Chairman's Message:
We have been very active in the 2008-09 year including the following:
In October we held a dinner meeting on Wind Energy. The presentation was given by John
Bleem of the Platte River Power Authority that provides wind energy to its customers. In the
following months, we held tours of Value Plastics Co., the New Belgium Brewery and CPP Inc –
a wind engineering consulting firm that has atmospheric wind tunnels.
In February we decided to forego our annual Industry and Student Banquet and replace it with a
“Founder’s Day” banquet and program held in March. It turns out that February is the time
when CSU holds their own engineering career day for students and that takes all the available
attention of the students during that month. However, we also worked out a way that our
members could participate in a resume workshop organized by the CSU student section and that
was a great success and helped lead to the Founders Day banquet idea for March. The Founder’s
Day banquet was a dinner meeting with a great presentation from Henry Obermeyer about
Rocket Propelled Grenades – the technology and history. We had a good turnout of students and
our professional members.
In other student section interactions, each year, we issue a request for proposals to our local
student sections – at CSU and at the University of Wyoming. These RFP’s ask the students to
submit proposals for funding of projects of their choice. Most often we receive proposals for
funding to help with travel to the District E SPDC (Student Professional Development
Conference), but other projects are eligible. The funding for these proposals ranges around
$1000 each.
For April we will be touring the Owens-Illinois glass plant in Windsor.
We continue to have an active Operating Board and Program Committee and we will be starting
our new year of programs in September 2009. We are considering a number of tours and will
continue to pursue activities with ME students at the U of Wyoming and at CSU.
Should you wish to suggest program topics or host a program, please contact me at:
fred@engr.colostate.edu.
We are always seeking additional people to work with our leadership group to keep the Section
operating smoothly. If you are interested in working with our leadership, please let me know.
We look forward to another very active ASME year in the Centennial Section.
Thanks
Fred
F W Smith,PE, Chair
ASME Centennial Section
MISSION STATEMENT:
We present opportunities for mechanical engineers to network, support the field of mechanical engineering, understand local manufacturing, strengthen professional skills, and have fun.
Check out the ORIGINAL Section Charter Certificates from ASME Headquarters: