of the graduating class, please
contact me.
I’m asking for your suggestions on the top
3 things engineering students can do to
ensure their employability upon graduation.
You are the experts. Please take a moment to
share your information. I can’t make students
take your advice, but we can make them
aware of what you believe is important.
Please send your top 3 suggestions to
engcar@mcmaster.ca and use the subject
line: Top 3. We’ll collate the information and
make it available to students on our web site.
And finally – plant/industry tours. In the
last academic year we bussed students to
General Motors of Canada St. Catharines
(thanks Peter), Imperial Oil Nanticoke
(thanks Chris), Modatek Systems in Milton
and
Gerdau
Ameristeel
Corporate
(Cambridge Division). Although the tours are
Guest Speakers:
Our fall lineup of special events for
students is under development. We’re
recruiting alumni to participate in the
following events:
Networking Breakfasts: 8-9:30 a.m.
Friday Oct 1 – Civil Engineering
Thursday Oct 21 – Electrical & Computer
Engineering, Eng Phys
Monday Nov 15 – Software Engineering &
Comp Sci.
Monday Jan 10/05 – Materials & Chemical
Engineering
Monday Feb 7/05 – Mechanical Engineering
Alumni Employment Opportunities
The Engineering Co-op & Career Services office has used this column to report
changes to our program and to inform alumni of our services – it is now our turn to
provide a ‘career service’ for you. Numerous engineering opportunities come to our
attention that require several years of experience in addition to an engineering degree.
These positions are posted at http://careers.mcmaster.ca and require alumni to register
on line at http://careers.mcmaster.ca/alumni.htm in order to access the job descriptions.
Registration is free.
If you are an employer with an opportunity for an experienced graduate, this service
will also be of benefit to you. Posting is free of charge and weekly informative
reminders are forwarded to all registrants on eRecruiting highlighting recent postings.
Please visit http://careers.mcmaster.ca for more information and to register.
Change of address card:
Name:_______________________________________________________________________________
Grad Yr. & Dept.: _____________________________________________________________________
New Address: _________________________________________________________________________
Other Events:
____________________________________________________________________________________
Monday Oct 18, 5-7 p.m.
Resume Writing – Employer Panel
• What impresses you in resumes or other
application forms?
Thursday Nov 4, 5-7 p.m. Interview Tips –
Employer Panel
• Share your perspective on what you look
for when hiring new recruits
If you’d like to participate in an event that
isn’t mentioned above, please contact me and
we’ll work with you to develop a session.
Phone: __________________________________ Fax: ________________________________________
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Postal Code: __________________ E-mail:_________________________________________________
Comments: (present occupation, recent accomplishments ie: awards, recognitions).
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
Any comments provided will be included in the next issue.
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Engineering Students news
Accolades for the Venture Program
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he Venture and Engineering and
Science Program, organized and
administered by the Faculty of
Engineering’s Alumni Office, has won a
prestigious award.
The Program’s Electronic Roadster
2000mm won the 2004 Best Project Award
from Actua at the Association’s bi-annual
gathering, held in June in Halifax, Nova
Scotia. The McMaster project competed
against entries from 26 Canadian engineering and science camps.
Designed to be used in Venture’s
Computer and Technology summer camp,
the Electronic Roadster 2000mm is a metal
track with a small current running through
it. Children design cars that contain two
motors that they wire themselves and run
on the track. The activity teaches them
about electricity, conductivity and engineering design.
The Venture and Engineering Science
Program (www.venture.mcmaster.ca) is a
non-profit program run by McMaster
undergraduate engineering and science
students. Its mandate is to introduce children to engineering, science and technology in a fun, interactive and innovative
manner.
McMaster wrestler garners awards
C
hemical Engineering student Lulu
Bursztyn was selected as one of
eight Academic All-Canadians by
Ontario University Athletics. She was
honored at the 11th annual Academic AllCanadian Celebration on June 10th at the
Chateau Mont Ste-Anne in Quebec. Each
To:
24
Ms. Carm Vespi
Managing Editor
The MacEngineer
Faculty of Engineering
John Hodgins Building, Room A 201D
McMaster University
Hamilton, Ontario L8S 4L7
Tel: (905) 525-9140, ext. 24906 Fax: (905) 546-5492
E-mail: vespi@mcmaster.ca
The MacEngineer
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year, one female and one male are selected
from each of the four regional associations
that comprise the Canadian Interuniversity
Sport (CIS).
Bursztyn has earned two OUA wrestling
medals during her four years at McMaster.
She is also the recipient of the Chancellor’s
God Medal (November 2003). One of the
University’s top prizes, it is awarded to the
student that ranks highest in scholarship,
leadership and influence.
Earlier in the month, Bursztyn was the
recipient of the Dr. Mary Keyes award for
the Top Female Marauder Scholar. The
Marauder Scholar Awards are presented
annually to student-athletes who have
achieved a minimal sessional average of
9.5 (80 per cent) over 24 units while
competing for a varsity or club team during
the school year.
In addition to numerous academic and
sports awards, Bursztyn has been active
with the McMaster Engineering Society, a
member of the Chemical Engineering Club
and the Redsuits Orientation Committee, as
well as being a tutor.
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It’s summer and the camps are fun
M
cMaster University offers a
variety of summer camp experiences for kids ranging in age
from 6 to 16.
The oldest is the Sports Fitness School
(SFS) which celebrates 27 years of
providing a multi-sports program that
emphasizes fitness and recreational swimming. This year, in addition to traditional
stand-by’s like squash, wrestling and dance,
lacrosse has been added to the menu.
The Mini-U (www.mcmaster.ca/camps/
miniu) targets ages 9 to 14, and offers this
group a study program combined with
recreational activities and swimming. Kids
chose from three modules of four topics, all
designed to explore both the sciences and
non-sciences. The two-week program culminates in a sleep-over in one of the
campus’ residences.
The Faculty of Engineering’s Venture
Engineering and Science camp (www.
venture.mcmaster.ca) offers two streams:
one that focuses on engineering and
science, and one on computers. Venture
Engineering and Science is divided into
junior (Grades 4 & 5), intermediate
(Grade 6) and senior (Grade 7 & 8) groups.
Computer Camp has the same three groups
but they cater to different ages: junior
(Grades 4 & 5), intermediate (Grade 6 &
7), senior (Grade 8 to 10).
Instruction is provided by McMaster
undergrads who quickly discover that there’s
more to teaching than they ever imagined!
Experience and knowledge of the camps are
key factors in hiring both directors and coor-
dinators, many of whom have participated in
previous camps as instructors.
While the focus is on exposing kids to
hands-on educational activities in a university setting, the overriding goal for both
campers and instructors is to have lots
of fun!
The Solar Car soars at last!
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was working as expected. They had no
major difficulties during the 3-day event.
The 317-kilogram, $600,000 vehicle
was one of 20 cars entered in the competition, which attracted some of the top engineering schools in Canada and the United
States. McMaster’s entry has always been a
multi-disciplinary initiative involving
students from health sciences, humanities
and business, as well as engineering.
The Formula Sun Grand Prix is a shorter
race than the American Solar Car (ASC)
Challenge, a 10-day race from Chicago to
Los Angeles. The efforts at the Grand Prix
“was a great learning experience and
offered the team great race experience,”
says Tammy Hwang, project manager. “We
know what to expect for the big race (ASC)
in 2005.”
he Phoenix, the latest version of the
McMaster solar car, won top
Canadian school at a three-day road
course in Topeka, Kansas in May 2004.
The challenge of the 2004 Formula Sun
Grand Prix was to be the car that completed
the most laps of a closed circuit over a 72hour period. The race was held at the 2.5mile track at Heartland Park in Topeka
from May 19 to 21.
Four members of the McMaster Solar
Car Team took turns driving the car in order
to take full advantage of the sunlight hours.
They completed over 400 miles, as well as
clocking a fastest lap time of four minutes
and five seconds. Overall, the Phoenix
ranked a very respectable fifth. The drivers
reported that the car performed very well
and the newly implemented steering system
Wishing for fun and profit
I
magine a giant game of Mousetrap built out of Tinker Toys.
Three engineering students did just that! The mechanical
engineering students built a sophisticated game designed to
make young patients at the McMaster Children’s Hospital smile
– and raise money for the hospital at the same time.
The McMaster graduates earned an “A” for this final year
project, dubbed Mech-A-Wish, that put their mechanical engineering skills to the test. The brightly coloured kinetic display
features 20 different mechanisms performing a different action
with a raveling ball. The device is activated by the donation of a
loonie or toonie coin.
Dean of Engineering Mo Elbestawi remarked that “it is important in the education of our students in mechanical engineering to
have applied design projects to work on. This project shows a
high degree of innovation with a wonderful opportunity to be
utilized by the Children’s Hospital.”
Students on the team included: Brian Wilson, Ruger Johnsen
and Morgan Curran-Blaney. They were supervised by Professor
Tim Nye.
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The Mech-A-Wish is on permanent display in 3B/3C Lounge
of the McMaster Childrens Hospital at the McMaster University
Medical Centre.
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Departmental newsbriefs
In June, the Software Quality
Research Laboratory (SQRL) was host
to a three-day conference on Application of
Concurrency to System Design (ACSD’04).
This international conference was preceded
by the First International Workshop on
Model-Based Methodologies for Pervasive
and Embedded Software (MOMPES). Both
the conference and the workshop were a
huge success. The conference alone attracted
participants from Germany, Finland, France,
Iran, Japan, The Netherlands, Portugal, the
United Kingdom, and the United States, as
well as from across Canada.
Chemical Engineering
John Vlachopoulos received the
Distinguished Achievement Award of the
Extrusion Division of the Society of
Plastics Engineers (S.P.E.) during SPE’s
Annual Technical Meeting (ANTEC) in
Chicago, on May 18th, 2004. He received
a plaque and an honorarium in recognition
of his contributions to polymer extrusion
technology and to the plastics industry.
SPE is the world’s largest association of
plastics professionals with membership
25,000. Professor Vlachopoulos is Director
of the Centre for Advanced Polymer
Processing and Design (CAPPA-D) at
McMaster University and Acting Director
of the McMaster Manufacturing Research
Institute (MMRI).
Congratulations to MASc. student Art
Tinson. Art received the Best Student
Paper Award for the Rotational Molding
Division at the Society of Plastics
Engineers ANTEC Conference in Chicago,
IL, in May 2004. The paper, co-authored
with E. Takacs and J. Vlachopoulos, was
entitled: “The Effect of Surface Tension on
the Sintering of Polyethylene Copolymers
and Blends in Rotational Molding”.
Congratulations also to Ph.D. student
Bettina Klenkler who tied for first
place in the poster contest at the 7th World
Biomaterials Congress (Surface Characterization and Modification Session) held in
Sydney, Australia, in May 2004. Judging
was conducted by members of the Society
for Biomaterials and Genzyme Corporation and winners were awarded a certificate and a cheque.
26
The MacEngineer
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Don Woods presented a three-day
workshop on Feb. 25-27 on “Implementing
PBL”, for faculty from Ulsan College,
Korea. On June 14 he was the plenary
speaker for the Faculty Development
Kickoff Workshop for the School of
Nursing at McMaster. Also in June, he
presented a workshop and two papers at
the American Society for Engineering
Education Conference in Salt Lake City.
The workshop was on “Motivating and
Rewarding Faculty”. The papers were
titled “Motivating students to Learn” and
“The Development of Student’s Skill in
Self Assessment” (co-authored with
Heather Sheardown).
The Department welcomes Jim
Dickson and John MacGregor who
are back from their research leaves and
wishes all the best to Bob Pelton and
Heather Sheardown as they begin
their one-year research leaves.
Technical
Council
on
Forensic
Engineering (TCFE). The paper, which
was published in the ASCE Journal of
Constructed Facilities, describes the
performance of three large new bridges
during the 1995 earthquake in Kobe,
Japan. These modern long-span bridges
that utilize the latest design concepts,
materials and details, were found to have
seismically vulnerable elements. Because
of their size, repairs were quite costly and
time consuming, and the impact on
commerce which relied on these bridges
was devastating. The TCFE Awards
Committee was impressed with the significance of the lessons that can be learned
from this paper, as well as the clarity of
John Wilson’s concise presentation of the
damage and repair procedures.
Civil Engineering
Ms. Yasaman Ardeshirpour, a
Ph.D. student in the Department, won the
Best Student Paper award at the 2004 IEEE
Canadian Conference on Electrical and
Computer Engineering. Her paper was
titled “2-D Cmos Based Image Sensor
System For Fluorescent Detection” and
was co-authored with Professors M. Jamal
Deen and Shahram Shirani. The award was
presented at the Conference in May 2004.
As a result of this honour, she was asked to
write an invited paper for the Canadian
Journal of Electrical Engineering.
Professor M. Jamal Deen was
elected Chair of the Dielectric Science and
Technology Division of the Electrochemical Society at its 205th meeting in
San Antonio Texas in May. His two-year
term covers 2004 to 2006. He was also
elected a Member of the Board of Directors
of the Society for the same two-year period.
Mathieu Marin, a student co-supervised by Professor Deen, won the Best
Student Paper award at the 2003 SPIE’s
International Conference on Fluctuations
and Noise – Circuits and Devices. Their
paper was titled “Effects of Body Biasing
on the Low Frequency Noise Behavior of
NMOSFETS From a 130-nm CMOS Technology” and the research was a collaborative
effort between McMaster University,
Peter Crockett, ’81, was appointed to
the position of Commissioner, Planning
and Public Works for the Region of Halton,
effective June 2004. Most recently, Peter
held the position of General Manager,
Public Works for the City of Hamilton.
Prior to working with the City of Hamilton,
he held a series of increasingly responsible
management positions with Peel Region.
The Department welcomed Hong Eie
Wong, ’82 back from Singapore for a
short visit during the summer. He is
currently Regional Corporate Service
Manager for Intel Technology Asia Pte.
Ltd. He stopped by to catch up and reminisce with faculty and staff from his undergraduate days.
Graduate student Daman Panesar
won 2nd prize at the 6th International
Ph.D. Symposium in Civil Engineering.
The symposium was held in Delft, The
Netherlands, in June. She is completing
her doctor of studies under the supervision
of Professor Samir Chidiac.
John C. Wilson’s paper, “Repair of
new long-span bridges damaged by the
1995 Kobe earthquake”, was named 2003
Outstanding Journal Paper by the
American Society of Civil Engineers
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Electrical & Computer
Engineering
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Universite de Montpellier (France) and
France-based ST Microelectronics. The
award, consisting of certificates for each coauthor and $500, was presented at the
Conference’s 2004 meeting in Spain in May.
Ph.D. student Abbas EbrahimiMoghadam has won the 2004 CITO
Research Excellence Scholarship. His
supervisor, Dr. Shahram Shirani, nominated Mr. Ebrahimi-Moghadam for his
outstanding contribution to the CITO
project “High Quality, Low Bit Rate Video
Communication Using Foveation”. He was
subsequently chosen by a panel of five
representatives from both academia and
industry. The CITO Research Excellence
Scholarship is designed to recognize superior student researchers and acknowledge
the important role they play in the success
of CITO-supported research projects.
Congratulations to graduate student
Andrea Mucci and her supervisor Dr.
Hubert deBruin. Mucci was awarded the
prize for the Best Student Paper at the 17th
Biennial International EURASIP Conference Biosignal 2004, held recently in Brno,
Czech Republic. Her paper was entitled:
“Characterization of a Chloride Channel in
Interstitial Cells of Cajal: A Potential
Contributor to the GI Slow Wave”.
Materials Science &
Engineering
Graduate student Shane Turcott won
the prize for best presentation in the Materials
Physics category at the Canadian Materials
Science Conference in Ottawa in June.
Pat Nicholson’s book Disastrous
Approach to Materials Science (Mosaic
Press) was reviewed favourably in the June
2004 issue of Journal of Minerals, Metals &
Materials Society (JOM). The reviewer
says: “A very quotable Professor Nicholson
gives us pithy lessons on some materials
science fundamentals and examples of how
these fundamentals can be applied (or
misapplied) with calamitous consequences.” The book explores such events as
the Challenger Space Shuttle disaster and
the sinking of the Titanic with references to
a collapse or flaw or unexpected occurrence
in the materials used in their construction.
Mechanical Engineering
Congratulations to Phil Koshy who
has been awarded the CSME I. W. Smith
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Award. The I.W. Smith Award was established in 1977 to honour Professor I. W.
Smith who taught mechanical engineering
at the University of Toronto. It is awarded
annually for outstanding achievement in
creative mechanical engineering within 10
years of graduation.
Stephen Veldhuis has been awarded
a CFI Infrastructure Operating Fund to
assist with his research. High resolution
investigation tools and highly trained
support staff are vital for conducting
research into improving the productivity
and quality of a wide range of manufacturing processes and this award will
provide the necessary support to maintain
the readiness of three systems focusing on
advanced metrology, machine tool accuracy and force measurement. The systems
include: a scanning white light microscope,
linear scale interface cables and interpolation cards as well as a grid encoder and a
force dynamometry system.
These three systems work together to
provide detailed information into the
manufacturing process and will enable
Dr. Veldhuis to study factors which influence processes at levels rarely studied
before in Canada. Developing a fundamental understanding of processes at this
level is essential to making process
improvements and developing the new
manufacturing capability required by
Canada’s industry.
Two undergraduate students were recognized at a luncheon in July for their
outstanding academic performance in the
2003/2004 academic year. Julie Woods
was awarded the Iroquois Trophy and David
Anderson received the CSME Medal.
Three graduate students have been
recognized for contributions to excellence
in their academic programs and to
McMaster University. Hongda Wang
was awarded First Prize out of 29 papers
submitted in the Computational Fluid
Dynamics (CFD) Society of Canada’s
Student Paper Competition at this year’s
conference held in Ottawa May 9-11th,
2004. His paper was titled “Effects of
Side Wall Thermal Conditions on Natural
Convection in Inclined Enclosures
Heated from Below and Cooled from
Above”. The prize included $350 and an
engraved plaque. Bing Li received the
Mary Keyes Award for Leadership and
Service to McMaster University at the
Graduate Student Recognition Day
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Dinner held on May 18th, 2004. His
current involvements include serving as
the President of the McMaster Graduate
Student Association GSA), Chair of the
Phoenix Executive Committee, Chair of
the GSA Trip Committee and President
(and founder) of the McMaster Kungfu
Tai chi Association. He has also served in
several capacities including President and
Senior Advisor in the Chinese Students
and Scholars Association. At the same
event on May 18th, Wael Ahmed was
the recipient of the Dean’s Award for
Communicating
Graduate
Student
Research. Ahmed’s paper was titled
“Two-Phase Flow Through Piping
Systems”. He serves as one the department’s two graduate student representatives and has been instrumental in
organizing cultural seminars and social
events for faculty, graduate students and
staff in the department.
Engineering Co-op
& Career Services
targeted to students in year 1, we did invite
upper levels – space permitting. Our plan is to
offer tours to students again this year and
we’re looking for industry hosts. Again, if
you’re interested, please contact me.
Thanks for taking the time to read this. I
hope we’ll have a chance to work together
this academic year. Should your organization
wish to hire a student or former student
please contact us – your support is crucial.
Anne Markey, Manager Engineering
Co-op & Career Services,
markeya@mcmaster.ca
MacEngineer
The
The MacEngineer is printed and produced by
Managing Editor: Carm Vespi,
Engineering Alumni Officer
Editorial Committee: Dave S. Weaver,
John Preston, Terry Milson, Carm Vespi
Art Direction and Design: Wordsmith
Design and Advertising
Contributing Writers: Administrative
Coordinators, Terry Milson, Trudi Down,
The Daily News, Carm Vespi, Judy Mair
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The MacEngineer
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40063416
3rd Annual McMaster
E ngineering
Golf Tournament
Thursday, May 26, 2005
Crosswinds Golf & Country Club
Milton, Ontario
More details available soon.
Check the website at:
http://www.eng.mcmaster.ca/engalumni
You’re invited...
1965
Alumni
Weekend 1980
1985
Saturday June 4, 2005
For more information contact:
Ms. Carm Vespi
Phone: (905) 525-9140, ext. 24906
Fax: (905) 546-5492
email: vespi@mcmaster.ca
www.eng.mcmaster.ca/engalumni
Hey, Engineering Alumni…
What’s new?
What have you been up to
since graduation?
How are you meeting the
challenges of your careers?
Send us your success stories! We want
to let other alumni, especially those from
your class, know how well you’ve been
doing. We want to hear from YOU!
You are Needed as
an Alumni Mentor!
Do you remember all the questions you
had as you entered your final year here at
Mac Engineering and prepared to join the
working world as a professional engineer?
• How do I find good job prospects?
• How do I make the best impression at
interviews?
• What should I include in a portfolio?
• Who in the companies should I contact?
• How can I tell if a specific job offer is
the one for me?
You can make an important difference
to our graduating engineers! They have
many questions … you have the answers!
We are seeking engineering alumni,
men and women, to volunteer two hours
during Social Connection Night. Return
to Mac and talk to the fourth and fifth year
students about your experiences, challenges, dreams and successes. Be a mentor
for a couple of hours to these bright, eager
engineers – and future alumni.
You will have the opportunity to reconnect with McMaster, meet colleagues
and former classmates, network and
engage in lively discussion. But most
importantly, you will be providing invaluable help and advice to our graduating
classes. We guarantee you’ll be rewarded
beyond measure!
Social Connection Night
Thursday, October 12, 2004
Convocation Hall ~ 7:00 p.m.
For more information call Carm Vespi
905-525-9140, ext. 24906
or email: vespi@mcmaster.ca

The MacEngineer - Faculty of Engineering

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