www.roceng.org
AUGUST 2014
RTS Center—Transforming Public Transit in the Rochester Community
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North Clinton Avenue facade of RTS Transit Center
Save the Date: Friday, September 26, 2014
Experience the power of photons and the wonder of watts during an energetic evening benefiting the Rochester Museum & Science Center. For tickets or sponsorship opportunities, contact Pam Jackson at 585.697.1936 or pamela_jackson@rmsc.org
Get charged up for:
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 2014
Visit www.rmsc.org for more information
Experience the power of photons and the wonder of watts during an energetic evening benefiting the Rochester Museum & Science Center.
The Rochester Engineer Published since 1922 by
ROCHESTER ENGINEERING SOCIETY, INC.
Founded March 18, 1897
Volume 93, Number 2, AUGUST 2014 3,500 to 4,000 Monthly Circulation ISSN 0035-7405
RES Mission Statement: The RES will become the lead organization for improving the image and influence of the engineering community in the greater Rochester area by: Demonstrating a comprehensive knowledge of the region’s engineering and technical capabilities; Providing the best clerical support and public relations assistance to our affiliates; Continually communicating the engineering and technical accomplishments to both the engineering and technical community and the public; Providing regular forums and networking opportunities for the exchange of ideas and discussion of issues; and, Providing programs that identify career opportunities to the region’s youth and develop the skills of the practicing engineer. News items and articles are invited. Materials should be submitted to the executive director at the society’s office, 657 East Avenue, Rochester, New York 14607; Phone number (585) 254-2350, e-mail: res@frontiernet.net.
The web site for the Engineers’ Center is at: www.roceng.org. The deadline is the 10th day of the month prior to the issue. Unless otherwise stated, opinions expressed in this publication are those of contributors, not of the Rochester Engineering Society, Inc. Advertising information may be obtained by contacting the office of the Rochester Engineering Society or going to the website at www.roceng.org. Published every month but July. Yearly subscription is $20.00, single copies are $2.00. Go to www.roceng.org to join the Rochester Engineering Society. Click on the individual membership and you can submit your application on-line. Board of Directors:
OFFICERS: President MARY STEBLEIN, PE LaBella Associates / mary.steblein@swe.org First Vice President ADAM CUMMINGS, PE Barton & Loguidice, PC / ACummings@bartonandloguidice.com Second Vice President TBD Treasurer MICHAEL V. TRIASSI Optimation Technology, Inc. / mike.triassi@aol.com Past President EDWARD HENSEL, PhD, PE Rochester Institute of Technology / Email: echeme@rit.edu DIRECTORS: CORNELIUS (NEAL) ILLENBERG PE Alstom Signaling, Inc. / Email: neal.illenberg@transport.alstom.com JON KRIEGEL Retired / jkriegel@rochester.rr.com SCOTT GRASMAN, PhD Rochester Institute of Technology / Email: ESTHER BETANCOURT Harris Corporation / RICHARD E. RICE, PE MJ Engineering / rrice@mjels.com CASEY DILL Arnold Magnetic Technologies / casey.dill@gmail.com CARL J. PILLETTERI, PE cjpill@rochester.rr.com DIRECTOR to TBD Administrative Director LYNNE M. IRWIN Rochester Engineering Society / e-mail: res@frontiernet.net
For tickets or sponsorship opportunities, contact Pam Jackson at 585.697.1936 or pamela_jackson@rmsc.org
Get charged up for:
Visit www.rmsc.org for more information
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 2014
contents
4 • Invite us to come and tell you about the RES Tutoring Team Program 6 • RTS Center - Transforming Public Transit in the Rochester Community (cover) 7 • Get to the Point! - Presentation Phobia (3): From Power Point to Standing Ovation
10 • The Limited Monopoly - Patent Claims Directed to or Encompassing a Human Organism - Where Law, Morality, Ethics, and Religion Meet
12-13, 21-22 • Professional Firms - Employee News 14 • Position Openings 15 • Continuing Education Opportunities 15-17 • Engineers’ Calendar 18-20 • News from Professional Firms 23-26 • Campus News 50 • RES Individual Membership Application 51 • Rochester Engineer Advertising Rates 52-54 • Directory of Professional Services 54 • Directory of Business Services 55 • Affiliated Societies and Corporate Members of the RES
news of the...
• ABCD Association for Bridge Construction and Design...............42-43 • APWA American Public Works Association...........................................32 • ASCE American Society of Civil Engineers............................................36 • ASHRAE American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers....................................................29 • ASPE American Society of Plumbing Engineers....................................33 • EA Electrical Association.......................................................................31 • GVLSA Genesee Valley Land Surveyors Association.............................35
2 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER |AUGUST 2014
• IEC Independent Entrepreneurs Council...........................................27 • IEEE Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers.................38-39 • INCOSE International Council of Systems Engineering...........................34 • IS&T Society for Imagins Science and Technology.............................28 • MPES Monroe Professional Engineers Society......................................37 • RES Rochester Engineering Society.................................................... 3-5 • SWE Society of Women Engineers........................................................30
index
President’s Message Mary Steblein, RES President 2014 - 15 In late May, the Rochester Engineering Society held our Annual Meeting at the Rochester Museum & Science Center’s Strasenburgh Planetarium, during which time we conducted the installation of new officers and directors. June marked the beginning of a new fiscal year for the RES, and the beginning of my one-year term as your President. I’d like to take this opportunity in my first President’s Message to introduce myself both professionally and personally. For the past six years, I’ve been a civil engineer with a local, full-service engineering, architecture, environmental and planning consulting firm, LaBella Associates, D.P.C. As a member of the Civil Division, I specialize in municipal engineering and stormwater regulations. Previously, I worked for URS Corporation for nine years. I graduated from Lafayette College, and other than attending college in Pennsylvania, I’ve lived right here in Rochester. My interest in engineering was sparked during high school, while participating in a BSA Explorer Post in Health, Safety and Environment sponsored by Eastman Kodak, combined with my aptitude for science and math. Someone should have predicted that civil engineering was in my future – the sand castles of my youth often evolved into complex developments, with small-pebbled roads, dried-out seaweed “green space”, flat rocks upturned for structural support, and a water supply from Lake Ontario. I’ve been involved in multiple engineering organizations starting in college and continuing through the fifteen years of my professional career – including the Society of Women Engineers and the American Society of Civil res news - president’s message
Engineers. I began attending RES board meetings as a representative of SWE Rochester (affiliate groups are entitled to representation on the Board) and quickly became a member of RES and then a Director. I am looking forward to working with the Board, our members, and affiliate members throughout the year on a variety of initiatives and continuing programs. Are you looking for ways to get involved? RES is currently looking to fill a Director role and several committee chair positions. We also welcome members for all standing committees: Magazine, Website, Gala, Engineer of the Year/Young Engineer of the Year, Rochester Engineer Live, Financial, Investment/Audit, Engineering Development (Training), Scholarship, Student Outreach, Strategic Planning, Nominations, Membership, Affiliate Relations, and Corporate Membership. Some roles require more time than others do, but the adage applies to all of these committees – many hands make light work. If you do not want to commit to a year-long position, we also have opportunities available for volunteering, outreach, and networking. Check out roceng.org regularly for announcements or contact a member of the Board (contact information is included on page 2). Our mission statement is “RES is recognized as the principal leader committed to increasing the visibility of the greater Rochester area engineering and technical community.” Consider helping us meet this mission by contributing an article for an upcoming issue of this magazine. Themes in the near future may include: Assistive Device Technologies, Bridge Construction and Design, Engineering and Public Policy, and Micro & Nano Systems. This month’s Rochester Engineer magazine includes an article about the new RTS Transit Center, located downtown on St. Paul Street. Be sure to check out the article to learn more about innovative technologies used in both the design and the construction of this facility. This new facility is slated to open November 28, 2014.
AUGUST 2014 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER | 3
RES News
Please Welcome Esther Betancourt to the RES Board as a Director Esther Betancourt has 22 years of experience in product development leading international teams including supplier selection and technology transfer to ODM/OEM manufacturers. Esther is a certified Project Management Professional (PMP) with expertise in strategic growth via mergers and acquisitions analysis, identification of adjacent and transformational markets, and external pursuits to capture external research funds. Her professional experience centers around imaging algorithms development, display technologies, software quality assurance, image quality testing, voice of the customer
and hardware/software commercialization processes. She is skilled at developing and maintaining strong customer and partner relationships worldwide. Before Harris, Esther held several positions at Eastman Kodak Company where she worked as a research scientist in the Kodak Research Labs and as a commercialization manager for the Consumer Digital Camera and Devices Business Unit. At Harris, Esther is an engineering manager in the front end of the business managing growth opportunities for innovative concepts, and as a Business Development Pursuit Manager for the International Business Unit. Esther holds a B.S. in chemical engineering from University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez Campus.
Join the “RES Tutoring Team” Help a Rochester Child Learn to Read Whether or not you think you have the time to commit to it right now, please contact us and learn about this successful program, and the opportunity it offers us to “make a difference” in Rochester’s City Schools. Let us come and meet with you, your business associates, family members, friends, neighbors. Even just two hours a week can make a big difference. The RES Tutoring Team at Dr. Walter Cooper Academy currently includes full-time, employed Professional Engineers, recently-graduated engineers, retired engineers, retired school teachers, U of R undergraduate engineering students and RIT undergraduate, and graduate engineering students. The school year is nearing an end, and we're seeking more dedicated people, willing to make room in their busy lives for this important opportunity to "give back" to our community, for next year. We now have 15 local students and professionals working at #10 School. We want to hit the ground running, in the Fall of 2014, with an expanded team of RES Tutors. We are currently scheduling presentations to local engineering and architectural firms, to tell their employees about this important opportunity. We need your help...can we schedule one with yours? Schedule a presentation to learn about the school, the Volunteer Program Leaders, Administrators and Dr. Walter Cooper (RES 1996 Engineer of the Year). Hear about the training each tutor will receive. Please contact the RES office, and let us know you’re interested in tutoring at Dr. Walter Cooper Academy - School #10, 353 Congress Avenue (in the 19th Ward, one block North of Genesee Park Blvd., between Post Avenue and Virginia Avenue). The RES Tutoring Team is affiliated with… Friends of Educational Excellence (FREE) Partnerships, (585) 218-0038 via email: bpollock@freepartnerships.org, via website: www.freepartnerships.org Reach the RES Tutoring Team at the Rochester Engineering Society, (585) 254-2350 via email: leeloomis46@gmail.com, via website: www.roceng.org 4 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER |AUGUST 2014
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Rochester History Continuing with the historical sampling of the earlier writings on behalf of the Rochester Engineering Society, the years following "The Great War," into and through the “Great Depression,” continued to be a time of reaching out for the maturing Society, both locally and nationally. The meeting minutes describe a series of technical discussions and presentations intended to broaden the technical horizons of the membership (especially the CE's, ME's and EE's). The RES affiliated itself with a number of National technical societies, adopted local Affiliated Societies, frequently held joint meetings with them and continued taking action on a growing list of public matters. Certain issues of standardization, some crucial to public safety, became the responsibility of the RES and its affiliates. Once again war affected the Society, taking away many of its leaders and providing opportunities for others to step forward to fill these vacancies. In an effort to provide even greater perspective on the happenings and concerns of the day, a synopsis, featuring selected items from "The Rochester Engineer," has become an integral part of this series. In the pervasive economic downturn of the “Great Depression,” the magazine offered classified advertising for unemployed engineers, technicians and draftsmen and took other steps to try to deal with the crisis. Still, it continued its effort to shape the function, purpose and infrastructure of the City of Rochester, and beyond. The Second World War and the Korean Conflict are now history. These experiences have changed the face and, no doubt, the future of the community. The Rochester municipal leadership and the industrial community have become immersed in the cold-war, growth economy.
“The Rochester Engineer” (March 1957)
A joint meeting of the RES and AIEE featured a “Prize Paper Competition.” The two local paper presentations were: “Rating and Application of Germanium and Silicon Rectifiers,” by F.W. Gutweiler of General Electric Co., Clyde, NY and “Standard Benches for More Flexible Assembly Lines”, by R.L. Westbrook of EKCo’s Camera Works. The featured article in this issue, “Electric Heat for Schools” by Robert Lee Boyd of Eletromode Division, Commercial Controls Corporation, described the comparison of the application of an electric heating system versus an oil-fired system, in an Indiana school addition. It claimed a greater efficiency and comparable economy for the electric heating system when factors of peripheral equipment operation, pipe and stack losses, and partial-load efficiency losses are taken into consideration. All of these comparisons were made between electricity at $.02/kWh and fuel oil at $.10/gal.
“The Rochester Engineer” (April 1957)
The Rochester Section of the ASCE announced a May 25th, aerial inspection tour of the St. Lawrence Seaway Project. Open to the membership and the general public, on a first-come-first-served basis, tickets were offered at $25/person. Article #1 in a two-part series entitled “Some Major Findings of the Second Hoover Commission,” Dr. S.C. Hollister, Dean of Engineering at Cornell University, describes the dramatic rise in the cost of the Federal Government; from an approximate $3 billion/year in 1930 (3% of the National Income) to over $60 billion/year in 1955 (21% of the National Income). The impact of this on a typical family in 1957 is $1,323/year. Concern for this gave rise to the establishment, by law, of the Second Hoover Commission in the Executive Branch of the Federal Government, led by six members of the two major political parties and six more from the private sector. The result was a 1600 page report, including 314 recommendations for reduction in personnel, paperwork and services, improved efficiencies within governmental agencies, and modernization of governmental accounting procedures. Other improvements, including unification of the military services, standardization of rations were left undone (example: the US Army specifies twice as many eggs/ res news - history
A Sampling from the Archives of the Rochester Engineering Society...1897 - 1957 by Lee M. Loomis
soldier as the Navy, and the Navy prescribes twice as many potatoes/ sailor as the Army) and a comprehensive review of supply and logistics (example: in 1954, the Army purchased 800 tons of tomatoes in California and shipped them to the East coast for use at training facilities, while that same year, the Navy also purchased 800 tons of tomatoes, in New Jersey, and shipped them to a West coast distribution point.)
“The Rochester Engineer” (May 1957)
Article #2, in the two-part series on the Second Hoover Commission, by Dr. S.C. Hollister of Cornell University, describes the growing problem of water resources, west of the Mississippi River. Called the Upper and the Lower Colorado Basins, these water supplies, especially the Lower Basin that feeds California, have been depleted at an alarming rate. Editor’s note: This was already a concern over 60 years ago! It also made a point of the Federal Government’s intrusion, beyond the power projects of the Great Depression (Hoover Dam, Grand Coulee Dam and the Bonneville Power Project, and the Tennessee Valley Authority), into the construction of steam-powered generating plants, by government entities that pay no Federal and little state and local taxes. In turn, these entities provide subsidized power to customers who then enjoy inequitably low rates. Instead, the Second Hoover Commission recommended that the Federal power agencies be regulated in the same manner as the private utilities. While this seems to have fallen upon deaf ears, the Commission did also recommend that the private utilities be allowed to purchase blocks of power, during specified times of the day, from Federal power agencies, for distribution to their customers. Editor’s note: This practice was finally adopted in the 1960’s, and customers of investor-owned utilities have regularly benefited from lower-cost power from Federal resources, such as the Niagara and St. Lawrence Power Projects.
June 10, 1957 (Board of Directors Meeting, Hotel Sheraton)
The 60th Annual Board of Directors report, for the year 1956-57, was presented, including: 19 evening meetings (attendance - 1050), 17 luncheon meetings (attendance – 1002), inspection trip (Westinghouse Electric Corporation, Buffalo, NY), membership now at 604 (net gain of 30) and Rochester Public library additions (30).
June 13, 1957 Annual Meeting, Hotel Sheraton, Attendance – 78)
While the votes for the new RES officers were counted, Clayton E. Howden, VP, Rochester Telephone Corp., presented a motion picture, “The Voice Beneath the Sea,” a documentary on the laying of the trans-Atlantic telephone cables. The newly-elected RES officers were then introduced to the membership, including: President - Donald Q. Faragher, Faragher & Macomber, Architects, 1st Vice President – Alfred V. Dasburg, General Railway Signal Company, 2nd Vice President – Jasper Willsea, Willsea Works, Treasurer – Norman Davidson, RG&E Corporation, RES Directors (3 year terms)– Alexander Russell – Monroe County Water Authority and James Snyder, The Pfaudler Company. Subsequent articles in this series will describe the RES' continuing outreach to other technical societies as it considered its role in this and the larger community, along with more of the activities of the RES as it moved to be of greater service to its membership, especially those suffering from the current economic crisis, and adopted a greater role in shaping the future of the City and its environs. Noted also, will be the contributions made by RES members in the struggle to meet the challenges coming out of World War II, as well as a hoped-for period of post-war growth and prosperity. These articles will also feature an impressive array of RES activities in support of post-war re-emergence of Rochester area industry. We welcome your questions and comments on this series.
AUGUST 2014 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER | 5
RTS Transit Center Transforming Public Transit in the Rochester Community By Erin McCormick EIT, Project Engineer, Rochester Genesee Regional Transit Authority The highly anticipated opening of the RTS Transit Center will mark a significant leap forward for public transportation in downtown Rochester and our region as a whole. This world-class facility will make it easier for customers to ride the bus by providing a sheltered, climate-controlled environment, with modern amenities and improved service that will serve as a community connection point and transfer hub for bus customers as well as visitors to Rochester. Located at 60 St. Paul Street, the 87,000 square foot building spans an entire city block, bordered by Mortimer and Pleasant Streets, with entrances on both St. Paul Street and North Clinton Avenue. Thirty gates - 26 indoor and four outdoor on Mortimer Street, will accommodate up to 100 buses per hour during peak times.
Project Delivery Method
RGRTA used Design Build as the project delivery method for this project. The Authority is one of the few public entities in New York State able to use Design Build. There were numerous benefits to using this method. By establishing one entity responsible for design and construction, RGRTA was able to establish firm costs for the entire project, reducing cost overruns, and obtain construction grants sooner. The Pike Company, along with its design partner, Bergmann Associates, was selected as the Design Builder.
Architectural Themes and Engineering Design: Motion and Color
The RTS Transit Center features a unique design, user-friendly features and amenities that will provide convenience, comfort, and safety for customers. The primary design objectives were to improve the efficiency and overall customer transfer experience, remove bus lineups on Main Street, and integrate the modern design with the surrounding historic neighborhood. Ensuring that the building was LEED (Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design) Silver-level certifiable was also important. The exterior was designed to make a modern statement while being complementary to the historic neighborhood. Brick was chosen as the primary masonry expression with color and texture carefully selected. The main pedestrian entrances feature glazing and thermally efficient aluminum clad panels. The two main entrances, at St. Paul Street and Clinton Avenue, announce a light-filled interior, mimicking motion through the use of ceiling forms and specialized LED color accents. The entire length of the concourse’s metal panel and light wall element (known as the “motion wall”) reflects the 6 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER |AUGUST 2014
Concourse interior showing floating ribbon and motion wall
physical movement of people throughout the concourse. The recycled glass aggregate terrazzo floor, ribbons suspended from the ceiling and the structure, repeat a wave form that flows through the length of the concourse, reinforcing the theme of movement. Programmable lights will change the color of the suspended ribbon and entrance throughout the day. Additional acoustical-absorbing materials were used behind the ribbons, motion wall, and ceiling panels. Multiple digital signs will display bus gate assignments, departure times and other useful information throughout the concourse. The main concourse is heated with over seven miles of in-floor radiant tubing which raises the temperature at floor level slightly higher than the average room temperature and allows visitors to feel comfortable at temperatures that are actually three to five degrees lower than with other heating methods. Several feet above the floor, the air temperature lowers, resulting in a significant energy savings in the towering concourse. Customer amenities are: • • • • • • •
Drinking fountains, vending machines, art display cases, family and public restrooms ADA accessibility Large-print displays and visual cues for the hearingimpaired and audio assistance for the visually impaired State-of-the-art fire alarm system, sprinklers, access control and video surveillance Customer service representatives Trip planning kiosks Ticket vending machines cover article
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Use of Advanced Technologies
Project challenges were managed through the use of advanced technology. During design, 3D modelling was used as a decision making tool, providing a quick review of multiple options. Building Information Modeling (BIM) and 3D modeling were used to streamline the process of coordinating construction and provide visual representation of what the design would look like in 3D. The initial design model acted as a background upon which the team of contractors/ designers designed and overlaid their systems. The model allowed the construction team to detect conflicts and clashes early on to avoid costly schedule delays. Iterative coordination meetings were held prior to fabrication. These models have been updated to serve as parametric as-built condition models to be used in facilities management.
Core in Middle of Concourse
With the help of Robotic Total Station (RTS), an automated bulldozer used information from the model for site grading. A monitor within the bulldozer analyzed grade levels from the model, which controlled a slope sensor mounted to the blade, leaving the operator only to control the speed. This process significantly expedited site grading. Laser scanning was used to document construction progress and analyze field conditions. After the precast floor system installation, an error in elevation was discovered. A laser scanner surveyed the second floor of the building and created a point cloud which could be referenced in the model. This information was used by the design team to assess the extent of the issue and identify the most effective and efficient solution, thereby minimizing the impact to the project’s schedule and budget.
On Budget and Ahead of Schedule
The RTS Transit Center, originally scheduled to open in April 2015, is now scheduled to open five months ahead of schedule on Nov. 28, 2014. The $50M Transit Center project is on budget and funded by the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) (80%), the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) (10%) and RGRTA (10%).
A promising future for Rochester
Designing and constructing the RTS Transit Center has been a multi-year collaborative effort of many entities: FTA, NYSDOT, the City of Rochester, Monroe County, RGRTA, and many contractors and consultants. RGRTA’s Chief Executive Officer Bill Carpenter, recently said, “It takes a team to get this done…work on the RTS Transit Center has progressed steadily, thanks to the fine work and collaboration among our construction partners."
North Busway Interior
He continued, “With the Authority’s commitment to be customer focused, fiscally successful and technologically innovative, the new RTS Transit Center will redefine the way people use public transportation, making it easier, faster and more affordable for customers to reach key destinations such as jobs, educations, healthcare, shopping and recreation. RTS is transforming public transit in our community." q
Erin McCormick, EIT works as a Project Engineer for RGRTA. Email: emccormick@rgrta.com cover article
AUGUST 2014 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER | 7
Get to the Point!
Presentation Phobia (3): From Power Point Poison to Standing Ovation In a previous article I presented the concept of the Three Ps of Presentations: Plan, Prepare, and Practice. In the planning stage, you must establish the circumstances around your presentation, determine your audience’s needs and interest, and organize your information. When you prepare, you need to organize your information into an order which is logical and meaningful to your audience. In this article, I continue with the Prepare stage because establishing structure to your content is only part of preparation. Make Speaking Notes Don’t rely on just your Power Point slides. Often speakers fear that if they have note cards, the audience will think they are unprepared. In fact, it sends the opposite message. It shows the audience that you DID prepare and that you wanted to make sure you didn’t miss a point. Prepare your speaking notes on cards no smaller than 3 in. X 5 in. Write in large, bold letters that you can see at a glance and, and use brief headings to develop the information in sufficient detail. Avoid using a full sheet of paper for your notes. If you are nervous, your hand may quiver and the paper will shake. You also may be tempted to include far too much information on it and end up reading from the paper. The amount of information you include will depend on the subject, your familiarity with it, and your previous speaking experience. Your notes should not be so detailed that you cannot quickly pick out points, nor so skimpy that you have to rely too much on your memory. Prepare Visual Aids Visual aids help clarify and explain your concepts. They are especially important when discussing complex, technical information. Some people are visual learners and need to see the information as well as hear it. Examples of visual aids are PowerPoint slides, poster boards, physical props, equipment, and hand-drawn diagrams. Here are some tips for creating effective visuals: • Strive for simplicity: let each visual make just one point. The visual should support your spoken words; you should not have to explain it. • Use a font that is visible from the back of the room. (This means you need to know where you are presenting.) • Use upper and lower case letters; avoid all CAPS. • Use color to highlight key words or parts, but in moderation. Some colors, such as green and blue or red and orange are hard to tell apart from a distance. 8 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER |AUGUST 2014
• Place a short title above or below each slide. • Give credit to the original source for diagrams, graphs, and images, just as in a written document. • Select an appealing design that provides contrast between the background and text. • Avoid dazzling transitions. They take the attention away from you and your content. • Print copies of your slides to use as a prompt or to offer as a handout, but it shouldn’t be your only handout. Practice working with your visuals and make sure you know exactly which slide comes next. This also helps you ensure that your speaking notes match up to your slides. Prepare Handout Notes During the preparation stage you need to decide whether to provide printed material for your audience. If so, you will also have to decide whether to make it copies of your Power Point slides or a summary report of the main topics. There is a trend today to only provide copies of slides. This is easy, but may not be effective. Although it may take longer, I encourage you to write a short document to distribute to your audience. This is a useful resource to remind them, in your words, of what your key points were. A bulleted list doesn’t suffice. When is the best time to distribute your handouts? There are three approaches: 1. If you are providing copies of the slides, hand them out at the start. 2. If you have charts or diagrams to refer to, hand them out at the moment in the presentation when they are needed. 3. If you have a detailed summary of your points, hand it out at the end. In my next article, I’ll discuss the third P, Practice. RGI Learning offers workshops in conflict resolution and communicatons skills. Please email me at LisaM@rgilearning.com with questions or comments for a future article. Online instruction on how to write effective reports and proposals is available at www.rgilearning.com.
© 2014, RGI Learning Lisa Moretto is the President of RGI Learning, Inc. For 20 years she has helped engineers improve their oral and written communication skills. Visit www.rgilearning.com or call (866) 744-3032 to learn about RGI’s courses.
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AUGUST 2014 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER | 9
The Limited Monopoly® Patent Claims Directed to or Encompassing a Human Organism Where Law, Morality, Ethics, and Religion Meet by Robert Gunderman, PE and John Hammond, PE
Biotechnology and Human Dignity
While many areas of patent law are concrete and clear, neat and tidy, biotechnology patents are not. The rapid growth of biotechnology research pushes the limits of patent law, creating controversy, disagreement, and yes, court cases. The ability to patent life forms, organisms, and particularly human beings or parts of human beings is a topic that involves law, morality, ethics, and religion, and where they all meet there will certainly be controversy. Concerns that patenting living organisms violate the sanctity of life are primarily based on religious tenets and beliefs that are important and must be carefully considered. The notion of patenting parts of a human has received a great deal of opposition in recent years, and the controversy is far from over. Concerns over changes in the basic nature of humanity, creation of quasi-human life forms, a degradation of the value of human life, and the negativity associated with humans “playing God” are all very real and very problematic issues that must be addressed with each and every advance in the field of biotechnology and assertion of patent rights on the resulting inventions.
What is Patentable?
So, with such a consequential perspective on the topic of patenting life forms, what really is patentable? Title 35 of the United States Code, Section 101, defines what is patentable by stating that “Whoever invents or discovers any new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof, may obtain a patent therefor, subject to the conditions and requirements of this title.”1,2 This simple leading statute 10 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER |AUGUST 2014
“Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no patent may issue on a claim directed to or encompassing a human organism.” has been the subject of countless court cases that have molded and shaped the interpretation of “what is patentable” over the years.
Patenting Life Forms
The author of the original Patent Act of 1793, Thomas Jefferson, could never have envisioned that life forms would even be considered for patent protection. In fact, an 1889 tenet stated that you can’t patent the trees of the forest or the plants of the earth. Of course the Plant Patent Act of 1930 changed all that by allowing new varieties of asexually produced plants that are the products of plant breeders to be patent eligible.3 Then in 1972, in the famous case1 of Diamond v. Chakrabarty, a biochemist at General Electric by the name of Anand Chakrabarty developed a genetically engineered bacterium that could break down crude oil. His patent application was rejected under 35 U.S.C. §101. He appealed and took his case all the way to the Supreme Court, which ultimately ruled in his favor by determining that “His claim is not to a hitherto unknown natural phenomenon, but to a nonnaturally occurring manufacture or composition of matter-a product of human ingenuity…” In 1981 he was issued U.S. Patent 4,259,444. From that point in time, life forms have been patentable to some degree, and many patents have issued that relate to non-human life forms. The Limited Monopoly
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Slavery and Other Forbidden Property Rights
A patent is a property right, and the condition where one human being is owned by another is considered slavery, and violates the 13th amendment to the Constitution. The United States Patent and Trademark Office has long upheld the policy that a claim encompassing a human being is not patentable. With the rapid growth of biotechnology, genetic engineering, and related fields, this policy and its relationship to 35 U.S.C. §101 and what is considered patentable seemed to need further definition by lawmakers. Congressman Dave Weldon M.D. (R-FL) in the early 00’s advocated language to further codify the policy of the United States Patent and Trademark Office to not patent human organisms.
And Along Comes the America Invents Act
The efforts of Congressman Weldon and others resulted in Section 33(a) of the America Invents Act, which became law on September 16, 2011. The language of Section 33(a) of the America Invents Act simply reads as follows:
l s e d t 9 t e e 0 g y e e , d t y d d l n o y t t n d
“Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no patent may issue on a claim directed to or encompassing a human organism.”
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The Limited Monopoly
In patent law, simple is not always best, and the brevity of Section 33(a) without further explanation will most certainly create controversy and court cases for years to come, with each new biotechnology invention creating the opportunity for court decisions and Patent Office actions to provide new interpretations of Section 33(a).
…And the Uncertainty it Creates
Two phrases in Section 33(a) are particularly vague and subject to interpretation: “directed to” and “human organism.” Since neither phrase is used elsewhere or defined in the Patent Act, prosecutors and litigators must initially rely on the plain and ordinary meaning of each phrase. First and foremost is the dictionary definition of each phrase. For the phrase “directed to,” Merriam Webster defines directed as “subject to supervision or regulation, having a positive or negative sense.” Does this mean, for example, that a claim, perhaps a surgical tool for use on a human body, is “directed to”…a human organism? One would hope not, and while this is an extreme example, it points out the difficulties that will be encountered with the wording of Section 33(a). Perhaps even more challenging is the phrase “human organism.” At what point does a part of a human become a human organism? Is a human cell a human organism, or is a group of these cells required in order to be considered a human organism? The Merriam Webster Dictionary, for
example, defines organism to be “1. an individual living thing 2. a system with many parts that depend on each other and work together.” The Macmillan Dictionary defines organism to be “a living thing such as a person, animal or plant, especially an extremely small living thing.” And Webster’s Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary defines organism to be “a complex structure of interdependent and subordinate elements whose relations and properties are largely determined by their function in the whole.” It is safe to say that the language of Section 33(a) and related dictionary definitions do little to help clarify at what point a part of a human ceases to become an organism. Is only the whole human an organism, or are subcomponents such as organs and cells also organisms unto themselves? The answers to these questions have important implications in determining what is patentable, as these subcomponents of human beings are being increasingly used in biotechnology related inventions. Genes, DNA, cells, and other parts of a human being are becoming increasingly important in biotechnology inventions and their related patents. Better clarity and definition of section 33(a) will only come with time as court decisions mold and shape the definition of the rather vague language contained in Section 33(a). 1. See “The Limited Monopoly™” January 2008. 2. See “The Limited Monopoly™” January 2009. 3. See “The Limited Monopoly™” December 2009. Authors Robert D. Gunderman P.E. (Patent Technologies, LLC www.patentechnologies.com) and John M. Hammond P.E. (Patent Innovations, LLC www.patent-innovations. com are both registered patent agents and licensed professional engineers. They offer several courses that qualify for PDH credits. More information can be found at www.patenteducation.com. Copyright 2014 Robert Gunderman, Jr. and John Hammond Note: This short article is intended only to provide cursory background information, and is not intended to be legal advice. No client relationship with the authors is in any way established by this article. Graphic Credit: “Vitruvian Man,” Leonardo da Vinci, 1490.
AUGUST 2014 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER | 11
Professional Firms Employee News Erdman Anthony Announcements
Robert Schiller, PE
Erdman Anthony recently hired Robert Schiller, PE, as a project engineer in the Transportation Group in its Rochester office. Schiller has several years of experience working on a wide range of transportation projects, including urban street enhancements, trail systems, complex interchanges, and highways. Schiller holds a master of science degree and a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from the University of Buffalo. He is a professional engineer licensed in the state of New York and a member of the New York State Association of Transportation Engineers.
Peter Logar, PLS
Edward Farrell was hired as a junior structural engineer in the Transportation Group in its Rochester office. Farrell has experience as a field testing technician and a laboratory assistant. Farrell recently obtained a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from the University of Dayton, Ohio. Edward Farrell
Robert G. Langdon
Andrew Taylor, PE, FPE
Recently, Robert G. Langdon was named as geospatial technologist in the Geospatial Services Group in its Rochester office. Langdon has several years of experience in the surveying field, including stints as a crew chief, instrument operator, and drafter. He holds an associate’s degree in applied science from the surveying engineering technology program at Alfred State College – State University of New York College of Technology and a bachelor’s degree of technology from Alfred’s information technology- web development program. Andrew Taylor, PE, FPE, manager of the Piping, Plumbing, and Fire Protection Services Department, is now licensed as a Registered Professional Fire Protection Engineer in New York and Massachusetts. The Fire Protection Professional Engineering License (FPE) is administered by the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying (NCEES) and is recognized by multiple states as a specialty engineering discipline. Taylor is also registered as a Professional Mechanical Engineer in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, and Maryland. Taylor has 24 years of professional engineering and construction experience and has served as project manager on over 100 projects. He is a professional member of the Society of Fire Protection Engineers and represents Erdman Anthony on the National Fire Protection Association. He is also a Certified Fire Protection Specialist (CFPS) by the National Fire Protection Association.
Tiphaine A. Ketch, PE, C.F.M., hydrologic/ hydraulic engineer in the Rochester Transportation Group was recently certified by the Association of State Floodplain Managers as a Certified Floodplain Manager (C.F.M.). Tiphaine A. Ketch, PE
12 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER |AUGUST 2014
Kevin Bailey
Scott Beaman
The national program for professional certification of floodplain managers recognizes continuing education and professional development that enhance the knowledge and performance of local, state, federal, and private-sector floodplain managers. A key part of earning this certification is having expertise in requirements for projects within FEMAmapped floodplains. The role of the nation's floodplain managers is expanding due to increases in disaster losses, the emphasis being placed upon mitigation to alleviate the cycle of damage-rebuild-damage, and a recognized need for professionals to address these issues adequately. Floodplain managers come from a variety of curricula and backgrounds; there is no college-level degree program for floodplain management. This certification program will lay the foundation for ensuring that highly qualified individuals are available to meet the challenge of breaking the damage cycle and stopping its negative drain on the nation's human, financial, and natural resources. Peter Logar, PLS, surveyor in the firm, is a winner of the New York State Association of Professional Land Surveyors (NYSAPLS) “Surveyors Got Talent” map contest. Logar was recognized in the Miscellaneous Map category for his entry of a map prepared for the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) Region 3, North Street Marcellus Abandonment project. Winners in seven categories will be entered into a national map contest administered by the National Society of Professional Surveyors.. Erdman Anthony’s board of directors announces three promotions in its Rochester office. Kevin Bailey, Scott Beaman, and Julie Maves have been named associates.
Bailey is a construction inspector in the Construction Services group and has been at the firm for three years. Bailey has 43 years Julie Maves of construction and survey experience and a forestry technician degree from SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry Ranger School at Wanakena, New York. Beaman is a senior engineering technician in the Transportation group who has been with the firm for more than 22 years. An expert in Microstation and other critical applications, Beaman holds an associate of applied science degree in computer programming from Monroe Community College. Beaman is active in the community as president of the Churchville-Chili Parent-Teacher Association and as a member of the Town of Chili Water Resources Board. Maves serves as the firm’s corporate human resources manager. She leads all human-resource-related responsibilities. She holds an associate of applied science in computer science from Finger Lakes Community College and has 16 years of experience in human resources. Maves is active professionally with the Society of Human Resources Management as well as Professionals in Engineering, Architecture and Construction. q
professional firms employee news
F w N e r P t
Passero Associates Announcements
Jess Sudol
Justin Vollenweider
James Boughtin
Bruce Clark, PE
Jess Sudol has been promoted from the position of engineering project manager to civil engineering department manager. For the past 12 years, Mr. Sudol has worked with many valued clients on a range of award-winning and high-profile projects. He has been an active participant on a number of firm committees and has served as a teacher, coach and mentor to developing engineers. Mr. Sudol is respected by senior leadership, his peers, staff and clients alike. Justin Vollenweider has been promoted from the position of architectural designer to job captain in the Architecture Department. The job captain position carries increased responsibility for management of consultants, increased interaction with clients and a deeper involvement in project management, deliverables and outcomes. Mr. Vollenweider is a seasoned professional and has been involved in a wide variety of residential, institutional and commercial projects during his seven-year tenure with the firm. James Boughtin has been promoted from the position of architectural designer to job captain in the Architecture Department. The job captain position carries increased responsibility for management of consultants, increased interaction with clients and a deeper involvement in project management, deliverables and outcomes. Mr. Boughtin is a seasoned professional and has been involved in a wide variety of residential, institutional and commercial projects during his eight-year tenure with the firm. Passero Associates welcomes Bruce Clark, PE as aviation services senior project manager. Mr. Clark is a seasoned veteran in aviation services with over 30 years of multidisciplinary project design and management experience with complex aviation projects, serving commercial, municipal, regional and general aviation airports.
From the firm’s Capital District office in Albany, New York, Mr. Clark will support Passero Associates and its professional staff in providing the Northeast region with award-winning, nationally recognized aviation, engineering, and architectural services from a local office, with firmwide resources. Mr. Clark is a licensed Professional Engineer in New York and Pennsylvania, and holds a bachelors of science in civil engineering from the Rochester Institute of Technology. Prior to joining the firm Mr. Clark was managing engineer/principal of YM Engineers in Orlando, Florida. He has also held positions at C&S Engineers in Syracuse, New York and in Orlando, Florida, and at O’Brien & Gere Engineers in Syracuse, New York.
t Tim Harris, EIT
The firm welcomes Tim Harris, EIT, CPESC to the firm as project engineer in the civil engineering department. Mr. Harris has over seven years of experience in engineering design, CAD design, and
professional firms employee news
drainage design on municipal, commercial, and institutional projects. He holds a bachelor of science in civil engineering technology from Rochester Institute of Technology and is a Certified Professional in Erosion and Sediment Control. Mr. Harris is also a New York State Firefighter, certified by the Suffolk County Fire Academy. Prior to joining the firm, Mr. Harris was a project engineer at DDS Engineers in Henrietta.
Matt Newcomb
Passero Associates welcomes Matt Newcomb as project engineer in the civil engineering department. Mr. Newcomb has over five years of experience on residential, commercial, architectural and educational projects. He holds a bachelors of science in civil engineering from the Rochester Institute of Technology, and an associates in architecture from the State University of New York at Alfred. Prior to joining the firm, Mr. Newcomb was a project engineer at Marathon Engineering in Rochester.
Tim Geier has been hired as an intern architect. Mr. Geier completed his undergraduate studies in architecture at UNC Charlotte and recently graduated with a masters of architecture from Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, VA. Tim has held several internships during his college career, including three with Mitchell Construction Tim Geier in Rochester. q Professional Firms, Employee News continued on page 21... AUGUST 2014 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER | 13
Position Openings
Refrigeration/HVAC Engineer or Person with Equivalent Experience Ideal candidate would have a supermarket background (minimal 5 years). Employing service contractor is one of the largest in Upstate NY. Please call 585-423-6245.
SAVE THE DATE
113th RES Annual Gala Saturday, April 11, 2015 Rochester Riverside Convention Center
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www.roceng.org
The RES Web site (www.roceng.org) has a calendar of events for meetings that are received after the deadline. Please refer to the website for updated information. If you wish to be listed on the calendar please send the details to res@frontiernet.net. 14 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER |AUGUST 2014
position openings
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Go to the RES Web Site for Updated Details On All Meetings - www.roceng.org
Continuing Wednesday, September 10
Education Opportunities Thursday, September 18
Genesee Valley American Society of Land Surveyors Association Civil Engineers (ASPE) (GVLSA) p35 Webinar – A Closer Look at Road Diets Re-Broadcast: Lines of Possession
NY CE: 1.0 LS/PE Speaker: Knud E. Hermansen, Esq., PE, PLS Place: Tentatively the offices of Erdman Anthony, Armory Building, 145 Culver Road, Suite 200, Rochester. Time: 6:30 pm. A light meal will be served. Additional details: www.gvlsa.com
p36
1 PDH Credit Place: RGRTA, 1372 East Main Street, Rochester. Conference Room 116 Time: 12:00 noon to 1:00 pm. Lunch will be provided. Cost: $30 per person Reservations: Contact Erin McCormick by noon, September 11th at erin.k.mccormick@ gmail.com or 585-354-2488. Payment accepted at the door (no credit cards). No shows will be billed. No cancellations after September 11th. Webinar details: http://mylearning. asce.org/diweb/catalog/item/id71830/q/t=2109&f2=1&c=79&q=road*diet
Thursday, September 18
Association for Bridge Construction and Design (ABCD) ADDITIONAL MEETINGS AND UPDATES ARE POSTED ON THE WEBSITE AT www.roceng.org
Tour of Lakelands Concrete Facility in Lima
p35
1 PDH Credit (pending) Place: Lakelands Concrete Products, 7520 East Main Street, Lima Time: 12:00 noon (box lunch provided). Cost: Members $25; Non-members $30; Students $15 Reservations: Contact Ellen Kramer by Tuesday, September 16, 585-295-6233 or email to EKramer@LaBellaPC.com.
Support Your Affiliate Attend A Meeting To post continuing education opportunities on this page please contact the Rochester Engineering Society, 585-254-2350, or email: res@frontiernet.net.
Engineers’ Calendar
The engineering societies are encouraged to submit their meeting notices for publication in this section. The deadline for submitting copy is the 10th of the month prior to the month of publication. Please email to: res@frontiernet.net. The meetings offering PDHs are highlighted in blue. Details about the meeting and affiliate (if in this issue) are on the corresponding page listed next to the affiliate name.
Saturday, August 2
Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) Centennial Dinner Celebration
Tuesday, August 5 p39
Place: Hyatt Regency, Rochester Comments: You will receive a special commemorative gift. For more information and registration, please visit: https://meetings.vtools.ieee.org/m/27053. Spaces are limited so register early.
Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) Rochester Section Meeting
p38
Place: Hibachi Sushi Buffet Restaurant, South Town Plaza on Jefferson Road (Route 252), Jefferson Road, Rochester. Time: 12:00 noon. Comment: Any IEEE member is invited to attend and to participate, or just to observe. Lunch is $3 for IEEE member. No reservation or RSVP is needed, just show up. Website: http://rochester.ieee.org. Engineers Calendar continued on page 16...
continuing education | engineers' calendar
AUGUST 2014 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER | 15
Engineers’ Calendar Sunday, August 10
International Council on Systems Engineering (INCOSE)
, continued
Wednesday, September 10, Continued p34
Annual Picnic – Hike, Relax and Cook Out at Robert H. Treman Park, Ithaca, NY Place: Upper Pavilion, Robert H. Treman Park (http://nysparks.com/parks/135/details.aspx), Ithaca, NY Time: 1:00 to 6:00 pm Comments: Open to everyone; BBQ meat, utensils, plates, etc. will be provided, bring a dish to pass. Parking fee is $7. Reservations for the picnic: Contact Wes Hewett, wahewett@gmail.com. Questions contact Rick Zinni, rzinni@gmail.com.
Genesee Valley Land Surveyors Association (GVLSA)
p35
Re-Broadcast: Lines of Possession NY CE: 1.0 LS/PE Speaker: Knud E. Hermansen, Esq., PE, PLS Place: Tentatively held at the offices of Erdman Anthony, Armory Building, 145 Culver Road, Suite 200, Rochester. Time: 6:30 pm. A light meal will be served. Additional details: www.gvlsa.com
Tuesday, September 16
Independent Entrepreneurs Council (IEC)
Life Member Affinity Group – Planning Meeting Place: Rochester Yacht Club, 5555 St. Paul Street, Irondequoit. Time: Noon Reservations: Contact Carol Richardson by August 11th if you plan to attend this meeting. Email to carol.richardson@rit.edu.
Cleanroom Basics – What you should consider when designing and/or constructing a cleanroom for a Certifier’s perspective. Speaker: Ralph Kraft, R. Kraft, Inc. Place: Radisson Inn, 175 Jefferson Road, Rochester Time: Registration 7:30 am; Presentation 8:00 am to 9:00/9:30 am Reservations: There is no charge for this meeting, but reservations are required by Friday, September 12th. Contact The Rivers Organization at 585-385-6053 or email to ESST@Riversorg.com.
Monday, September 8
Wednesday, September 17
Thursday, August 14
Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE)
p39
p27
American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Institute of Electrical Air-Conditioning Engineers (IEC) p29 and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) Annual ASHRAE Clambake Place: Burgundy Basin Inn, 1361 March Road, Pittsford Time: 5:00 pm Details on the website at www.rochester.ashraechapters.org.
Wednesday, September 10 Electrical Association (EA)
p39 Tour of the Golisano Sustainability Institute Building on the RIT Campus Time: 12:00 noon for the tour, lunch after the tour in the RIT Global Village. Reservations: Email henrysimon@frontiernet.net by th p31 September 10 .
Annual Clambake Place: Webster Columbus Center, 70 Barrett Drive, Webster Time: Registration/Social Hour at 4:30; Clambake Buffet at 5:30 pm Comments: All tickets must be purchased in advance -no tickets will be sold after Friday, September 5th. Tickets will not be available at the door. Contact the office for ticket order forms or register online at www.eawny.com. 16 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER |AUGUST 2014
(Life Member Affinity Group)
Support Your Affiliate Attend A Meeting engineers’ calendar
r
Wednesday, September 17, Continued Society for Imaging Science and Technology (IS&T)
Save the Date – September 17 – Topic TBD Place: Room 1275 of the Carlson Center for Imaging Science, RIT Campus. Time: 6:00 pm Comments: Everyone is welcome to attend. Parking is available in the F lot, just north of the building. No meeting reservations are required.
American Society of Plumbing Engineers (ASPE)
For tickets or sponsorship opportunities, contact Pam Jackson at 585.697.1936 or pamela_jackson@rmsc.org
Get charged up for:
p33
Thursday, September 18 p36
Webinar – A Closer Look at Road Diets 1 PDH Credit Place: RGRTA, 1372 East Main Street, Rochester. Conference Room 116 Time: 12:00 noon to 1:00 pm. Lunch will be provided. Cost: $30 per person Reservations: Contact Erin McCormick by noon, September 11th at erin.k.mccormick@gmail.com or 585-354-2488. Payment accepted at the door (no credit cards). No shows will be billed. No cancellations after September 11th. Webinar details: http:// mylearning.asce.org/diweb/catalog/item/id71830/q/ t=2109&f2=1&c=79&q=road*diet.
Association for Bridge Construction and Design (ABCD)
p35
Tour of Lakelands Concrete Facility in Lima 1 PDH Credit (pending) Place: Lakelands Concrete Products, 7520 East Main Street, Lima Time: 12:00 noon (box lunch provided). Cost: Members $25; Non-members $30; Students $15 Reservations: Contact Ellen Kramer by Tuesday, September 16th, 585-295-6233 or EKramer@LaBellaPC.com.
engineers’ calendar
Visit www.rmsc.org for more information
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 2014
Topic TBD Place: Valicia’s Ristorante, 2155 Long Pond Road, Gates Cost: $20 per person (no credit cards) Additional details will be available next month. They will be posted on the ASPE and RES websites.
American Society of Civil Engineers (ASPE)
Experience the power of photons and the wonder of watts during an energetic evening benefiting the Rochester Museum & Science Center.
p28
SAVE THE DATE
113th RES Annual Gala Saturday, April 11, 2015 Rochester Riverside Convention Center 123 East Main Street, Rochester
www.roceng.org The RES Web site (www.roceng.org) has a calendar of events for these meetings and others that are received after the deadline. Please refer to the website for updated information. If you wish to be listed on the calendar please send the details to res@frontiernet.net. AUGUST 2014 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER | 17
News From Professional
Firms
SWBR Architects Announcements
SWBR Celebrates Grand Opening of The BEST Test & Commercialization Center At The Eastman Business Park
SWBR Architects recently celebrated the grand opening of the BEST Test & Commercialization Center at the Eastman Business Park, a $23 million, 18,000-square-foot facility containing equipment and resources to develop new energy storage products, everything from cell phone batteries to huge backup energy sources for industrial sites. Over 100 representatives of companies in the battery and energy storage space were joined by New York State Lt. Gov. Robert Duffy and other dignitaries in seeing first-hand the Center’s state-of-theart facility in Building 308 at Eastman Business Park. The new Center includes testing equipment for battery testing of secondary cells and battery packs, as well as testing chambers of all sizes, for single cells to huge megawatt systems. Services including product development, performance validation and certification testing, and a wide range of environmental testing and battery lifetime testing are designed to accelerate the adoption and growth of energy storage technologies. “NY-BEST chose Eastman Business Park to establish this Center because of the Park’s multiple resources, including deep and strong expertise in coatings and roll-to-roll manufacturing, extensive and scaleable infrastructure and equipment, and a captive high voltage micro-grid to facilitate large-scale system testing,” stated Michael Alt, director of Eastman Business Park. “The new testing facility will spur innovation in the development of critical next generation energy storage technology, improve the reliability and resiliency of New York’s electric grid, and create good-paying jobs in the Rochester area, making EBP a world-class hub for clean, alternative energy.” New York state is a leader in the energy-storage space and this project is an important step forward. Renewable products such as solar panels, and to a certain degree wind turbines, have achieved more acceptance that large scale production is expected. That would lead to more efforts to develop better technologies to efficiently capture the energy they produce.
Left to right: Jodi Mason, SWBR, Chris Frank, SWBR, Don Pannone, SWBR, Mike Alt, Director of EBP, Kelly Mardarano, EBP, and Jamie Bucci, SWBR.
18 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER |AUGUST 2014
St. John’s and SWBR Celebrate the Grand Opening of Brickstone
Officials from Monroe County, the Town of Brighton, St. John’s and SWBR recently celebrated the grand opening of Brickstone, a revolutionary senior community based on the principles of New Urbanism. Brickstone, a St. John’s community, adjacent to St. John’s Meadows in the town of Brighton, is comprised of 102 units – apartments and lofts, one-story bungalows and two story townhouses – situated around natural wetlands. The design and layout of the development also includes walking trails and pathways and a village square that includes retail space that will be available to residents of Brickstone, St. John’s Meadows and the neighboring Brighton and Rochester city communities. The revolutionary aspect of Brickstone is its design, based on the principles of New Urbanism. New Urbanism suggests that building and landscape design reflect the history and the styles and standards of the community and make smart use of the land available to enhance the social interaction and comfort of a true neighborhood. As a New Urbanism community, Brickstone features a defined center and mixed styles of housing in a setting that is entirely “walkable.” “Our overall approach for Brickstone is to create an inviting neighborhood, one that is easy to negotiate for our residents and is a desirable destination for the area’s neighboring residents for shopping, meetings and events, and other opportunities,” says St. John’s President and CEO, Charlie Runyon. “In short, Brickstone invites our existing Brighton neighbors to participate in becoming a neighborhood with us.” All homes at Brickstone are available on a rental basis; no purchase of the home or entrance fee is required. This financial strategy provides Brickstone residents a highly desirable and modern home without the necessity of tying up funds in home ownership. Left to right: David Newton, SWBR, Frank DeLuca, SWBR, Jodi Mason, SWBR, County Executive Maggie Brooks, Tom Gears, SWBR, and David Beinetti, SWBR
Nazareth College's Wellness and Rehabilitation Institute Breaks Ground
SWBR Architects announcedthat they are the architect for the new $16.5 million expansion and renovation of the Nazareth College Wellness and Rehabilitation Institute which recently held their ceremonial groundbreaking. The changes at Carroll Hall on the Nazareth campus will double the space to 66,700 square feet of a building that houses the college's School of Health and Human Services, which has the fastest growing programs at Nazareth. news from professional firms
SWBR Architects Announcements, Continued "It's going to let us have more space for clinical program development," said Shirley Szekeres, dean of health and human services at the college.
Left to right: Daan Braveman, Nazareth College President, Mark Maddalina, SWBR, Steve Fernaays, SWBR, and Kristin Schuster, SWBR.
SWBR Announces Awards For Nazareth College Peckham Hall
SWBR Architects announced that Peckham Hall at Nazareth College has received two local awards, a Rochester Chapter Construction Specifications Institute (CSI) Outstanding Project Award and a Rochester Chapter American Institute of Architects Merit Award. The CSI chapter award is given for exceptional teamwork between owner, designer and constructor realized through the CSI’s principles
of how clear, well-prepared construction documents can positively influence the process, quality and successful outcome of a project. The AIA Merit Award recognizes design excellence in architectural design, while creating awareness of the built environment and honors the architect, owner and builder of significant projects. Peckham Hall, a $30 million, 74,000-square-foot building, opened in September of 2012. It features twenty labs and six classrooms that provide space for math and science students and the growing number of students majoring in health and human service programs. The SWBR team was recognized at local meetings this past spring to accept both awards.
SWBR Architects’ Preservation Project Receives Excellence in Historic Preservation Award
SWBR Architects has been selected to receive the prestigious Excellence in Historic Preservation Award from the Preservation League of New York State for the redevelopment of Holy Rosary Apartments at 414 Lexington Avenue in Rochester. The firm served as lead architect on the $15 million project for Providence Housing Development Corporation. News from Professional Firms continued on page 20...
news from professional firms
AUGUST 2014 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER | 19
News From Professional SWBR Architects Announcements, Continued The Preservation League of New York State honors notable achievements in retaining, promoting and reusing New York’s historic resources. This award celebrates the completion of outstanding restoration projects, validates an organization’s work, encourages advocates to continue their pursuits and elevates the visibility of a project. “We are honored to have been selected for this respected award,” said Joe Gibbons, AIA Principal of SWBR Architects. “Preservation and reuse of Rochester’s historic buildings are essential to the firm, and we are proud that our project is being highlighted as an example for one of the best practices in historic preservation.” Holy Rosary Apartments provides 35 affordable apartments on its main campus and 25 new single-family homes. The 10,000-squarefoot historic church has been adapted as a community center, part of which will be leased to Mary’s Place Refugee Outreach. The firm's team transformed the former Holy Rosary Church rectory, convent and school buildings into apartments. The apartments are located at 26 different sites in 30 buildings, which incorporate new construction, rehabilitation, adaptive reuse and historic rehabilitation. Contributing to the success of this project were Developer: Providence Housing Development Corporation, Rochester; Architect: Joe Gibbons, SWBR Architects, Rochester; Historic Preservation Consulting: Preservation Studios, Buffalo; Contractor: LECESSE Construction, West Henrietta; Civil Engineers: Stantec Consulting, Rochester; and M/E/P Engineers: M/E Engineering, Rochester. Major funding support was provided by Enterprise Community Partners; First Niagara; New York State Housing Trust Fund; and City HOME of Rochester. The project utilized 9% Low
Firms
Income Housing Tax Credits; the New York State Commercial Rehabilitation Tax Credit Program, and Federal Historic Tax Credits. SWBR accepted the award at the Preservation League’s Annual Meeting and Awards Ceremony at the New York Yacht Club in New York City. q
SWBR Architects Recognized with Excelsior Award for DePaul Halstead Square
The New York State American Institute of Architects (AIA) recently presented SWBR Architects with the 2014 Excelsior Award for its work on DePaul Halstead Square. The Excelsior Award honors the best examples of public architecture, focusing on neighborhood transformation, urban revitalization, site planning, exterior and interior design, and sustainability. A 2.4-acre project, the design of DePaul Halstead Square addresses three distinct contexts: the commercial streetscape of Main Street, the residential character of Brown Street, and the historic campus of the former Sts. Peter & Paul parish. The project consists of a new 55,000-square-foot, 75-unit singleroom occupancy building for mental-health residents, a new 24-unit affordable apartment building and a 14-unit Treatment Apartment Building (TAP) on one central site. The central design theme for the project was to break from traditional mental-health care housing models and transform a former blighted area in the City of Rochester into a transformative and vibrant housing campus, enabling the owner to safely and effectively provide quality health care and treatment services to mental-health consumers. q
Fisher Associates Wins National Bridge Award Fisher Associates’ bridge and design work has garnered national attention along with several awards for the Centerway Arch Bridge Rehabilitation Project in the City of Corning. This project was awarded the local, state, and prestigious national 2014 Public Works Project of the Year Awards from the American Public Works Association. This is the first project in New York State that has won the national award in quite some time. The City of Corning was instrumental in obtaining funding and played an integral part in the aesthetics of the park like setting on the bridge. The Centerway Arch Bridge Rehabilitation project also won the 2013 Bridge of the Year Award for Bridge Construction and Design from the Western New York’s Chapter of the Association of Bridge Construction and Design. q 20 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER |AUGUST 2014
news from professional firms
Professional Firms Employee News Bergmann Announces Two New Hires
Bergmann Associates announced that Shay Irving has joined the company as a design engineer, waterway structures. Before working for Bergmann, Shay worked as an intern for Granger Construction in Lansing, MI. He attended Michigan State University and has a BS in civil engineering with a structural concentration. Shay Irving
Timothy Castelein has joined the company as a design engineer . Timothy completed his bachelors in mechanical engineering at Syracuse University. Prior to his full-time position, Tim was an intern at the firm and also worked at the Syracuse University Industrial Assessment Center, as an energy analyst and a physics coach. q Timothy Castelein
Stantec’s Sarah Hogan Earns Landscape Architect License After passing a series of exams administered by the Council of Landscape Architecture Review Boards, Sarah Hogan is now a licensed landscape architect in the State of New York. Hogan has been with Stantec for 10 years Sarah Hogan and is one of the two landscape architects in the Rochester office. Her primary focus includes streetscapes, parks and recreation, master planning, and commercial development. q
Foit-Albert Associates Announces Retirement of Founder Beverly “Bonnie” Foit-Albert Foit-Albert Associates, Architecture, Engineering and Surveying P.C. announced that Beverly “Bonnie” Foit-Albert, RA, PhD retired from the firm effective May 16, 2014. Since founding the company in 1977, Ms. Foit-Albert has served as the company’s Chief Executive Officer and President. From championing the saving of American treasures like the HH Richardson Psychiatric Center complex to identifying innovative solutions to age-old problems like the National design award-winning Stanley Makowski Early Childhood Center, she has contributed to the development of both great places and talented professionals. The transition in ownership and leadership will occur in-house. Greg Carballada, President, Jack Robson, Executive Vice President, Michael Pohl, Vice President and Warren Shaw, Vice President will be taking the reins. Jack Robson expressed his and the company’s gratitude for Bonnie’s tireless leadership through the years and the appreciation for the culture she molded within the company. q
SmartEdge Announces New Company President SmartEdge, a Tonawanda, NY based Energy & Facility Solutions provider announced Scott Drabek as the new company President. Scott is a Partner of SmartEdge and has been with the company for over 9 years.
Scott Drabek
Scott has over 20 years of experience within the facilities management and engineering field. For the past 9 years, Scott has held the position of Vice President and Regional Manager for the Facilities Solutions & Smart Buildings area within the firm. These areas include Energy Management, HVAC, Video Surveillance & Card Access, Fire Alarm, Communications, and Nurse Call. Scott also works closely with our New York State contracts, along with continuing to develop our business for long term growth. Scott is a graduate of Bryant & Stratton Institute and is a LEED Accredited Professional. q Professional Firms, Employee News continued on page 22...
professional firms employee news
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Professional Firms Employee News Ravi Engineering Announces New Hires
Ravi Engineering & Land Surveying, P.C. welcomes Jess Pike and Dave DeYoung as its newest members of the Environmental Department. Jess, a recent graduate from RIT, earned her B.S. in environmental sustainability, health and safety. Ms. Pike brings with her both knowledge and experience in the aero-structures, construction and product manufacturing industries completing environmental, health and safety work. Dave, a recent graduate from SUNY Brockport, earned his B.S. in environmental science Mr. DeYoung brings with him both knowledge and experience in environmental screening, wetland delineation, forestry, geology, environmental data collection and analysis, and modern architecture practices. q
BME Associates Announces Three New Hires and One Receiving His PE License BME welcomes three new staff members and we are confident that our clients will benefit from the knowledge and expertise that they bring. Fred Shelley, L.S., has joined as a design engineer. Fred brings 10 years of site engineering, land surveying and development experience, working for Kreiling Associates, and more recently in his own consulting business.
Fred Shelley, LS
Kyle Mott
Kyle Mott has joined as a survey technician. Kyle is a 2010 graduate of SUNY ESF Ranger School with a degree in Forest Technology. He brings over four years of experience as a survey technician. Kyle will be working on various land surveying projects. Dustin Bradley has been hired as a wetland technician. He is a recent graduate of SUNY Brockport with a bachelor’s degree in environmental science, with wetland research experience, as well. He is a new addition to our Environmental Services group. BME Associates also announced that Ryan T. Destro has earned his NYS Professional Engineer licensure. Ryan, a graduate of Rochester Institute of Technology, is a design engineer with over 9 years of experience. Ryan works on a variety of residential, commercial and institutional site planning and engineering projects. q
Dustin Bradley
Ryan T. Destro, PE
MRB Announced Daniel Allen Named President of GIS/SIG Daniel Allen, GISP, Senior GIS Analyst with MRB Group, was recently congratulated by the firm for his election as President of the Geographic Information Sharing/Special Interest Group (GIS/SIG) for 2014.
Daniel Allen, GISP
GIS/SIG is a 501(c)(3), non-profit organization that was founded in 1989 and has grown to over 300 active members. It is primarily an educational user’s group whose mission is to foster the understanding of Geographical Information Systems (GIS) technology.
GIS/SIG hosts an annual user conference in the Rochester - Genesee Finger Lakes region which serves as a professional forum for GIS education, data sharing, communication and networking among local, state and national users. Allen has volunteered for GIS/SIG since 2003, and was first elected to the Board of Directors in 2004. He became Vice President in 22 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER |AUGUST 2014
2010. His election as President in 2014 follows more than a decade of volunteer service promoting the GIS profession. An alumnus of Rochester Institute of Technology, Allen also mentors GIS students as an Adjunct Professor at SUNY Geneseo. He has worked for the firm since 2001, earning his certification as a GIS Professional (GISP) in 2008. "We are extremely proud of Dan and his excellent work as a GIS professional," said MRB Group President Ryan Colvin. "Dan's outstanding effort has raised awareness of the powerful tool GIS provides to our municipal clients, making them more productive and efficient," he continued. "It's an honor to serve as President of a professional organization as dedicated as GIS/SIG," Allen said. He plans to work closely with fellow board members to increase membership and promote the important mission of GIS/SIG. For more information about the organization, visit http://www.gis-sig.org. q
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Campus News Diving for Pearls With the Hubble Space Telescope
RIT astronomers help find star ‘necklace’ connecting elliptical galaxies Stars forming like a string of blue pearls along two elliptical galaxies could be the result of a galactic merger, according to an international team of astronomers. The structure could reveal rare insights about elliptical galaxies. Scientists from Rochester Institute of Technology helped analyze data from the Hubble Space Telescope showing elliptical galaxies coalescing at the core of a dense galaxy cluster. The study is part of a program sponsored by the Hubble Space Telescope—an international cooperation between NASA and the European Space Agency—to look inside 23 massive clusters first catalogued in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. Findings of the study, “A thirty-kiloparsec chain of ‘beads-on-astring’ star formation between two merging early type galaxies in the core of a strong-lensing galaxy cluster,” are available online, at http://arxiv.org/abs/1407.2251 and in an upcoming issue of The Astrophysical Journal Letters. “These data were originally taken for a completely different purpose— to study the bluish arcs on larger scales in the cluster,” said Chris O’Dea, professor in RIT’s School of Physics and Astronomy and a co-author on the paper. “We were not expecting to catch these two elliptical galaxies in this spectacular burst of star formation.” O’Dea and co-author Stefi Baum, professor and director of RIT’s Chester F. Carlson Center for Imaging Science, were thesis advisers and mentors of the paper’s lead author, Grant Tremblay, a postdoctoral fellow at the European Southern Observatory in Garching, Germany, and an inaugural alumnus of RIT’s astrophysical sciences and technology Ph.D. program. Tremblay will join Yale University as a NASA Einstein Fellow in September. The 100,000-light-year-long structure identified in the Hubble data is dotted with 19 young, blue star clusters like pearls on a string, evenly spaced and separated by 3,000 light-years. The star necklace will lose its shape in about 10 million years as each of the 19 stellar superclusters follows a different orbit, Tremblay said. Earlier observations of star clusters forming in evenly distributed clumps in spiral galaxies could explain Tremblay’s “serendipitous discovery” in the Hubble data. “This phenomenon has never been seen before in merging elliptical galaxies,” Tremblay said. “We have two big monsters and they’re playing tug-of-war with this necklace.” Tremblay and his team suggest three possible scenarios that could have created the string-of-pearl stars between two elliptical galaxies:
The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope captured a cosmic moment of two merging cluster galaxies connected by a bright blue string of young stars. Credit: NASA, ESA and RIT
• • •
Merger—Coalescing galaxies triggered a reservoir of cold gas into star formation Cooling flow of gas—Hot gas from the X-ray atmosphere around the galaxies cooled into puddles of cold molecular gas and started to form stars Collision—A galactic collision created an X-ray shock catalyzing the star formation by compressing the gas and cooling the plasma.
"Compared to a galaxy’s lifetime of billions of years, star formation processes—which take millions of years—are quite brief,” said Kevin Cooke, graduate student in RIT’s astrophysical sciences and technology program. “To find such an event in early type galaxies where star formation is rare is an incredibly fortunate find. Research into star formation in galaxies helps address many fundamental questions about the universe, and this rare star formation event will help propel this field of knowledge.” Tremblay’s team has a strong connection to his alma mater, RIT, with three co-authors from the university—Baum, O’Dea and Cooke. In addition to the RIT contingent, the team of scientists includes Michael Gladders, University of Chicago; Matthew Bayliss, Harvard University and Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics; Håkon Dahle, University of Oslo; Timothy Davis, European Southern Observatory; Michael Florian, University of Chicago; Jane Rigby, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center; Keren Sharon, University of Michigan; Emmaris Soto, the Catholic University of America; and Eva Wuyts, Max-PlanckInstitut für extraterrestrische Physik. q Campus News continued on page 24..
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Campus News UR’s Hajim School of Engineering Encourages Companies to Collaborate With Students on Senior Projects A note went out at Carestream Health Inc. last year asking if Jaime Waldman, the technical program manager, knew of any projects that a team of University of Rochester engineering students could tackle as a senior design project. He did indeed. As a result, Matthew Noyes, Angelo Persichilli, Kelly Rousmaniere, and Antonio Schifitto of the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the Hajim School of Engineering and Applied Sciences calculated and designed a water flow nozzle system for a material grinding project that improved surface finish and grind quality. “I give them a very good grade,” said Waldman, who supervised the students. “They are very good at analysis and investigation and data keeping, and very good at analytics and design. They did a very nice job."
Biomedical engineering student Travis Block ’12 takes the "MonoMano" bike for a spin. The bike is designed to accommodate riders with only one functioning arm.
The Hajim School encourages collaborations like this with outside companies. Students benefit from the opportunity to apply their skills to “real-life” projects, on behalf of “real-life” customers; businesses and other clients benefit not only from what the students produce, but the opportunity to interact with them and potentially recruit them.
Mechanical Engineering: Asst. Prof. Douglas H. Kelley, d.h.kelley@rochester.edu, (585) 275-7769, 218 Hopeman Hall, or Prof. and Dept. Chair John Lambropoulos, john.lambropoulos@ rochester.edu, (585) 275-4070, 236 Hopeman.
This is a good time of year for companies to contact the Hajim School about participating in senior design projects for the coming academic year. Companies can contact Jim Zavislan, Associate Dean, Education and New Initiatives, at james.zavislan@ rochester.edu or (585)-275-9819, or these contact persons in individual departments:
Other teams of Hajim School seniors this past school year worked on these projects with Rochester area companies:
Biomedical Engineering: Assoc. Prof. Amy Lerner, amy.lerner@ rochester.edu, (585) 275-7847, 307 Goergen Hall, or Assoc. Prof. Scott Seidman, Scott_Seidman@urmc.rochester.edu, (585) 2732122, Box 603, 601 Elmwood Ave., Rochester, NY14642. Chemical Engineering: Assoc. Prof. F. Douglas Kelley, doug. kelley@rochester.edu, (585) 275-7696 or (585) 613-1944, 201C Gavett Hall; also Senior Technical Associate Rachel Monfredo, rachel.monfredo@rochester.edu, (585) 275-7885, 109C Gavett Hall. Computer Engineering: info@cs.rochester.edu, (585) 275-5671, Box 270226, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY 14627-0226 Electrical and Computer Engineering: Adjunct Prof. Victor V. Derefinko, derefink@ece.rochester.edu, (585) 275-9402, 305 Hopeman Hall, or Assoc. Prof. Jack Mottley, jack.mottley@ rochester.edu, (585) 275-4308, 306 Hopeman. 24 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER |AUGUST 2014
The Institute of Optics: Prof. Wayne Knox, wayne.knox@ rochester.edu, (585) 273-5520, 507 Goergen Hall.
• A pilot ethanol dehydrator to dehydrate ethanol to fuel grade for Epiphergy, LLC, of Pittsford • A control strategy to optimize the heating, ventilation and air conditioning system for Wegmans, Inc. • A soil heating system for a greenhouse located at the Wegmans Organic Farm in Canandaigua. • Mechanical analysis of the surface of a motor polygon assembly used in scanning laser printing systems for Xerox. Other recent Senior Design projects by Hajim students have included: • A control device that allows users with only one functioning arm to operate a recumbent tricycle, which received the international Student of da Vinci Award sponsored by the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. • A system to test a serial filtration method using silicon nanofilters, technology used by the UR spinoff company, SiMPore, Inc. campus news
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Design Day is a wonderful way of recognizing and celebrating the role of engineering in society," says Rob Clark, Dean of the Hajim School and UR's Senior Vice President for Research. "Engineers are the 'magicians' behind the curtain of technology, and design day provides our budding magicians a stage!"
Dan Eversole, CEO of NanoPulse Biosciences LLC of Boston, examines prototype wound debridement device developed by a team of biomedical engineering students he sponsored for their senior design project
• A refreshable braille display that acts as a computer screen for the blind, which won honorable mention at the 2013 Intel Cornell Cup competition.
About half of that involved meeting face to face with students at Carestream, the other half corresponding by email.
• A respiration monitor for use on very low birth-weight newborns, which received a $50,000 grant from the UR Technology Development fund to develop a second-generation prototype for introduction into the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.
Waldman said the collaborations with students are beneficial.
This was the second year in a row that Carestream engaged Hajim School students in a project. During the 2012-2013 academic year, Optics students Sarah Walters and Anthony Yee prepared crossover data to help the company upgrade a piece of equipment used to characterize the phosphors that Carestream, a worldwide provider of dental and medical imaging systems and healthcare IT solutions, uses in computed radiography.
Hajim students say they appreciate opportunities to collaborate with outside companies. Caitlin Koski, for example, was part of a senior design team in biomedical engineering that worked on a prototype wound debridement system for NanoPulse Biosciences LLC of Boston.
Waldman said he spent about an hour a week, for a total of 20 hours, working with students on the material grinding project.
“Students can add some new approaches to fixing a problem,” Waldman said. “We are helping out the students, and at the same time they are helping us.”
“This is the most applicable thing that we have learned in our college career, being able to communicate with these companies and work with customers in real world applications,” Koski said. q
“Compressive Sensing” Provides New Approach to Measuring a Quantum System Researchers show momentum and position of quantum system can be determined using technique from signal processing
In quantum physics, momentum and position are an example of conjugate variables. This means they are connected by Heisenberg’s Uncertainty Principle, which says that both quantities cannot be simultaneously measured precisely. Recently, researchers have been developing novel techniques, such as “weak measurement,” to measure both at the same time. Now University of Rochester physicists have shown that a technique called compressive sensing also offers a way to measure both variables at the same time, without violating the Uncertainty Principle. The paper was published in Physical Review Letters and highlighted as an Editors’ Suggestion, the Rochester team explain that campus news
when measuring quantum systems each detection event gives a little information about momentum and a little about position, so that information about the whole system can be obtained. Graduate student and lead author Gregory Howland, who carried out the experiment with his colleagues James Schneeloch, Daniel Lum and his advisor Professor John Howell, explains that the compressive sensing approach “economizes the use of this information.” Compressive sensing uses the possibility of compressing the signal to be able to recover more information from relatively few measurements, and therefore obtain an understanding of the system.
“We use random on-off patterns to gain a small amount of position information while only minimally affecting the momentum of the photons”, explains Howell, professor of physics at the University of Rochester. “In much the same way as weak measurements, the random on-off patterns gain very little information about the position of the photons, but putting all the patterns together, we can learn about the images carried by the light.”
“Compressive Sensing” Provides New Approach to Measuring a Quantum System: Campus News, continued on page 26
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Campus News Continued from page 25 Compressive sensing has been widely used in the last decade in signal processing applications such as magnetic resonance imaging and radio astronomy. Howland explained that recently it has even been used in imaging applications, for example, when Howland and his colleagues used the technique to enable a single pixel camera to capture the 3D movement of a tennis ball swinging on a string (see http://arxiv.org/ pdf/1309.4385.pdf ). Although the team applied compressive sensing in this case to gain information
about momentum and position, they could also have applied it other conjugate variables like time and energy for example. To begin, they illuminated an object with a laser beam. They then used a simple, standard imaging setup to be able to retrieve an image of the object, which gives the position information, and also image the Fourier transform of the object, which gives the momentum information. However, instead of doing a complete, or ‘projective’ measurement, they used compressive sensing to do the equivalent of a “weak measurement” to get position information. This requires a series of random filters (random on-off patterns) to be applied to the system, which block some of the signal
but allow enough of it to pass to be able to image the Fourier transform of the object, which is effectively a “strong” momentum measurement. “It may be counterintuitive to realize that random measurements can provide the same results as strong, projective measurements and do so more efficiently,” says Howland. “Not only that, but in the quantum domain we can do this and also measure the conjugate variable in the same experiment.”q
A Cure for Dry Eye Could be a Blink Away RIT mathematics professor studies the dynamics of tears
A treatment for dry eye—a burning, gritty condition that can impair vision and damage the cornea—could some day result from computer simulations that map the way tears move across the surface of the eye. Kara Maki, assistant professor in Rochester Institute of Technology’s School of Mathematical Sciences, contributed to a recent National Science Foundation study seeking to understand the basic motion of tear film traversing the eye. “Tear Film Dynamic with Evaporation, Wetting and Time Dependent Flux boundary Condition on an Eyeshaped Domain,” published in the journal Physics of Fluids on May 6, is an extension of Maki’s doctoral research under her thesis advisor and co-author Richard Braun, professor in the University of Delaware’s Department of Mathematical Sciences. “We’re hoping if we can understand better the basic dynamics of the tear film, then we can start to understand what goes wrong if you have dry eye and start to think about potential cures by studying simulations,” Maki said. Dry eye is a common condition without a cure. Many causes, including the aging process, contribute to discomfort resulting from either a lack of tears or tears that evaporate too quickly. In the United States alone, nearly 5 million people age 50 and older suffer from dry eye, according to the National Eye Institute, part of the National Institutes of Health. Women are predominantly afflicted with the condition, with more than 3 million diagnosed with dry eye due to hormonal changes associated with menopause. Treatment to alleviate symptoms includes eye drops and temporary or surgical plugs to stopper tear ducts at the inner corners of the eyes and retain fluid. To understand dry eye, Maki had to begin with the physics and chemistry of tears. Tear film consists of a layer of water sandwiched between an oily layer of lipids on the outside to prevent evaporation and an inner mucous layer to spread the water over the eye. Kara developed a mathematical model to simulate the direction tear film travels when entering the eye from the lacrimal glands above the upper eyelid. Using the software program Overture, she recreated the 26 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER |AUGUST 2014
flow of tears on the surface of an open eye, moving from the upper corner and draining through the ducts at the opposite corner. “One thing we were able to find is that when your eyes are open, the tears get thin right along the edge of the eye, and that is referred to as the ‘black line,’” Maki said. “That has been seen clinically and can be reproduced in our simulations.” The tears, Maki explains, climb up the eyelid and join a column of fluid that travels along the lids. Lower pressure sucks the fluid into the meniscus and away from the center, creating the black line and dry spots in the tear film that can compromise vision and irritate the cornea. Maki saturated the eye with liquid to penetrate the black line. She wanted to know if the fluid would travel down the front of the eye and relieve the thinning of the tear film. “We found that we had to really flood the eye in our simulations. The fluid would rather travel in the meniscus,” Maki said. “It splits traveling along the upper lid and the lower lid. We confirmed that blinking is necessary to stop this thinning from happening. Every time you blink, the tear film gets repainted on the front of your eye. It’s important to have smooth tear film for optical quality.” The next step for Maki and the team led by Braun is to simulate the dynamics of tear films in a blinking eye. “The nice thing about having a model is that you can make unrealistic things happen,” Maki said. “For example, we can flood the eye and see where the tears go. Or we can look at what happens when the drainage holes are plugged. Where does the fluid go? You can start to explore these things in a safe way.” In addition to Maki and Braun, the dry-eye team includes Longfei Li, William Henshaw and P.E. King-Smith. q
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Rochester NY Chapter
Independent Entrepreneurs Council "The Junction of Technology, Manufacturing & Business Development"
Chairman/Moderator Ralph Kraft R. Kraft, Inc. 585-621-6946 Program Director Robert Lewis AdviCoach 585-385-2087 Treasurer Richard Blazey Business Metamorphosis LLC 585-520-3539 Web Master Richard Blazey Business Metamorphosis LLC 585-520-3539 Event Planner Rick Rivers The Rivers Organization 585-586-6906 Community Outreach Terry Rogelstad Pfeiffer Vacuum 585-330-9713 Dave Bassett Basset IP Strategies 585-739-9726 Lee Drake OS-Cubed 585-765-2444 Dennis Roote CDE Engineering & Environment PLCC 585-330-6986
Entrepreneurs Helping Entrepreneurs Succeed Monthly Breakfast Series Date: Tuesday, September 16, 2014 Location: Radisson Inn, 175 Jefferson Road, Rochester NY Time: Registration 7:30 to 8:00 am/Presentation: 8:00 am to ~ 9:00/9:30 am Registration Required: There is NO charge, but reservations are required by Friday, September 12, 2014. Make reservations via The Rivers Organization at (585) 3856053 or email to ESST@Riversorg.com. Topic:
Cleanroom Basics – “What you should consider when designing and/ or constructing a cleanroom from a Certifier’s perspective” Speaker: Ralph Kraft of R. KRAFT, Inc. – cleanroomservices.com Ralph will discuss items of concerns for those contemplating, designing or constructing a cleanroom from a Certifier’s perspective that will save the cleanroom owner dollars on the front end and a lot of frustration after the room is operational. Ralph has 35+ years of experience in the Design, Construction, Certification and Troubleshooting of cleanroom facilities (regardless of industry discipline) of which he draws from, for this presentation. He is the author two books on cleanroom design, construction and operational concerns as well as have written numerous articles in various trade magazines pertaining to cleanrooms over the years and speaks at various symposiums, conferences on this subject.
Upcoming Talks: Date October November-May
Speaker Terry Rogelstad TBD
Topic Using a Quadruple Mass Spectrometer TBA
If you are a “technology-based independent entrepreneur” and feel that you have a topic of interest that you would like to present, contact Dave Bassett (585-739-9726). Talks are the 3rd Tuesday of every month (8:00 am to 9:30 am). Reservations are required. Join us at our monthly luncheon meeting to see how we can help you grow your buiness, which is held the 1st Friday of every month (12:00 to 1:30 pm) at Baxter's Restaurant in the Radisson Inn, 175 Jefferson Road, Rochester, NY (near RIT).
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AUGUST 2014 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER | 27
Experience the power of photons and the wonder of watts during an energetic evening benefiting the Rochester Museum & Science Center. For tickets or sponsorship opportunities, contact Pam Jackson at 585.697.1936 or pamela_jackson@rmsc.org
Get charged up for:
Visit www.rmsc.org for more information
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 2014
Rochester Chapter
Society for Imaging Science and Technology Website: http://rochesterengineeringsociety.wildeapricot.org/ISandT
Save the Dates: 2014-15 Meeting Schedule September 17, 2014 October 15, 2014 November 12, 2014 December 10, 2014 January 14, 2015 February 11, 2015 March 18, 2015 April 15, 2015 May 13, 2015 Our meetings are held at 6:00 pm in Room 1275 of the Carlson Center for Imaging Science on the RIT campus. Everyone is welcome to attend. Parking is available in the F lot, just north of the building. No meeting reservations are required. 28 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER |AUGUST 2014
is&t news
Rochester Chapter
American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers Rochester ASHRAE website: www.rochester.ashraechapters.org
AUGUST NEWSLETTER
President's Message Summer greetings.
The official Rochester ASHRAE calendar year started on July 1st. Board members and committee chairs have been busy during the dog days of summer planning for our upcoming program year. 2014 -2015 meeting programs will kick off at our annual Clambake at the Burgundy Basin Inn on September 8th. Program Chair Ms. Christina Walter is busy planning program content for the upcoming slate of meetings. If you have any questions and/or suggestions for speakers and/or topics, please contact Christina Walter, cmwalter@trane.com. I would like to thank outgoing chapter president Mr. Robert Wind, PE for the years of dedication and service he provided to the Rochester ASHRAE Chapter. I would also like to take this time to congratulate Mr. Jim Browe recipient of this year’s Realto E. Cherne Award. This award is presented to an individual of the Rochester Chapter for outstanding contribution of service to the community through education, technical achievement and support of ASHRAE society. As a chapter we are always looking to get more people involved in ASHRAE, especially students. Recently, Student Activities Committee Chair Mr. Chris Lukasiewicz, Education Chair Mr. Bill Murray, PE and I met with Mr. Bill Horton HVAC/R Lecturer at Monroe Community College. We are proud to announce the MCC student ASHRAE chapter will be reopening their old student branch charter and engage students in Rochester ASHRAE chapter activities. Currently MCC has an HVAC/R program of approximately 200 registered students working on either certificates or AAS degrees for HVAC/R technology. The revival of the MCC student ASHRAE branch will encourage more students who might not otherwise consider it, to be exposed to opportunities that are available if they continued on to a BS degree in mechanical engineering. An active student chapter at MCC will also encourage students to stay in the program and finish their AAS degree as well. The MCC student chapter will also help serve as a conduit for businesses involved with ASHRAE to meet with students that are currently training for careers in the HVAC/R industry. The ASHRAE Chapter Regional Conference or CRC for Region 1 (which Rochester is part of along with 14 other chapters in the NE) is taking place in Tarrytown, NY, August 14th – 17th. The four main goals of the CRC are to: 1. Conduct Nominations – Recommend and elect future ASHRAE leaders. 2. Conduct Business – Review/present reports and motions from each chapter.
ashrae news
3. Conduct Training – Provide training workshops for various Chapter Committees. 4. Socialize– Interact with other ASHRAE colleagues at the chapter, regional and society levels. The CRC event is a great environment in which to socialize and get acquainted with your ASHRAE colleagues. Many Rochester ASHRAE Committee Chairs attend respective training workshops. We will also be making a nomination for the late Lynn G. Bellenger to receive the Society ASHRAE Hall of Fame Award. Lynn distinguished herself as an active, energetic member of ASHRAE at the Chapter, Regional and Society levels from the beginning of her membership in 1975 through her Presidency of the Society from 2010-2011. There are many members of the Rochester chapter, which worked with Lynn and/or were mentored by her, whose careers in the HVAC&R field (and participation in ASHRAE) have been profoundly impacted by her guidance, knowledge and service to ASHRAE. If you happen to know any of the past, present or future Rochester ASHRAE chapter volunteers please take the time to thank them. It is because of them that our chapter is what it is today. Please continue to check out the chapter website at www.rochester. ashraechapters.org for information on upcoming chapter meetings, current officer list, contact information, current electronic newsletter and more! Edward J. Burns 2014-15 Rochester ASHRAE President
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Rochester Section
Society of Women Engineers c/o RES at the RMSC, 657 East Avenue, Rochester, NY 14607 www.swerochester.org ASPIRE • ADVANCE • ACHIEVE Habitat for Humanity Women Build Project A team of six women from SWE came together to work on construction of the Habitat for Humanity Women Build house on June 4th. The team worked on removing forms for the basement walls during their shift. They raised over $1000 in donations for Habitat for Humanity to earn their build day.
Pictured (SWE Team): Cheryl Hanzlik, Casey Daggett, Jodi Carville, Marca Lam, Dani Walters, and Justine Converse
Please watch your email and the SWE Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/swe.rochester) for details on our August “Meet and Mingle” to be held at a local venue. All members are encouraged to attend to share your ideas and network with SWE members. NEW Engineering Program for High School Women Students! SWE is organizing an Explorers Post for high school women students for the 2014-15 school year. The focus of the post will be to introduce and educate high school young women about various fields of engineering through a series of tours and sessions with engineers at local companies. If you are interested in being a part of the planning and/or hosting, contact swe.rochester@swe.org. Open Positions Committee chair positions are still open for Fundraising, Grants, and Meeting Coordination. Please contact Jodi Carville at jlceee@rit.edu or any board member for more information. For more information on SWE and our activities visit our website, www.swerochester.org. 2014-15 Executive Board ROCHESTER SECTION President Jodi Carville RIT jlceee@rit.edu
Vice President Dr. Marca Lam, RIT RIT marca.lam@swe.org
Treasurer Donna Jones HCL Donna.Jones2@xerox.com
Secretary Danielle Walters Harris Corporation dwalters710@gmail.com
Awards Carol Richardson RIT, retired carite@rit.edu
Section Representative Mary Steblein, PE LaBella Associates DPC mary.steblein@swe.org
Membership Chair Justine Converse Harris Corporation Justine.Converse@yahoo.com
Scholarship Chair Courtney Reich NOHMs Technologies, Inc courtney.reich@gmail.com
Outreach Chair Casey Daggett SPX Process Equipment ccdaggett@gmail.com
Newsletter Editor Susan Aurand Xerox Corporation Susan.Aurand@swe.org
Visit http://societyofwomenengineers.swe.org/index.php/membership for more information about joining SWE. Visit us online at www.swerochester.org and Like our SWE Rochester page on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/swe.rochester). The Society of Women Engineers inspires women to achieve full potential in careers as engineers and leaders; expands the image of the engineering profession as a positive force in the quality of life; and demonstrates the value of diversity. 30 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER |AUGUST 2014
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Genesee Valley Branch
American Public Works Association Website: www.apwa.net Geoffrey Benway, PE Genesee Valley Branch President Serving Genesee, Livingston, Monroe, Ontario, Orleans and Wayne County
Toronto bound, eh? The 2014 National APWA Congress is almost here! August 17 -20 will be THE place to be to share information with fellow public works professionals, meet vendors for all of your equipment, materials, and educational needs, and enjoy a beautiful city only a few hours drive away. So what is holding you back? The National Congress will never be closer and I would love to see a large number of our NY Chapter and local branch members show our support for our northern neighbors. I am going and would love a few passengers to share in the experience. Go to www.APWA.net to register and make hotel reservations. There will be two presentations by local professionals. Katie Evans from the Town of Victor will talk about her experience with a paperless office. Andy Sansone from MCDES and I will be talking about the efforts of the Monroe County Stormwater Coalition and will outline the success and progress that we have achieved through a cooperative effort. This year’s theme is “Breaking Boundaries.” In addition to excellent educations sessions, ANY project will be receiving a National Project of the Year! Congratulations to the City of Corning, C.P. Ward, and Fisher Associates for their work on the Centerway Arch Rehabilitation. This was a beautiful restoration of a 1922 bridge.
Global hot seat Much has been written over the years about the fact or fiction of global warming. There are many reports from “scientists” that try to prove its fact of fiction. As a pragmatist, I can’t believe we have enough factual data in the nanosecond of time that humans have populated the earth to make an accurate assessment. Computer models can be produced stating that we could be in for a cataclysmic ice age or a global melt down. Whatever! No planet lasts forever and the sun could explode tomorrow and vaporize us all. The real fact should be that we follow sound sustainable practices to preserve our natural resources that are not replenishable. It is sort of like religion. Either you are a believer or you’re not. But does it hurt to hedge your bets and pray for something in the after-life instead
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of being worm food? That is what public works is about… finding best practices to preserve, protect, and pamper our fragile world.
Accreditation Process One of the best things that APWA has to offer is probably its best kept secret. Everyone should consider having your public works department go through accreditation. The APWA Accreditation Process Guide, which I would be glad to share with any public works agency, shows you the steps toward accreditation. Each chapter (there are 39) covers every aspect of public works duties. They go into detail on checklists on review of your operations. The actual accreditation process includes a peer review of your operation by APWA staff and fellow PW officials. The cost is very reasonable and can be spread out over a few years. I encourage everyone to discuss this with the city, town or village officials.
Genesee Valley Chapter Awards It is never too early to think about award nominations for this year. Please consider nominating a person or project for consideration. The term “Public Works” is an all inclusive group of people that serve the public welfare. The awards committee challenges everyone in our six county area to find deserving individuals at any level of government or private consultants that have served public works faithfully and heroically.
“Failure is simply the opportunity to begin again, this time more intelligently.” Henry Ford
apwa news
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Rochester, NY Chapter
American Society of Plumbing Engineers www.aspe.org President: ALAN SMITH, P.E. IBC Engineering, P.C. 3445 Winton Place, Suite 219 Rochester, NY 14623 585-292-1590 Vice President Technical: ADAM KRAMER IBC Engineering, PC 3445 Winton Place Suite 219 Rochester, NY 14623 585-292-1590 Vice President Legislative: JENNIFER WENGENDER, P.E. Clark Patterson Lee 205 St Paul Blvd Rochester, NY 14604 585-454-7600 Vice President Membership: DOUG MEIER Twin”D” Associates 1577 Ridge Road West Suite 116B Rochester, NY 14615 585-581-2170 Treasurer: TERRY BROWN, CPD M/E Engineering, PC 150 North Chestnut Street Rochester, NY 14604 585-288-5590 Administrative Secretary: ED YELIN, PE, CPD Erdman Anthony and Associates 146 Culver Road, Suite 200 Rochester, NY 14620 585-427-8888 Education Chairman: ROBERT J. WIND JR., P.E. Harris Corporation Rochester, NY Newsletter Editor: DAVID MYERS LaBella Associates, PC 300 State Street Suite 201 Rochester, NY 14614 585-454-6110 Affiliate Liaison: ADAM FRENZEL Empire State Associates. 181 Bay Village Drive Rochester, NY 14609 585-602-0271
aspe news
President's Message Thank-you to the following sponsors that made the 2014 Golf Outing a success. Bradford White Corp. Liberty Pump Clarion M/E Engineering Clark Patterson Lee Mansfield Delta Faucet Medical Gas Systems Solutions Empire State Associates North East Sales Associates Ferguson Enterprises R.C. Kolstad Water Corp. Frey Technologies Section 22 Grundfos Sloan Valve Gerber T & S Brass Haws Twin D IBC Engineering Tyco Fire Suppression Kolstad Associates V.J. Stanley Lochinvar VP Supply LaBella Associates WMS Sales Leonard Valve Zoeller Pump A special thank-you to the Golf Committee (Jennifer Wengender and Adam Kramer) for organizing the golf outing. The 2014-2015 schedule for topics/speakers is in progress. Meetings will be on the 3rd Wednesday of the month starting in September.
Alan Smith, P.E.
Rochester Chapter President
Meeting Notice – September 17, 2014 Topic: To Be Announced Date: Wednesday, September 17, 2014 Time: 12:00 noon – 1:30 p.m. Place: Valicia’s Ristorante, 2155 Long Pond Rd., Rochester 14606 (just north of Route 31, Gates) Cost: $20.00 (member or guest), check or cash at door. (Chapters are not authorized to speak for the Society)
AUGUST 2014 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER | 33
Finger Lakes Chapter
International Council on Systems Engineering www.incose/org/flc
Upcoming Chapter Meeting Events • Annual Picnic: Sunday, August 10, 2014 o Free to all INCOSE members and their families o Hike, relax, and cook-out at Robert H. Treman Park, Ithaca, NY o Raffle for one year of free membership in INCOSE
Attend the picnic and you will eligible to win one year of free membership in INCOSE. Must be present to win. (FLC board members not eligible for one year free membership raffle.)
o RSVP for the picnic now to Wes Hewett (wahewett@gmail.com).
Picnic location details: Upper Pavilion, Robert H. Treman Park (http://nysparks.com/parks/135/details.aspx) Ithaca, NY; Sunday 8/10/2014, 1:00 - 6:00 pm; Open to everyone; BBQ meat, utensils, plates, etc. will be provided by FLC; Please bring a dish to pass; Parking fee: $7;
Chapter Meetings were and will be on hiatus for the summer (July and August); meetings will resume on or about Saturday, September 13th (our annual dinner meeting), so please be aware. More details forthcoming.
Please contact Rick Zinni with any questions at rzinni@gmail.com.
34 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER |AUGUST 2014
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Genesee Valley Land Surveyors Association Website: www.gvlsa.com
Year 2014 Officers President John F. Gillen, LS Vice President Roy B. Garfinkel, LS Secretary Robert J. Avery, LS Treasurer Michael A. Venturo, LS
Board of Directors
August 2014
2012-2014 David J. LaRue, LS Gregory D. Bell, LS 2013-2015 Michael C. Bodardus, LS Jared R. Ransom, LS 2014-2016 Clifford J. Rigerman, LS Joseph J. Hefner, LS
Robert B. Hatch, LS, ex officio
Year 2014 Meeting Dates
First Friday Lecture Series
October 16, 2014
“RE-BROADCAST”
Board of Directors & General Membership Meeting Yard of Ale in Piffard, NY Program TBD
November 20, 2014 Board of Directors & General Membership Meeting 40 & 8 Club, University Ave., Rochester, NY Program TBD
Wednesday, September 10, 2014 at 6:30 pm Featuring: Knud E. Hermansen, Esq., PE, PLS
Lines of Possession NY CE: 1.0 LS/PE
Tentatively held at the offices of Erdman Anthony Armory Building 145 Culver Road Suite 200, Rochester A light meal will be served.
Practitioners often encounter situations where occupation exist on or near the boundary. The session will explain and discuss the analysis, reporting, use, and importance of lines of possession when providing surveying services. The session will discuss doctrines that cause the occupation lines to be the lines of ownership.
At the completion of the session a participant will understand: 1. the conditions where possession will support the location of the record boundary; 2. doctrines that may cause the ownership boundary to coincide with the occupation boundary;
Professional Affiliations • • •
New York State Association of Professional Land Surveyors, Inc. National Society of Professional Surveyors Rochester Engineering Society
gvlsa news
3. the surveyor's responsibility in locating, assessing and reporting the possession boundary; 4. the analysis of occupation lines in the course of surveying services; and, 5. how to report the existence, analysis, use and importance of the possession lines. AUGUST 2014 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER | 35
Rochester Section
American Society of Civil Engineers www.asce.org Board Editorial by Erin McCormick, EIT, M.ASCE, Rochester Section President On May 30, 2014, ASCE Rochester hosted an 18-hole golf tournament at Webster Golf Club-East Course. Proceeds go towards an ASCE scholarship program to support future civil engineers.
The Stantec team participating in the 2014 ASCE Scholarship Golf Tournament
The BME team participating in the 2014 ASCE Scholarship Golf Tournament
The City of Rochester team participating in the 2014 ASCE Scholarship Golf Tournamentt
The Bergmann team participating in the 2014 ASCE Scholarship Golf Tournament
The H&A team participating in the 2014 ASCE Scholarship Golf Tournament
The ASCE Rochester Section Cordially Invites You to a Webinar (A Closer Look at Road Diets) When: Thursday, September 18, 2014 (arrive by 11:50 am, webinar runs 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm) Where: RGRTA (1372 East Main Street, Rochester, NY 14609 – Conference Room 116) Food: Lunch provided Cost: $30.00/person RSVP: By 9/11/14 at 12 noon to Erin McCormick at erin.k.mccormick@gmail.com or (585) 354-2488. Payment accepted at the door. No shows will be billed. Checks may be made out to ASCE Rochester Section. No credit cards or IOUs accepted. No cancellations accepted after 9/11/14. PDH: 1.0 Webinar details: http://mylearning.asce.org/diweb/catalog/item/id/71830/q/t=2109&f2=1&c=79&q=road*20diet 36 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER |AUGUST 2014
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Monroe Professional Engineers Society
A Chapter of the New York State Society of Professional Engineers 657 East Avenue, Rochester, New York 14607 Dedicated to Professionalism in Engineering in the Interest of Public Safety and Welfare www.monroepe.org
2013-14 Officers: President Joe Dombrowski, PE, President-elect Chris Devries, PE, Treasurer Neal Illenberg, PE, Membership Chair Joe Dombrowski, PE I would like to welcome all Monroe Professional Engineer Society (MPES) members to a new program year. I am honored to be the Chapter President for 20142015 and I look forward to working with the Board of Directors in the upcoming year as we continue to grow the organization and serve the needs of our members. The MPES was chartered in 1929 and this year, we are marking the 85th anniversary of this volunteer-run organization. I am proud to say that through the steady hand of our Past Presidents and support of the various Board of Directors’ that the MPES has been able to consistently meet the expectations of its membership. We will make a concerted effort to make this another successful year for the Chapter. This year’s Board of Directors draws from Professional Engineers that come from various fields such as construction, education, industry, government and private practice. The Board brings a wealth of professional and Chapter experience to the table and we look forward to continuing in our support of many existing and successful programs. As the year progresses, we will inform you about those plans through the website and the Rochester Engineering Society’s monthly publication. As with any volunteer organization the capacity of our success is reliant upon the commitment of our members and the growth of the organization. I encourage you to consider lending a helping hand with one or more of the MPES programs that we proudly sponsor including Mathcounts, Junior Engineering Technical Society (JETS) and E-Cubed to name a few. Worthy of mention is the TEAM+S group from Allendale Columbia School which recently returned from the National TSA conference where they won 2nd place in Best in Nation. Look for more information on these programs and other opportunities in the coming months. In many instances, mpes news
the time commitment is low but the personal reward is high. If you are interested in getting involved at any level of commitment, please contact me or any of the other MPES Board of Directors.
As with any volunteer organization the capacity of our success is reliant upon the commitment of our members and the growth of the organization. I hope you have had a wonderful summer and I look forward to seeing and hearing from you in the upcoming months. Please visit and browse our website (www. monroepe.org) to get acquainted with our Chapter, calendar and activities and to contact us with any questions. Sincerely, Joseph Dombrowski, PE
jdombrowski@monroepe.org jdombrowski@meengineering.com
AUGUST 2014 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER | 37
Rochester Section
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers The new Rochester section web site is at: http://rochester.ieee.org (always check the web PDF edition for late changes and additions)
Jacob Z. Schanker, P.E., Newsletter Chair E-mail: j.schanker@ieee.org
Rochester Section Meeting – Tuesday, August 5 at Noon The next monthly Rochester Section business meeting is on Tuesday, August 5, at 12:00 pm, at the Hibachi Sushi Buffet Restaurant in South Town Plaza on Jefferson Road (Route 252) just west of West Henrietta Rd. (Route 15). Any IEEE member is invited to attend. Lunch is only $3 for IEEE members. No reservation or RSVP is needed, just show up.
Centennial Year? — It seems like just yesterday The Rochester Section of the IEEE is celebrating its hundredth year of existence. Now, the IEEE did not come into being until 1963, so how is this our 100th year? Well, the IEEE is the result of a merger between two engineering societies. The oldest, the American Institute of Electrical Engineers (AIEE) had a decidedly electrical power orientation, while the newer society, the Institute of Radio Engineers (IRE) was oriented to radio and electronics. They merged in 1963 to form the IEEE, which covers all aspects of all disciplines related to electricity, and some areas not directly related. The AIEE was founded in 1884 a decade before radio came into being. See http://www.ieeeghn.org/wiki/index. php/AIEE_History_1884-1963 for more details. The IRE was formed in 1912 – the same year that wireless radio came into prominence with the distress calls sent from the doomed ocean liner Titanic. More background can be found at http://www.ieeeghn.org/wiki/index. php/IRE_History_1912-1963. In 1914, Rochester had a population of about 250,000. (Our population in 2013 was 210,358.) Among the population was a very active and skilled engineering community, served by the Rochester Engineering Society. The electrical engineers of the day were primarily involved in electric power generation and transmission, electric illumination, electric traction, and telegraph and telephone systems and equipment. A very few were involved with wireless systems. The Rochester electrical engineering community came together to form a Rochester section of the AIEE. The official date of organization is July 24, 1914. The first Chair was J.C. Parker. The First World War began in Europe four days later, on July 28, 1914. Twelve years later, local engineering activity in wireless and radio had soared, and a Rochester section of the IRE was organized on February 19, 1926. The first Chair of the section was Virgil M. Graham. The two Rochester sections ran in parallel for many years until the merger in 1963. Many engineers belonged to both societies. Technical talks and events were sometimes held jointly. I had personal exposure to this duality. When I was an engineering student, I joined the student branches of both the AIEE and the IRE. I was happy when the merger occurred, a year or so later, because it simplified my professional life and saved on membership fees. The January 2014 IEEE Rochester Section Newsletter as published online carried a listing of all Chairs of the Rochester Sections of the AIEE, IRE, and the IEEE. Also in this issue is a reproduction of the original charter (1914) of the Rochester Section of the AIEE. 38 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER |AUGUST 2014
ieee news
Centennial Dinner on Saturday, August 2, 2014 Members are invited to celebrate the section’s Centennial at a special dinner on Saturday evening, August 2, 2014. Come and network with the leadership of IEEE Region 1, which includes New York and New England, and with other Rochester section members. Enjoy a served dinner accompanied by music provided by a group of young musicians at the Hyatt Regency Rochester. You will also receive a special commemorative gift. For more information and registration, please visit: https://meetings.vtools.ieee.org/m/27053. Spaces are limited so register early.
Life Member Affinity Group Meetings At noon, on August 14th, the Life Member Affinity Group will have a lunch time planning meeting at the Rochester Yacht Club which is located at 5555 St. Paul Blvd. in Irondequoit. The purpose of the meeting is to plan activities of interest to group members. Please let us know by August 11th if you plan to attend this meeting by emailing Carol Richardson at carol.richardson@rit.edu. The Life Members Affinity Group will have a tour of the Golisano Sustainability Institute Building on the RIT campus at noon on Wednesday, September 17th to see how sustainable engineering research is being conducted. A tour will highlight the building as a “living laboratory” for sustainability research and education on renewable energy systems (solar, wind, geothermal, and fuel cells) and sustainable mobility (electric vehicles, batteries, and biofuels). The tour will also showcase a few of the research labs and test beds that are being used to develop and test sustainable technologies. We will meet in the atrium, at the foot of the central staircase, at 12:00 pm for the tour and have lunch after the tour in the RIT Global Village. If you would like to join the tour please email henrysimon@frontiernet.net by September 10th to sign-up.
Free E-book for IEEE Members
In August, IEEE-USA will offer “Survivor Planning: What Every Spouse Should Know,” by the late George F. McClure. In this practical reference, McClure urges readers “not to leave your family in the dark, digging to find important documents and information. Life has to go on after a spouse, partner, or parent passes away. Dealing with the myriad of decision processes immediately following a death in the family is a confusing ordeal.” “Survivor Planning” gives guidance in advance planning, retirement benefits, wills, living trusts and finances. It also has a checklist that will help you organize all the important information you will need and Websites where you can find additional assistance. This e-book will be available free to members in August.
Call for Authors: IEEE-USA E-books seek authors to write an e-book, or an e-book series, on career guidance
and development topics. If you have an e-book idea that will benefit members on a particular topic of expertise, email your proposal to IEEE-USA Publishing Manager Georgia C. Stelluto at g.stelluto@ieee.org, and IEEE-USA Communications Committee Chair Gus Gaynor at g.gaynor@ieee.org.
IEEE Global History Network Website is Worth a Look In discussing the AIEE and IRE, I provided links to historical information on the IEEE Global History website: www.ieeeghn.org. I find this website endlessly fascinating and informative and I suspect many of you would too. Fifteen minutes will give you a good idea of what it contains and where you might want to return to spend more time. Give it a try and see what you think. ieee news
AUGUST 2014 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER | 39
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abcd news
abcd news
AUGUST 2014 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER | 43
Directory of Professional Services John E. Rooney
REGIONAL MARKETING MANAGER | DIRECTOR
400 Andrews Street Harro East Building | Suite 710 Rochester, NY 14604 p 585-295-7700 | f 585-263-2869
john.rooney@obg.com direct 585-295-7718 www.obg.com
Asbestos Consulting & Analytical Services Environmental Chemistry NYSDOH & NVLAP Certified 24 Hour Turnaround Available 179 Lake Avenue, Rochester, NY 14608 / (585) 647-2530
www.paradigmenv.com
R. KRAFT, Inc.
CLEANROOMSERVICES.COM ISO/IEC 17025:2005 Accredited Testing/Certification/Troubleshooting of Cleanroom Facilities Laminar Flow Bench Testing/Certification Hepa/Ulpa Filter Testing Contamination Control Investigations Training Seminars/Workshops SOP/Protocol Development and Implementation Clean Mfg, Lean/Six Sigma, FMEA Consulting
C: (585) 261-5935 O: (585) 621-6946
44 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER |AUGUST 2014
rk.cleanroomservices@gmail.com
directory of professional services
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Directory of Professional Services Compliance Plans, Permits, and Reports Industrial Water Treatment Compliance Auditing Stormwater Design/Management NPDES/Air/Solid Waste Engineering Civil/Site Design Environmental Design and Engineering Evaluation
87 South Vendome Drive, Rochester NY 14606
585 330-6986 (Phone) 585 429-6985 (Fax) dennis.roote@cde-pllc.com
Solving soils problems for over 30 years. 335 Colfax Street, Rochester, NY 14606 Tel: 585-458-0824 • Fax: 585-458-3323 www.foundationdesignpc.com
www.larsen-engineers.com
Michael S. Quagliata, Jr., PE President
♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦ 217 West Commercial Street East Rochester, New York 14445 585/385-1450 585/385-1482 Fax mikeq@q-techpc.com
Electrical & Mechanical Engineering & Design
Inc. A sign, of ct Deeld, NY 14526 US u d o r P P. Haltaolt nfi e f P f.com o , e r H Ga ry Halt ridge Lan @ y arr ckb
40 Ro
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Design Engineering Services - Concept thru Production Mechanical / Electromechanical - Consumer / Industrial All Plastic and Metal Technologies Tel: 585-388-9000 Fax: 585-388-3839
directory of professional services
www.Haltof.com
AUGUST 2014 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER | 45
Directory of Professional Services, continued
Loren Cook-Vari-Plume Laboratory and Fume Exhaust Heating, Ventilation & A/C Products
www.eco-rentalsolutions.com 855-ECO-RENT Newest Rental Fleet in the Industry Exceptional Customer and Technical Service Consistent Quality Rentals • Sales • Service
IAQ Products Ruskin-Louvers, Control & Fire/Smoke Dampers Loren Cook- Centrifugal & Prop Roof Fans, Gravity Vents Titus - R G & D’s, Terminal Boxes, Chilled Beams, FCU Flexible Duct, Access Doors, Kitchen Exhaust Systems
www.slaterequipment.com sales@slaterequipment.com T 585-473-5310 F 585-473-9546 768 Clinton Ave South, Rochester, NY 14620-1402
TK CONTROLS, INC Instrument Maintenance
Walter Dutcher, P.E. Registered P.E. NYS Water Quality Municipal—Industrial
Annual Calibrations for NYS Regs Flow, Pressure, Temperature, pH, Conductivity 24 Hour emergency service, fully insured and bonded Vintage analog, HART, and digital Phone: 585-224-5581 E-mail: wdutcher@tkcontrols.com www.tkcontrols.com
Directory of Business Services Call 254-2350 for advertising details or go to the web site at: www.roceng.org
46 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER |AUGUST 2014
directory of business services | directory of professional services
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Affiliated Societies of the Rochester Engineering Society American Consulting Engineering Companies of New York President, David J. Meyer, 585-218-0730 Email: dmeyer@pathfinderengineers.com
Association For Facilities Engineering, Rochester Chapter President, Dan Friday, 585-341-3225 Email: danf@rochesterymca.org
American Institute of Chemical Engineers, Rochester Section Chairman, Vincenzo G. Marcello, 585-422-0043. Email:Vincenzo.Marcello@SDMS.usa.xerox.com
Electrical Association Executive Director, Kirstie Steves 585-538-6350, fax 538-6166, Email: kirstie@eawny.com President, Joe Lengen, Horizon Solutions
American Public Works Association Monroe County/Genesee Valley Branch Past-Chairman, Geoff Benway Email: benway@penfield.org American Society of Civil Engineers, Rochester Section President, Thomas Zaso, PE Email: TZaso@rocgeotechnical.com American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers, Rochester Chapter President, Robert J. Wind, Jr. PE, IBC Engineering 585-292-1590, rwind@ibcengineering.com American Society of Mechanical Engineers, Rochester Section Chairman, Sarilyn Swayngim Email: sarilyn.swayngim@gmail.com American Society of Plumbing Engineers, Rochester New York Chapter President,Terry Brown, CPD, 585-288-5590 Email: tpbrown@meengineering.com Association for Bridge Construction and Design President, Jeffery Blank Email: jblank@didonato.cc Association of Energy Engineers Western New York Chapter President, William Murray, 585 641-7121 Email: bmurray@ec4b.com
Genesee Valley Land Surveyors Association President, John F. Gillen, LS Ex-Officio, Robert Hatch, 585-349-3750. Email: bhatch@schultzpc.com Illuminating Engineering Society of North America Inc., Rochester Section Executive Director, Chuck Eckert, 585-766-0329, Email: ceckert1@rochester.rr.com President, Michael Trippe Email: mtrippe@pointsourcegroup.com Imaging Science & Technology, Rochester Chapter President, David Odgers Email: odgers@frontiernet.net
Monroe Professional Engineers Society President, Joseph Dombrowski, PE Email: JDombrowski@meengineering.com New York State Association of Transportation Engineers, Section 4 President, Howard R. Ressel, 585-272-3372. Email: Howard.Ressel@dot.ny.gov New York Water Environment Association Inc., Genesee Valley Chapter (www.gvcnywea.org) President, Bill Davis, 585-381-9250 Email: william.davis@mrbgroup.com Professional Services Management Association, Upstate New York Chapter President, Margaret Rathmell, SWBR Email: mrathmell@swbr.com Refrigeration Service Engineers Society Executive Director, Kirstie Steves 585-313-8972, fax 538-6166, Email: kirstie@rses-rochester.org President, Jim Allen, email: jta141@yahoo.com Sheet Metal & Air-Conditioning Contractor’s National Association-Rochester, Inc. Executive Director, Aaron Hilger 585-586-8030. Email: mzin@smacnaroc.org
Independent Entrepreneurs Council, Rochester NY Chapter Chairman, Ralph Kraft, 585-621-6946 Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Rochester Section Chairman, Greg T. Gdowski, 585-275-2580 Email: Greg_Gdowski@urmc.rochester.edu Institute of Industrial Engineers, Rochester Chapter President, John Kaemmerlen, 585-475-2767 Email: jxkpdm@rit.edu International Council on Systems Engineering, Finger Lakes Chapter President, Jack Riley Email: jackri2139@hotmail.com
Societ of Manufacturing Engineers, Chapter 16 Chairman, Christopher r. Vastola, 585-367-2904 Email: SMERoch16@aol.com Society of Plastics Engineers, Rochester Section President, Brett Blaisdell, Bausch & Lomb, 1400 North Gooaman Street, Rochester, NY 14609 585-338-5417, Email: brett.blaisdell@bausch.com Society of Women Engineers President, Jodi Carville, RIT, 585-475-7028 Email: jlceee@rit.edu
Corporate Members of the Rochester Engineering Society Garlock Sealing Technologies (Champion)
Rochester Institute of Technology, Kate Gleason College of Engineering
IBC Engineering, PC (Champion)
Stantec Inc. (Champion)
BME Associates
Iberdrola Energy Projects, Inc. (Enterprise)
TY-LIN International (Enterprise)
Clark Patterson Lee Corporation (Champion)
LaBella Associates (Champion)
Alstom Signaling Inc. Bergmann Associates P.C. (Champion)
Clough, Harbour & Associates LLP
M/E Engineering, P.C.
EnergyMark, LLC Erdman Anthony Associates
Popli Design Group
affiliated societies & corporate members of the rochester engineering society
Visron Design, Inc. Vanguard Engineering, PC
Optimation Technology, Inc. (Enterprise) Rochester Business Alliance
University of Rochester
V.J. Stanley Inc. IS YOUR COMPANY LISTED HERE? Call 585-254-2350 for information.
AUGUST 2014 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER | 47
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IMPORTANT DATED MATERIAL Please do not delay
RIT
Golisano Institute for Sustainability
Seeking Cover & Feature Articles The RES is seeking articles for our monthly (except July) publication. We have themes for our upcoming issues and would love to hear from you (subject to change).
September - Assistive Device Technologies October - Bridge Construction & Design (to support the ABCD Conference) November - Engineering and Public Policy www.meengineering.com
Value-driven solutions
Contact the RES for information - res@frontiernet.net.