Chicagoland Engineering Forum luncheonsDennis Downing, Project Manager at Abbott Labs, spoke at the January Engineering Forum luncheon about the role of engineering at Abbott Labs. Abbott, a diversified healthcare company, develops, markets, and manufactures innovative products and services for prevention to diagnosis to treatment and cure. Headquartered in the Chicago area, Abbott focuses on the key therapeutic areas of HIV, cancer, diabetes, pain management, respiratory infections, men and women�s health, pediatrics, and animal health. Abbott spends $1 billion in research and development, including critical drug development. Abbott has 2300 employees with engineering background; 60 percent have an engineering function, and 40 percent are in administrative positions. The three major engineering fields needed at Abbott are chemical, electrical, and mechanical. Chemical engineers develop chemical and biotechnical processes and equipment design in addition to product development. Mechanical engineers design products/devices and maintain the facilities in top operating order. Electrical/electronic engineers control the design of computer applications and diagnostic equipment and run implementation instruments. The corporate engineering group includes architects as well as civil and mechanical engineers. The corporate group assumes roles in strategic planning and capital planning. Fifteen percent of the engineering employees are projected to retire, so replacement of these employees is an important issue at Abbott. Downing also described Humira, a new drug that Abbott has developed to treat rheumatoid arthritis. The February 19 Chicagoland Engineering Forum featured a presentation entitled Runway 14L/32R Rehabilitation O�Hare Field. Presenters included Dr. H. Bruce Brummel, Quality Manager and Airport Owners representative, and Jeffery A. Jackowski, Resident Engineer with Bowman, Barrett & Associates, Inc. The rehabilitation of O�Hare International Airport�s 10,005 foot runway 14L/32R was accomplished during the summer of 2002. The 27,500 tons of P-401 asphalt were placed in 12 consecutive nights between 10:30 pm and 6:00 am to minimize traffic disruption on the runway. This presentation focused on how a team of designers, construction managers, engineers, contractors, and airfield operations personnel propelled the complete overlay of a major runway at the world�s busiest airport without affecting air traffic while safely maintaining the FAA�s rigid quality standards. The team emphasized quality control, daily inspections, testing, and deadline compliance. For example, the project design parameters were monitored and verified by the use of statistical quality control charts. In addition the team used more than 38 checklists to monitor the contractor�s nightly activities. This project demonstrated that partnering and quality control can work on a major time critical $6 million airfield project. On March 26 the Chicagoland Engineering Forum luncheon will feature a program presented by John Roberson, executive director of newly created City Department of Construction and Permits. Roberson will discuss the new streamlined building permit procedures for the City of Chicago. For more information about the luncheons, contact the WSE office, [email protected], 312/913-1730, 913-1731 fax. June 2 deadline for award nominationsA description of the annual awards conferred by the Western Society of Engineer follows. The deadline for all nominations is June 2. The Washington Award, established in 1916 by WSE president John Alvord, is conferred each year upon an engineer whose professional attainments have advanced the welfare of all peoples. The purpose of the award is to express recognition of devoted, unselfish, and pre-eminent service in advancing human progress. A list of rules governing the Washington Award and nomination forms are available here or in the WSE office. The Octave Chanute Award is given annually to the Western Society member whose paper on an engineering topic is judged meritorious. In 1901, during his term as WSE president, Chanute, an aviation pioneer, funded the cost of awarding a commemorative medal to the Society member who presented the best research paper before the Society each year. The following year, as retiring president of the Society, he established an endowment to fund future awards. Chanute Award Criteria/RulesPapers may be co-authored by non-members, but awards are made only to the author(s) who are WSE member(s). Awards shall be given, annually for up to three outstanding papers as judged by:
The recipient will be selected by the WSE Awards Committee, and approved by the WSE Board of Trustees. Since WSE supports engineers working together, we do not require the WSE member to be the sole author of the paper; however, only the WSE member is eligible to receive the award. Nomination forms are available here or in the WSE office. Papers must be received by June 2, 2003. The Charles Ellet Award is presented annually to a member of Western Society of Engineers who is 35 years of age or younger and who has made outstanding progress in his or her professional development. The award was established in 1929 as a memorial to Charles Ellet, a Civil War hero and an engineer, who was considered to be the father of the modern suspension bridge. The recipient of this prestigious award receives a certificate, a small honorarium, and possession of a silver loving cup for one year. The cup is engraved with the names of each winner dating back to 1930. The recipient will be selected by the Awards Committee and approved by the Board of Trustees. WSE members who are eligible for nomination for the Charles Ellet Award this year are:
Nomination forms are available here or in the WSE office. The Landmark Award was established in 1992 to recognize an outstanding engineer�s body of work and contributions to the profession. WSE members, their coworkers, and clients are eligible for nomination. Applicants are judged on their technical and ethical insights; sharing of knowledge; promotion of engineering training; and participation in technical societies, publications, and seminar presentations. Nomination forms are available here or in the WSE office. Save the dateWSE�s annual golf outing will be held on July 28 at the Itasca Country Club, 12 noon BBQ lunch; 1:30 pm tee off; dinner following golf. Costs are as follows:
More details in future issues of Midwest Engineer. Infrastructure Technology Institute at NorthwesternNorthwestern University�s Infrastructure Technology Institute will sponsor its second summer free, nonresidential Summer High School Institute on June 25, 26, 27, and 30 and July 1 on the Evanston campus. Each morning the Institute will begin with a lecture about elements of urban infrastructure presented by a Northwestern faculty member. Each afternoon there will be a supervised field trip to prominent facilities such as Midway Airport, the Chicago Transit Authority, the Illinois Railway Museum, the Illinois Department of Transportation, and a boat trip on the Chicago River. Participants will return to the Northwestern campus at the end of each day. The goal is to help high school students and their teachers learn more about Chicago and urban infrastructure and to foster interest in students� pursuing an engineering education. The Institute invites nominations of students or teachers affiliated with the Western Society of Engineers or with members of the Chicago branch of the American Public Works Association (APWA). Participating teachers are eligible to receive credit toward their recertification from the Illinois State Board of Education. To apply, members of WSE and APWA should submit a recommendation letter for each student or teacher along with a one-page letter from each nominated student or teacher explaining why he or she wants to attend the Institute. The letters must be received no later than March 15, 2003, by David Schulz, Director, ITI Summer Institute, Northwestern University, Infrastructure Technology Institute, 1801 Maple Avenue, Evanston, IL 60201. Boeing and Purdue University form partnershipThe Boeing Company and Purdue University have announced an educational partnership focused on providing women and minority engineering and business students with opportunities for continuing their education. Underpinning this partnership is a four-year, $1 million grant from Boeing to Purdue for a variety of academic scholarships, programs, organizations, and projects supporting student development in computer science, business, and the Schools of Engineering. The Boeing-Purdue partnership programs are designed to stimulate and maintain interest in engineering and business career paths primarily among underrepresented students. Technical and critical skill development will be the primary focus of the programs for students majoring in aeronautics and astronautics, mechanical engineering, electrical and computer engineering, materials engineering, computer science, and business. Building codes councils consolidateThe International Code Council (ICC) became one consolidated organization effective February 1, 2003. The unifid ICC is made up of Building Officials and Code Administrators International (BOCA), International Conference of Building Officials (ICBO), and Southern Building Code Congress International(SBCCI). Prior to the ICC, building safety codes were regional. As a result, the construction industry often faced the challenge and cost of building to different codes in different areas of the country. The ICC International Code will now combine the strengths of the regional codes without regional limitations. For your informationThe Illinois Section Board of ASCE voted unanimously against the reinstatement of the Structural Work Act. Currently, there is discussion in Springfield about the law�s return. Please read the article President John Zimmermann has written and will send to Illinois politicians. (See http://www.isasce.org.) The Illinois Section Board of ASCE deems the Structural Work Act (SWA) bad legislation for the engineering community and is opposed to it. The Board is asking engineers to contact their representatives and voice their concerns. To view a sample letter that can be used to send to your representative and to determine your representative, please go to http://www.vote-smart.org/index.phtml and enter your zip code+4. Thank you for your help in these efforts. Archived Society News
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