Category: In Case You Missed It…

Spotlight on Papua New Guinea: Engineer quenches thirst in jungle villages

November 4, 2011 by Darren Engineering, In Case You Missed It... 0
Like everything else he packed for his South Pacific jungle island adventure, David Hall needed his 2D CAD tool to be light and portable.

Hall is a civil engineer in the middle of a two-year assignment for Volunteer Services Abroad, a New Zealand economic development agency similar to the American Peace Corps. Along with his wife Rosie, he’s stationed in West New Britain, Papua New Guinea, an impoverished nation of 6 million where most of the population lives in remote rural areas without plumbing.

Coordinating with another volunteer service NGO called “Live and Learn,” Hall is helping local villagers:
- Install basic water supply systems to provide water in taps within the village and relieve the women and children of the daily chore of fetching water, often from miles away.
- Construct ventilated “longdrop” toilets as a sanitary alternative to the current practice of using the bush or beaches as bathrooms. The main component is a concrete slab with a hole in it (to squat over) and a ventilation pipe to minimize odors.
- Establish a hygiene education program to teach people the links between health and sanitation.
Because islanders cannot depend on a power supply for pumping, the water harvesting and filtration systems are based on gravity from either an elevated natural spring or a collection tank on a roof. Read More
From Military Landing Gear to Low-Noise Bike Racks, Utah Engineers Search for Aerospace Solutions

October 7, 2011 by Darren Engineering, In Case You Missed It... 0

Just as NASA research has been responsible for a plethora of products such as smoke detectors, flat panel TVs, fogless ski goggles and freeze-dried foods, aerospace engineering continues to surface in the most surprising areas.

Based at Weber State University in Ogden, the Utah Center for Aeronautical Innovation & Design (UCAID) searches for industry partners to develop research projects with commercial applications. In Utah Gov. Gary Herbert’s State of the State address last year, the university was praised for generating more engineering and technology jobs.

“By focusing on workforce needs in this area, we will develop the talent and innovation necessary to become the premier player in the aerospace industry,” Herbert pledged. “As this happens, Utah becomes more than a place companies would like to be, it becomes a place they need to be.”

Located near Hill Air Force Base, which provides the engineering for the F-16 Fighting Falcon, the A-10 Thunderbolt II and the Minuteman III Intercontinental ballistic missile, UCAID plays a significant role in testing new high-grade materials to make military aircraft components more resistant to corrosion and surface cracking.

But the engineering unit was also instrumental in developing the Wasatch Powder Monkey quick-release bicycle roof rack. The Utah company’s “SmartCrossbars” were aerodynamically designed to reduce wind noise and drag on the top of a vehicle, improving gas mileage. Read More
Casino Gaming Company Finds DraftSight Not Much of a Gamble

by Darren Engineering, In Case You Missed It... 0

Technology has created a generation gap in terms of how we gamble.

People who have grown up with texting and Smartphones prefer video slot machines, while gamblers over age 40 tend not to trust them.

“Older generations see the spinning mechanical reels and feel much more comfortable,” says John Dawson, an engineer for Video Gaming Technologies (VGT), a leading manufacturer of Class II machines for Native American casinos. “When they can’t see something really physically spin, they feel like they are being duped by technology.”

“With touch screens becoming more and more mainstream on phones, we’re seeing young people gravitate more to the video screens,” he says.

In the gaming industry, slot machines are now more commonly referred to as electronic gaming machines (EGM). Spinning the reels is controlled with a button and the traditional side lever is usually only present for nostalgic reasons. Read More
Getman underground diesels bring GUTS to the coal mines

by Darren Engineering, In Case You Missed It... 0

Designing a rugged vehicle for the unpredictable environment of underground mines goes far beyond making sure the driver is protected from falling dirt and rocks. For starters, narrow tunnels deep within the earth seldom offer opportunities for three-point-turns.

Sleek low-profile trucks, many of which have heights lower than the driver standing up, must be able to be driven in reverse for long distances. Often the only option for driving out of a mine is backing up for miles at a time at slow speeds, about the same pace as a brisk walk.

Based in Bangor, Michigan, the Getman Corporation specializes in manufacturing mining vehicles for the transportation of materials, equipment and workers – virtually everything except the drilling. The company was founded in 1954, specializing in a small three-wheeled vehicle that hauled materials in Colorado uranium mines. Today, Getman services a broad spectrum of industries – platinum group metals (PGMs), coal, gold, copper, nickel and crushed stone – at mines around the world.

“Our goal is to make a truck that will withstand the challenges of the toughest terrains without it breaking down,” says Getman applications engineer Kyle Strong. “Ideally, the only reason for our customers to call us is when they need to buy another truck.”

Read More
Retired ship engineer pursues the perfect octopus

by Darren Hobbies, In Case You Missed It... 0

P.J. Hicks used a torch all his life to make welding repairs. Now he fires up art.

Having spent most of his professional life at sea traveling the world, retired chief engineer P.J. Hicks has no hesitation diving into new passions.

Five years ago, during a fish scouting trip in Washington state’s salmon-rich Puget Sound, a buddy dragged him into an art glass shop to buy some supplies. “I saw this display cabinet with three dozen little glass fish. They were so entirely lifelike, it was unbelievable. I said to myself, ‘I gotta learn how to do that!’”

On a whim, Hicks blew $500 on a glassblowing torch and raw materials and went home to “fool around.” A career engine room maintenance chief for several American West Coast shipping companies, he was comfortable with a flame from his welding days. After tinkering with making glass beads for a few months, he took some classes, bought a bigger torch on eBay and began tackling bigger projects. Read More
Onward Bound: Machine shop veteran urges teens to choose careers over crime

October 4, 2011 by Darren Education, In Case You Missed It... 0

In an odd way, Bill Malone can thank the recession for his career success and satisfaction. Not this recession, the other one – those horrendous economic times in the early 1970s under the Nixon and Ford administrations. Malone had earned his master’s degree in industrial psychology at Minnesota State University-Mankato, and had no idea he soon would be wielding a blowtorch for a paycheck. Read More

Category: In Case You Missed It…

Spotlight on Papua New Guinea: Engineer quenches thirst in jungle villages

From Military Landing Gear to Low-Noise Bike Racks, Utah Engineers Search for Aerospace Solutions

Casino Gaming Company Finds DraftSight Not Much of a Gamble

Getman underground diesels bring GUTS to the coal mines

Retired ship engineer pursues the perfect octopus

Onward Bound: Machine shop veteran urges teens to choose careers over crime

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