The Complete Engineer Spring/Summer 2014

COMPLETE

THE

SPRING/SUMMER 2014

ENGINEER THE MAGAZINE OF THE FACULTY OF ENGINEERING AND APPLIED SCIENCE AT QUEEN’S UNIVERSITY

INSIDE...

Queen’s Engineering International: A look at how our students and researchers are interacting with the global community

Their own field of dreams: Electrical and computer engineering grad students reignite Kingston’s love of cricket

SEC TION HEADER

CONTENTS

Message from the Dean This page

SPRING/SUMMER 2014

4 Q ueen’s Engineering goes global International exchanges open new worlds to students

2 Faculty news We welcome five new faculty members

DEAN

Kimberly A. Woodhouse

14 Working to make mining greener at home and abroad Dr. Heather Jamieson’s work takes her around the world

9 The Queen’s-Fudan partnership The foundation of Queen’s relationship with China

6 T rading sun and sand for snow and BeaverTails Mandy St. Rose learns to love the cold

3 C onnecting with the global community Message from Scott Yam, Associate Dean, International and Special Projects

13 Alumnus accepted to the University of Cambridge’s innovative Hetero-Genesys Laboratory

8 Mining grad champions plan for a chair in mining finance Warren Gilman, Sc’82, is enjoying an amazing career in international finance, and he wants to help Queen’s engineers succeed as well

15 Paying it forward Alumnus Scott Bonham, Sc’84, is helping Canadian entrepreneurs connect with Silicon Valley

10 International collaboration to tackle a persistent problem Dr. Jeffrey Giacomin is working with manufacturers in Thailand

7 E xpanding equal access to health care Alumna Krista Vandermeer, Sc’03, MSc’05, is making a difference in Mozambique

16 International transfer students arriving, and thriving, at Queen’s

11 Our cover story International students bring cricket back to Kingston

18 Alumni events: QYea!, Oil and Gas Speaker Series, Cirque, and receptions in Calgary, Vancouver and Toronto: Our alumni have been out in force

12 HMRL World-class facility attracts researchers from around the globe GREENLAND

DIRECTOR OF MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS

Adam Walker

SWEDEN ICELAND

MARKETING AND

R U S S I A

FINLAND

COMMUNICATIONS COORDINATOR

NORWAY

Meagan Suckling ESTONIA SCOTLAND

CONTRIBUTING EDITOR

Jordan Whitehouse

NORTHERN IRELAND

CANADA

DENMARK

LATVIA LITHUANIA

U. K. NETH.

IRELAND

ENGLAND

GRAPHIC DESIGN

BELGIUM

BYELARUS

POLAND GERMANY LUX. CZECH

UKRAINE

SLOVAK REPUBLIC

Walker Design & Communications

SWITZ.

FRANCE

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

U. S. A.

Nanci Corrigan Kirsteen MacLeod Alec Ross Christine Ward

ITALY

MOLDOVA AUSTRIA HUNGARY SLOVENIA ROMANIA CROATIA BOSNIA SERBIA BULGARIA MONTENEGRO MACEDONIA

ABOUT THIS MAP

Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science Queen’s University Beamish-Munro Hall 45 Union Street Kingston, ON K7L 3N6 Tel 613.533.2055 Fax 613.533.6500 Email complete.engineer@queensu.ca

MEXICO

Canada: 18,036

JAMAICA BELIZE HONDURAS GUATEMALA EL SALVADOR

United States: 1,726

VENEZUELA

PANAMA

ECUADOR

Australia: 135 England:101

GUINEA BISSAU

GUINEA

LIBERIA

BURKINA IVORY COAST

BENIN GHANA TOGO

NIGER SUDAN

NIGERIA

MYANMAR

INDIA

CAMEROON

UGANDA CONGO

ZAIRE

TAIWAN

VIETNAM PHILIPPINES

KAMPUCHEA

SRI LANKA

ETHIOPIA

EQUATORIAL GUINEA SAO TOME & PRINCIPE

HONG KONG

LAOS

THAILAND

DJIBOUTI

CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC

MALAYSIA I

N

D

O

N

GUAM

PALAU

BRUNEI

MALAYSIA SINGAPORE

KENYA

RWANDA BURUNDI

E

S

I

MARSHALL ISLANDS MICRONESIA

BORNEO A PAPUA NEW GUINEA

SOLOMON ISLANDS

COMOROS

BRAZIL ANGOLA

ZAMBIA

NAMIBIA BOTSWANA

MALAWI

VANUATU

MAURITIUS

ZIMBABWE

MOZAMBIQUE

PARAGUAY

POLYNESIA

BHUTAN

TANZANIA

BOLIVIA

Countries with 10-19 alumni

JAPAN

BANGLADESH

OMAN

SOMALIA

PERU

Countries with 21-27 alumni FRENCH

NEPAL

PAKISTAN

BAHRAIN QATAR

YEMEN

ERITREA

CHAD

GABON

Countries with 33-50 alumni

C H I N A

AFGHANISTAN

SAUDI ARABIA MALI

SIERRA LEONE

COLOMBIA

NORTH KOREA

U. A. E.

GAMBIA

GUYANA SURINAME FRENCH GUIANA

IRAN

KUWAIT

EGYPT

LIBYA

SENEGAL

ST. LUCIA BARBADOS TRINIDAD

COSTA RICA

Hong Kong: 228

TONGA

ST.VINCENT

IRAQ

JORDAN

ALGERIA

KYRGYZSTAN TAJIKISTAN

SYRIA

MAURITANIA

HAITI

NICARAGUA

KIRIBATI

SAMOA ISLANDS

TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS DOM. REP.

CAYMAN ISLANDS

FEAS alumni distribution around the world HAWAII

CYPRUS LEBANON

TURKMENISTAN

SOUTH KOREA

ISRAEL

WESTERN SAHARA

THE BAHAMAS

CUBA

ARMENIA AZERBAIJAN

TURKEY

MOROCCO Canary Islands

UZBEKISTAN

GEORGIA

GREECE

SPAIN TUNISIA

CONTACT INFORMATION

MONGOLIA

ALBANIA

PORTUGAL

BERMUDA

KAZAKHSTAN

MADAGASCAR

NEW CALEDONIA AUSTRALIA

CHILE

SWAZILAND

ARGENTINA SOUTH AFRICA

Countries with 5-9 alumni

LESOTHO

URUGUAY

Countries with 1-4 alumni NEW ZEALAND

COMPLETE

THE

SPRING/SUMMER 2014

ENGINEER THE MAGAZINE OF THE FACULTY OF ENGINEERING AND APPLIED SCIENCE AT QUEEN’S UNIVERSITY

INSIDE...

Queen’s Engineering International: A look at how our students and researchers are interacting with the global community

Their own field of dreams: Electrical and computer engineering grad students reignite Kingston’s love of cricket

COVER: Malik Mujahid, Shahid Altaf, Salar Sarwar, Nikhil Dhawan, Mirza Tahir Ahmed, and Farhan Zia.

FALKLAND ISLANDS

Message from the Dean

for students throughout the year. Our international programs, developed through deep relationships with government, industry and other educational institutions, not only provide our students with exceptional learning and internship opportunities but also bring new ideas to campus through exchange programs that offer international students a valuable Queen’s experience while adding to the cultural fabric of our Faculty.

SOUTH GEORGIA ISLAND

W

elcome to the spring/summer 2014 edition of The Complete Engineer.

Warm weather has finally arrived—and with it a busy summer filled with research activities, summer studies and planning for the fall term. Another session of the Queen’s Summer Innovation Initiative has begun, research work continues at its usual bustling pace and the Engineering Society is holding their annual Science Quest camps.

This issue features many of the international initiatives that contribute to our Faculty’s outstanding educational opportunities

Why is internationalization important? We live in an increasingly global community, a world where engineers must collaborate within diverse cultures and environments. International experiences are an integral component of our education and one of the many ways that we prepare our students to succeed in their careers.

Internationalization also builds awareness of Queen’s and the

expertise within our Faculty, promoting collaborative partnerships in education, research and industry.

I hope that you enjoy reading about the people within our Faculty who are contributing to internationalization at Queen’s and actively developing global relationships that showcase Queen’s and contribute to a better world. As always, I invite your comments and wish you all a lovely summer.

Kimberly A. Woodhouse PhD, PEng, FCAE, FBSE Dean, Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science

FIJ

FACULT Y NE WS

FACULT Y

Welcome to new faculty Lindsay Fitzpatrick Dr. Fitzpatrick graduated with a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering and biosciences from McMaster University (2006), where she studied biomaterial surface modification and protein adhesion. She then completed her PhD at the University of Toronto (2012).

Her doctoral research focused on the molecular mechanisms of the angiogenic response to poly(mehtyacryclic acid

-co- methylmethacrylate) beads in wound healing models. She also studied oxygen transport within modular tissue engineering microtissues.

Dr. Fitzpatrick is an accomplished researcher in the field of biomedical engineering, focusing on identifying the molecular mechanisms that govern the initiation and resolution of inflammation in the presence of biomaterials, and using this knowledge to develop advanced

materials for chronic wound therapies.

Her most recent work, conducted as a postdoctoral fellow at the Georgia Institute of Technology, has focused on devitalized stem cell matrices and microparticle-mediated delivery of stem cell morphogens for treating chronic wounds and promoting tissue regeneration.

Connecting with the global community: Message from the Associate Dean,

International and Special Projects

Q

ueen’s has a long history with internationalization, fostering groundbreaking partnerships around the globe that provide mutual benefits to students, faculty and institutions. Over the past year in my new role as Associate Dean, International and Special Projects, I’ve had the chance to build on this strong foundation with opportunities and programs that provide exceptional learning experiences for Queen’s students and bring new cultures and ideas to our campus.

Ahmad Ghahremaninezhad Dr. Ghahremaninezhad has a bachelor’s degree (2005) and a master’s degree (2007) in materials science and engineering from Sharif University of Technology, Tehran, Iran, and earned his PhD in materials engineering from The University of British Columbia (2012). Upon completing his PhD, Dr. Ghahremaninezhad joined the

Technology Centre of Barrick Gold Corp. as an NSERC industrial research and development postdoctoral fellow. He joined The Robert M. Buchan Department of Mining at Queen’s University as an assistant professor in January 2014.

Dr. Ghahremaninezhad’s primary area of interest is hydrometallurgical processing of resource materials.

While at Queen’s University, his long-

term research goals will focus on the extractive metallurgy and mineral processing aspects associated with the following areas: hydrometallurgy and biohydrometallurgy, mineral processing wastes and their remediation, electrochemical dissolution of complex minerals, and design of metal extraction processes.

for Children’s Motion Analysis Lab, he learned that there are still many open questions about human movement, and he has been committed to its study ever since.

Dr. Rainbow’s work examines how an individual’s specific anatomy and mechanics function together during activities that often lead to overuse injury.

This research encompasses emerging

techniques in MRI and CT imaging, computational modeling, and high-speed X-ray motion capture to understand joint function in 3D. The results of this work will allow development of screening tools to identify those at risk for various overuse injuries and to help develop personalized treatments and preventative strategies.

International experience is critical to success for today’s engineer. Our alumni provide expertise around the world, such as helping to manage water resources in developing countries, directing operations in remote mines and consulting on chemical processing for the petroleum industry.

The skills that they need to excel, however, go beyond technical knowledge.

Our students must be able to understand and thrive in diverse cultures, and be comfortable collaborating within a global environment. Our numerous exchange programs provide valuable opportunities for our students to gain these soft skills while earning their degrees. While away, they also act as Queen’s ambassadors, raising awareness of our strong education programs and fostering new relationships for growth.

Michael J. Rainbow Dr. Rainbow has relocated to Queen’s from the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at Harvard Medical School. He received his bachelor’s degree in computational physics at Penn State Behrend and his PhD in biomedical engineering at Brown University. During his internship as an undergraduate at Shriners Hospital

extraction in dragonfly flight, for which he received the Hugo Denkmeier Prize from the German Aerospace Center (DLR).

Starting July 1st, Dr. Rival will return to Queen’s in the Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering as an assistant professor, after spending the last four years on faculty at the University of Calgary, where he has

held an AITF iCORE Strategic Chair on Wind-Resource Assessment. By studying the unsteady hydrodynamics of a moonshaped tail, Dr. Rival and his team have uncovered optimization strategies for a new generation of wind and water turbines appropriate for complex and gusty environments.

of Health Research and an NSERC postgraduate scholarship for her doctoral studies.

Dr. Wells is an accomplished researcher in the field of biomedical engineering, focusing on the development of new types of polymeric materials for drug delivery and tissue engineering in wound healing and ophthalmic applications. She is

particularly interested in cell/material interactions, and plans to develop strategies for designing and synthesizing polymers that respond to biological and physical stimuli. She is proposing to focus on instructive polymers that induce desirable application-specific biological responses and on responsive polymers that interact with biological and physical cues.

Laura Wells Dr. Wells graduated with a bachelor’s degree in engineering chemistry from Queen’s (2003), where she worked under the supervision of Dr. Brian Amsden in biomedical engineering. She then completed her master’s degree in applied science (2005) and PhD (2010) at McMaster University. She held a postdoctoral fellowship from the Canadian Institutes

“

Global exchange programs

David E. Rival Dr. Rival completed his bachelor’s degree (2003) and master’s degree (2005) in mechanical engineering at Queen’s and then left for Germany to undertake a PhD in experimental aerodynamics at the Technische Universität Darmstadt. As part of a larger program studying nature-inspired fluid mechanics, Dr. Rival studied energy

Scott Yam

Associate Dean, International and Special Projects

are about more than

sending our students away

”

to learn, however.

They are also designed

to create a culturally rich

Global exchange programs are about more than sending our students away to learn, however. They are also designed to create a culturally rich environment here at Queen’s. Each year, we welcome growing numbers of international students at all levels of training to our campus through programs such as the Masters of Engineering Program with industrial internship, which allows international students to spend one year at Queen’s and apply for internships and placements in Canada.

We also work with industry partners and governments to participate in programs such as Science without Borders, an initiative that is bringing 12,000 Brazilian students to Canadian universities, and Mitacs Globalinks, a national non-profit research internship program that facilitates international training for students from Mexico, Brazil, China, India, Turkey and Vietnam.

We continue to build momentum through educational, industry and government alliances that contribute to best practices in engineering around the world. I hope you enjoy reading about our programs and invite you to contact me with any questions or comments about these initiatives.

environment

here at Queen’s.

2 THE COMPLETE ENGINEER SPRING/SUMMER 2014

3

CANADA

NETH.

IRELAND

IN TERNATIONAL EXCHANGES

ENGLAND BELGIUM

BYELARUS

POLAND GERMANY LUX. CZECH

INTER NATIONAL EXCHANGES

UKRAINE

SLOVAK REPUBLIC

KAZAKHSTAN

Queen’s Engineering goes global: SWITZ.

FRANCE

U. S. A.

ITALY

MOLDOVA AUSTRIA HUNGARY SLOVENIA ROMANIA CROATIA BOSNIA SERBIA BULGARIA MONTENEGRO MACEDONIA

ARMENIA AZERBAIJAN

GREECE

SPAIN

UZBEKISTAN

GEORGIA

ALBANIA

PORTUGAL

MONGOLIA

TURKEY

TURKMENISTAN

KYRGYZSTAN

NORTH KOREA

TAJIKISTAN

International exchanges open new worlds to students TUNISIA

MOROCCO

BERMUDA

Canary Islands

MEXICO

TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS DOM. REP.

CAYMAN ISLANDS

HAWAII

JAMAICA BELIZE HONDURAS GUATEMALA EL SALVADOR

ST.VINCENT

NICARAGUA

GUINEA BISSAU

COSTA RICA

VENEZUELA

PANAMA

KIRIBATI ECUADOR

GUYANA SURINAME FRENCH GUIANA

MALI

GUINEA

SIERRA LEONE

COLOMBIA

LIBERIA

BURKINA IVORY COAST

BENIN GHANA TOGO

NIGER SUDAN

NIGERIA

INDIA

CAMEROON

EQUATORIAL GUINEA SAO TOME & PRINCIPE CONGO

ZAIRE

PHILIPPINES

KAMPUCHEA

SRI LANKA

ETHIOPIA UGANDA

TAIWAN

VIETNAM

THAILAND

DJIBOUTI

CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC

HONG KONG

LAOS

MALAYSIA

SINGAPORE

KENYA

I

RWANDA BURUNDI

PALAU

BRUNEI

MALAYSIA

N

D

O

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GUAM

E

S

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MARSHALL ISLANDS MICRONESIA

BORNEO A PAPUA NEW GUINEA

TANZANIA

SOLOMON ISLANDS

COMOROS

BRAZIL

BOLIVIA

ZAMBIA

ANGOLA NAMIBIA

TONGA

MYANMAR

OMAN

JAPAN

BHUTAN

BANGLADESH

SOMALIA

PERU

BOTSWANA

FRENCH POLYNESIA

NEPAL

PAKISTAN

BAHRAIN QATAR

YEMEN

ERITREA

CHAD

GABON

SAMOA ISLANDS

AFGHANISTAN

U. A. E.

GAMBIA

TRINIDAD

C H I N A

SAUDI ARABIA

SENEGAL

ST. LUCIA BARBADOS

IRAN

KUWAIT

EGYPT

MAURITANIA

HAITI

IRAQ

JORDAN

LIBYA

SOUTH KOREA

SYRIA

ISRAEL

ALGERIA

WESTERN SAHARA

THE BAHAMAS

CUBA

CYPRUS LEBANON

MALAWI

MOZAMBIQUE

PARAGUAY

VANUATU

MAURITIUS

ZIMBABWE

MADAGASCAR

NEW CALEDONIA AUSTRALIA

CHILE

SWAZILAND

ARGENTINA SOUTH AFRICA

LESOTHO

URUGUAY

NEW ZEALAND

Juan Jou-Valencia Chemical Engineering, biochemical engineering option

Jennifer Erskine

Gillian Reid-Schachter

Engineering Physics, electrical option

Chemical Engineering, biochemical engineering option

FALKLAND ISLANDS

SOUTH GEORGIA ISLAND

Jennifer Erskine, Sc’14, has fond memories of her exchange at Juan Jou-Valencia, Sc’14, fled the cold for a three-month exchange at the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia, in January 2013.

“I wanted a change of culture but didn’t want a language barrier to be a source of stress and frustration,” he says. “And I was also looking

the University of Leeds in England from January to May 2013.

“By far, the best thing was making friends with other students from so many different countries and backgrounds,” she says. “I also loved having a chance to travel.”

for a warm place with ample opportunity for outdoor activities.”

With a lighter course load than at Queen’s, Erskine had time for day

Academically speaking, the exchange worked well, Jou-Valencia

long backpacking trip through Europe during Easter break.

says, though his favourite activity turned out to be catching waves.

“I learned to surf,” he says. “Not only was it a lot of fun, but I felt like I immersed myself in something that is a big part of Australian culture.”

Jou-Valencia says his time in Sydney has had a lasting influence. “I learned to be more independent. Faced with a problem, there was no calling home so someone could come and get me.”

and weekend trips around the United Kingdom, as well as a month-

Challenges included getting used to a new educational system.

“Courses at Leeds have fewer timetabled hours, but students are expected to do significantly more independent learning,” she says.

“This was a bit of an adjustment for me.”

Erskine says going on exchange made her more interested in working abroad. This fall, she’ll be joining a large engineering consulting company, she says. “I’m really excited to be starting a job with a significant amount of international travel.”

4

THE COMPLETE ENGINEER

Samantha Taylor Geological Engineering

Samantha Taylor, Sc’13, chose to finish her degree with an Gillian Reid-Schachter, Sc’15, spent a full year on academic

exchange semester at the National University of Singapore from

exchange at the University of Leeds in England from September

August 2013 to December 2013.

2013 to June 2014.

Hot weather was one factor that attracted her there. “Also, it was a

For her, high points included “meeting people from different

large school in a big city in Southeast Asia—making it completely

cultures, seeing how different systems accomplish the same

different from my experience at Queen’s.”

purposes as back home, and learning new sports, words and habits.”

Adventures from her exchange, included traveling around Southeast

In no time, Reid-Schachter was saying “cheers” and “ta”; eating

Asia. “I went to Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Nepal, Taiwan, Thailand and

toasties (grilled cheese sandwiches); hiking in the Yorkshire Dales

Vietnam—scuba diving, hiking volcanoes, exploring new cities.”

and the Lake District; and playing those most British of sports, polo and cricket.

As well, she enjoyed a term of electives versus engineering courses.

At the university, she says, she found the pace frustratingly slow at

Singapore’s amazing cuisine was also a highlight. Kway teow, a

first, with fewer class hours. Soon, however, she saw the upside of

signature dish, was my favourite!”

having more time. “It really gives students an opportunity for sports

“I studied music, Arabic and Indian philosophy,” she says. “And trying

and other activities,” she says. “Europeans lead a more balanced life.”

Asked how the exchange has influenced her, Taylor says “It’s just

That’s why Canada should import pub culture, she says. “That people

then spend five months volunteering in an orphanage in Nepal

just go meet their friends or colleagues after work at the pub and

(www.oceannepal.org). In 2015, she plans to “settle down” and start

have a drink and just talk is amazing.”

her new geological engineering job back home in Canada.

increased my desire to travel.” She will head for Europe late this year,

SPRING/SUMMER 2014

5

GR AD STUDENT PROFILES

ALUMNI ABROAD

Trading sun and sand for snow and BeaverTails Mandy St. Rose

Mandy St. Rose bravely left the Caribbean sun, sand and sea

Explaining her work, St. Rose, hands rough from concrete

behind in February 2013, arriving at Queen’s for a four-month

experiments, holds out two containers. Each is filled with strips

scholarship under the federal government’s Emerging Leaders

cut from pop bottles of a particular size. “I mix this in to see how it

in the Americas Program (ELAP).

affects the strength and performance of the concrete.”

“

“I was really scared, as I’d never experienced winter before,”

At Queen’s, her work has advanced rapidly, helped along by

confesses St. Rose, a visiting master’s research student in civil and

improved access to research literature and better-equipped lab

environmental engineering from the University of the West Indies in Trinidad.

“But it was fine: it turns out I love the cold!”

Soon, St. Rose was tobogganing down hills near campus on a garbage bag with her housemates from the Kingston Student Housing Co-operative, who were amazed by how quickly she adapted. Her secret?

BeaverTail pastries. “They really kill the cold.

facilities than at home.

This scholarship opportunity has been life-changing.

opportunity has been life-changing,” she says. “I can

I can now see the path I would now see the path I would like to take in my life as a civil like to take in my life as a civil engineer. I want to pursue academia, a doctorate and

”

engineer. I want to pursue

academia, a doctorate and teach new generations of professionals.

My feet and fingers were frozen, I ate one and almost instantly I was warm,” she insists.

St. Rose came to Queen’s to continue her investigations into sustainable ways to dispose of plastic waste. Her thesis involves collecting plastic recycling and incorporating the material into concrete to make construction material for park benches, paving stones, street curbs and much more.

As well, she’s had an epiphany. “This scholarship

teach new generations of professionals.”

St. Rose completed her undergraduate degree in 2004 at the Universidad de Camagüey in Cuba and then worked for eight years as a civil engineer in St. Lucia. She expects to receive her master’s in civil and environmental engineering in October 2014.

Does she have anywhere in mind for her PhD studies after graduation? “I would love to study abroad—preferably in a cold country,” she says with a grin.

Expanding equal access to health care Krista Vandermeer

Krista Vandermeer, Sc’03, Engineering Chemistry, draws upon

project coordinator and then deputy team leader with Ottawa-

skills learned at Queen’s daily as an international development

based Cowater International Inc., Vandermeer spent just over

and public health professional in Mozambique, where she’s

three years implementing a rural water and sanitation program in

worked for the past four years.

northern Mozambique.

“The most important skill I took away from my studies at Queen’s

Now Vandermeer works for SolidarMed, a Swiss nongovernmental

“”

was my ability to problem-solve,” Vandermeer says. “This is an

organization that aims to strengthen and expand existing health

engineer’s greatest asset. No problem is too big or too small as we

services and enable access to quality health care in Mozambique.

are trained to tackle each and every one we are presented with

Specifically, Vandermeer is providing logistical support and

methodically and ethically.”

overseeing an infrastructure project to build and rehabilitate

Born and raised in Belleville, Ontario, Vandermeer became interested in how the

The most important skill

environment impacts human health while still at

I took away from my

Queen’s. Then, from 2008 to 2009 she developed

studies at Queen’s was my

this interest, completing a master’s degree in public health at London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, University of London.

ability to problem solve.

“I became fascinated by the challenge of improving access to clean water in developing countries. The water, sanitation and hygiene sector provides a great opportunity to incorporate my technical

from Mozambique and works for the provincial government in the forestry department, and their nine-month-old son—lives in Pemba, Cabo Delgado, the most northern province of Mozambique. Asked what she likes most about her adopted country,

she highlights friendly, welcoming people and 2,500 kilometres of beach. “The pristine coast along the Indian Ocean provides some great spots to relax after a long week in the field!” she notes.

Asked to describe her work, Vandermeer responds, “In one word:

side of things, such as promoting health and wellbeing.”

challenging. Every day I am presented with a new obstacle to

jumped at it, eager to put what she had learned into practice. As

THE COMPLETE ENGINEER

Vandermeer—along with her husband, who is

background and engineering training with my interest in the social

When an opportunity arose to go to Mozambique in 2010, she

6

existing water supply systems in rural health centres.

overcome, from small logistical challenges to more significant engineering design problems.”

SPRING/SUMMER SPRING/SUMMER 2014 2014

7

ALUMNI ABROAD

INTERNATIONAL PARTNERSHIP

The Queen’s-Fudan partnership: The foundation of Queen’s relationship with China Fourteen years ago, China was accelerating an historic transformation that welcomed more foreign investment, academic exchanges, trade, tourism and ideas into what, for centuries, had been a largely closed society. Hok-Lin Leung, then Director of Queen’s School of Urban and Regional Planning (SURP), recognized the importance of these changes and recommended that Queen’s become a part of them. This came to pass in 2000, when Queen’s Principal William Leggett signed a memorandum of understanding

“

with Fudan University in Shanghai that opened the door for academic partnerships and student exchanges between the two institutions.

Warren Gilman (right) visiting a gold mine in Finland

Today, the fruits of that partnership take many forms:

Mining grad champions plan for a chair in mining finance Warren Gilman Warren Gilman, Sc’82, says it was the marriage of Queen’s

When it comes to understanding the complex feasibility studies

Engineering and an MBA with a finance specialization that

and financial modelling that accompany such investments,

set him on the track to success. And now the chairman and

Gilman says his mining engineering and finance degrees are an

CEO of CEF Holdings Ltd.—the company co-owned by CIBC

ideal combination. But he bemoans the fact that “there’s no one

and Li Ka-shing’s Cheung Kong Holdings—is taking steps

program that teaches you both how to build a mine and how to

to ensure that future Queen’s mining engineers have what

raise the money to do it.”

it takes to carve their own winning paths, all the way from Kingston to China

Gilman and Queen’s want to change that.

Gilman is the volunteer champion of a plan to endow up to

Drawing together the university’s distinct strengths in mining

$7 million for a chair in mining finance at Queen’s Faculty

dozens of Queen’s students have travelled to China

to participate in programs, including global development studies, biology, urban and regional planning, policy studies, law, and business;

and Chinese students have come to Queen’s.

Today, the fruits of that partnership take many forms: dozens of

Queen’s students have travelled to China to participate in programs, including global development studies, biology, urban and regional planning, policy studies, law, and business; and Chinese students have come to Queen’s. Most courses are taught in English by

Chinese professors. When studying at Fudan, Queen’s students are

paired with a Chinese student who serves as a friend, cultural guide

Director Lin (Hai River Basin) proudly showing off treatment wetland effluent

and, when necessary, translator.

at Fudan, but also to new collaborations between Queen’s and other institutions elsewhere in China.

engineering and finance, an endowed chair in mining finance will attract a world-leading researcher and educator to campus who

One beneficiary of Zhiyao’s knowledge and Chinese connections

Department of Mining.

has a finger on the pulse of the global finance industry. Students

is Queen’s Civil Engineering Professor Bruce Anderson. With SURP

will be better prepared for all aspects of a career in global mining,

Professor John Meligrana, Anderson co-founded what in China is

“Money and engineering are inseparable. You can’t have one

employers will gain an invaluable mix of expertise, and Canada

called the Fudan-Queen’s Sino-Canada Centre for Environment and

without the other,” says Gilman. “Thirty years ago, a big mine cost

will remain the go-to country for more mining finance experts

Sustainable Development.

$100 million. Now it can be $3 billion or $5 billion or even more.

like Gilman.

of Engineering and Applied Science’s Robert M. Buchan

They’re incredibly massive projects that require a great deal of money.”

“It’s been more than 30 years since I graduated from Queen’s,

As head of cash-rich holding company CEF, Gilman’s job is to

world,” he exclaims.

invest in the globe’s most promising resource development

and I still believe I graduated from the best mining school in the

For Dr. Anderson, the centre (structured as a network at Queen’s) Queen’s China Liaison Office (CLO) at Fudan; Dr. Zhang Zhiyao (second from right)

has been the focal point for a number of collaborations. “I’ve been able to branch out to many other schools,” he says. “Now I have a relationship with about five other important universities across

The frequency of such cooperation has increased since 2007,

China, and in 2012 I was able to place a master’s student at Tianjin

when Queen’s opened the Queen’s China Liaison Office (CLO)

University [the first engineering university in China] to do a research

have involved developing companies in Canada. “China is

at Fudan University and appointed Dr. Zhiyao Zhang as Queen’s

project. It’s all because of that starting point, the relationship with

focused on resource production, and the key place to go for that

“ambassador” in China. Zhiyao’s work has not only led to student

Fudan, and I am strongly committed to maintaining and growing

is Canada,” he explains.

exchanges and research collaborations between Queen’s members

that relationship today.”

opportunities. The majority of his growth capital commitments

8

”

Dr. Bruce Anderson at the Dujiangyan irrigation project (2,500 years old)

THE COMPLETE ENGINEER

With the right support, he predicts the best will get even better.

SPRING/SUMMER 2014 THE SPRING/SUMMER COMPLETE ENGINEER 2014

9

STUDENT INTERNATIONAL PROFILESCOLL ABOR ATION

C U LT U R A L CO L L A B O R AT I O N

International students bring cricket back to Kingston Mirza Tahir Ahmed

International collaboration to tackle a persistent problem

These days, Kingstonians can bat, bowl and otherwise indulge

“Many players are international

in cricket thanks to electrical engineering doctoral student

students from countries where

Mirza Tahir Ahmed.

cricket is popular, and I’m happy

“Back home in Pakistan, people are crazy about cricket. And here, it’s catching on quickly,” says Ahmed, who came to Queen’s in 2011 to complete his PhD. Before arriving in Kingston, he recalls checking out campus on

Jeffrey Giacomin

Google Maps and noticing a green space near the county courthouse

Draw two concentric circles, and you have a simplified diagram

In reality, it turned out to be a baseball diamond. Ahmed learned,

of the face of the sort of steel die that’s used to make plastic

however, that Kingston does have a history with cricket. For

pipes and rubber hoses. During manufacturing, molten plastic,

example, Sir John A. Macdonald’s first cabinet in 1867 declared it to

or raw elastomer, is forced by high pressure through the slot

be Canada’s national sport. Ahmed had no plans to revitalize cricket

between the circles. The smaller circle borders the space inside

here, but eventually that’s exactly what happened.

marked “Cricket Field.” “I was happy, as wherever I go, I play cricket.”

the tube.

After a cricket-less year, Ahmed and some friends advertised a free

In real life, the central circle is a rod called a mandrel, and it’s held

cricket match at Queen’s for anyone who wanted to try the sport.

in place by eight bolts. Adjusting the bolts allows the mandrel to

“We expected 40 people at the most, but 120 registered, which told

be repositioned, which in turn determines the pipe’s shape and the

us there was a high level of interest,” says Ahmed. Both men and

thickness of its walls. A centred mandrel will produce a straight hose

women played from Queen’s and the wider community.

Soon after, Ahmed and fellow enthusiasts started the Queen’s Cricket Club, which has about 50 members. They play two or three games a day most weekends, often travelling to Toronto, Ottawa PhD candidate Chaimonkol Ngow

and other cities.

that more and more Canadians are getting involved,” says Ahmed.

Now his dream of a new cricket pitch is nearly a reality. The pitch, approved recently by city council, will be built at the Memorial Centre. “It’s a perfect location, as it’s close to Queen’s and convenient for people from the wider community.”

A rectangular concrete pad covered by synthetic grass, the pitch is expected to be ready to host teams of white-clad cricketers by the end of July. And Ahmed takes pleasure in knowing that even if he gets a job elsewhere once his PhD is completed next year, people will continue to play.

Asked what is most rewarding about his cricket-boosting activities, Ahmed smiles. “At first, I knew only a couple of people from my lab, but after doing this, I have 50 or 60 people who are close friends.

And they are not from my country of origin. This is diversity in community. Cricket is open to everyone, and I like this.”

Email QueensCricketclub@gmail.com to learn more about the local cricket club.

die, the molecules exert enormous pressure on the mandrel; an incorrectly designed one will bend or even break. For hose and pipe manufacturers, this is a serious and potentially costly problem, as extrusion dies cost tens of thousands of dollars.

Dr. Jeffrey Giacomin, a Chemical Engineering Professor at Queen’s, is collaborating with Chanyut Kolitawong at King Mongkut’s University of Technology in Bangkok to develop an equation to gauge the force of the elastic liquid acting on the mandrel. Once complete, the equation will help process engineers design mandrels stiff enough to withstand Professor Giacomin at North Bangkok campus entrance with statue of King Mongkut (photo by Chanyut Kolitawong) with walls of even thickness. An off-centred mandrel curves the hose, and the greater the decentering, the tighter the curve. You’ll see examples of these curved hoses in any modern car engine.

10

the pressures they’re subjected to.

Giacomin has been working on this particular problem for over 20 years. “There’s a reason why this has not been conquered,” he says. “Part of it is that the mathematics are difficult. Also, you can’t measure the lateral force on that mandrel. All you can do is either succeed or fail when you design a die, so no one has measured the

Hose-making sounds straightforward, but it’s not. Plastic

thing we’re trying to calculate. We just have industrial experience

or elastomer molecules are long, stretchy chains that resist

that hose manufacturers in Thailand have shared with us about

deformation. When these elastic liquids are squeezed through a

what works and what doesn’t.”

THE COMPLETE ENGINEER

SPRING/SUMMER SPRING/SUMMER 2014 2014 THE COMPLETE ENGINEER

11

I N T E R N AT I O N A L R E S E A R C H E R S

ALUMNI ABROAD

Alumnus accepted to the University of Cambridge’s innovative Hetero-Genesys Laboratory John Armitage For the past two years, John Armitage, Sc’12, has been exploring the globe, mostly monitoring electric arc and blast furnaces for Hatch Ltd. “I travel a lot,” he concurs. “I keep an equipment case with sensors and protective gear packed and ready to go.”

“

As a non-destructive testing specialist for Hatch, which has sixty-five offices on six continents, Armitage has worked under smelters in Austria, England, Germany, Japan, Russia, South Africa, Venezuela and around North America.

His Queen’s education, he says, launched him successfully into the wider world. “I got hired at Hatch

Adam Clansey, seated, monitors a subject at the HMRL

Adam Clansey

accepted to work

sessions gave me a foot in the door.”

toward a master’s

has been a cultural and professional adventure. Originally from

learning curve. “How people work here is different,” says Clansey.

Liverpool, he came to work at the Queen’s University Human

“Coming from a kinesiology background and being introduced to a

Mobility Research Laboratory (HMRL) in September 2013 after

mechanical engineering focus at the HMRL is a real challenge.”

Clansey credits supervisor Dr. Kevin Deluzio, the lab’s principal investigator and a professor in the Department of Mechanical and

Clansey’s first culinary experience was particularly memorable.

Materials Engineering at Queen’s, and the lab’s supportive team with

“I was walking to the university and I saw a truck selling food. So I

helping him to adjust.

asked, ‘What do you recommend for breakfast?’ The man handed me a cheeseburger and chips covered with cheese and gravy and said,

“I’m learning what’s expected of me, gaining a better

‘Welcome to Canada.’ It was poutine, at 9 am!”

understanding of biomechanics and becoming more diligent as a researcher,” he says.

The $1.5 million, 3,000-square-foot HMRL in Kingston’s Hotel Dieu Hospital impressed him more favourably. “I was in awe when I saw

Outside the lab, new activities have included playing ice hockey—“I

the lab, which is world class,” says Clansey, whose research interest is

peaked during the warm-up”—curling and downhill skiing. He’s

clinical biomechanics and how humans move.

also learned the dangers of running outside in winter. “My face was burning so much it kept me up nights. I thought, ‘What is this, some

Nowadays, he spends most of his time in the high-tech facility.

prestigious British university for graduate studies. “One of the key

reasons that I got accepted to work toward a master’s at Cambridge this

strange allergy?’ Turns out it was dry skin from the cold!”

”

fall was because

the professor knew

Queen’s Engineering Physics

is a top program.

Queen’s Engineering Physics is a top While it’s a great chance to expand his horizons, there’s been a

in Belfast, Northern Ireland.

with helping him get into a

at Cambridge this

fall was because the professor knew

For Dr. Adam Clansey, life as a postdoctoral fellow in Kingston

completing his PhD in biomechanics at the University of Ulster

reasons that I got

because Queen’s campus recruiting

Further, Armitage credits Queen’s

HMRL: World-class facility attracts researchers from around the globe

One of the key

program.”

Describing his current job, Armitage says that negotiating new

John’s “selfie” at Cambridge

cultures means you really have to remember where you are. “In

Russia, for example, I was whistling onsite and someone said, ‘Don’t, it’s bad luck and will cause you to lose your money.’”

technology,” he says. His supervisor, Dr. Arokia Nathan, a Canadian, is Chair of Photonic Systems and Displays at the University of

Then in Austria, he adds, a union rule meant employees could drink

Cambridge’s Department of Engineering and a renowned expert

alcohol onsite. “The guys were handing me a tall boy at 10 am,” he

on amorphous silicon.

recalls with a laugh. “I declined, but asked, ‘Is it allowed?’ They said, ‘Yes, and plus it’s only light beer.’”

Armitage says Queen’s has opened doors, providing skills for his international career, and a competitive edge to help him get into

This September, Armitage—whose father, Ian, Sc’81, is the principal

his first choice of graduate schools. “Clearly, I’m very happy with my

mechanical engineer at Hepburn Engineering Inc.—will begin his

Queen’s education.”

studies, joining the University of Cambridge’s innovative HeteroGenesys Laboratory.

“I’ll be working on large-area electronics, transistors and

The future looks bright, and Armitage is enthusiastic about returning to campus—albeit in England this time. “Cambridge is fantastic! It reminds me of Kingston, but older,” he says.

smartphones—hopefully developing an innovative screen

Among other duties, he works with surgeons to analyze patient

12

mobility after operations such as knee replacements, monitoring

Whatever else his adopted home has in store, Clansey says he

people while they’re doing more demanding activities of everyday

welcomes it. “I plan to experience all I can: work hard, see the

living—walking, jogging or going up and down stairs.

country and stay open to the possibilities.”

THE COMPLETE ENGINEER

SPRING/SUMMER 2014

13

STUDENT PROFILESCOLL ABOR ATION INTERNATIONAL

ALUMNI ABROAD

Photo: D. Fortin

Paying it forward: Helping Canadian entrepreneurs connect with Silicon Valley Scott Bonham Scott Bonham, Sc’84, was a money manager of tech stocks at one of the world’s largest investment management organizations in 2000. Over dinner with newly appointed IBM president and COO Sam Palmisano, he did the unthinkable.

“I suggested IBM abandon its PC strategy,” laughs the 1984 Queen’s electrical engineering grad. Palmisano didn’t miss a beat. “He suggested if you don’t like our strategy, sell our stock.”

Heather Jamieson sampling minerals precipitated from acid rock drainage in Chile

Bonham was taken aback at first, but then he figured his dinner companion might be onto something. “All I was doing was buying

Working to make mining greener at home and abroad Heather Jamieson

and selling stocks. I was in my late 30s. I wanted to build something significant.” In the midst of the recession gripping the United States, Bonham and three co-founders launched a California-based entrepreneurs in and across the world’s two largest economies— U.S. and China.

Mining and resource extraction provide the raw materials for

Another high-profile project of Jamieson’s involves a billion-dollar

“Every day was a street fight,”

virtually everything people use—from steel for buildings and

cleanup of the now-closed Giant gold mine in Yellowknife, where

remembers Bonham of the

bridges to the high-tech circuitry in cell phones and televisions.

gold is contained within a mineral called arsenopyrite. When

company’s early days. “Today it

But while the benefits of mining are endless, they also come

the mine was in production between 1948 and 1999, mined

seems obvious to invest in China,

with a price in the form of mine waste.

arsenopyrite was put through a process called “roasting,” which

but in 2000 no one had done it

To help ensure that mine waste doesn’t contaminate the environment, Dr. Heather Jamieson, a Queen’s professor in the Department of Geological Sciences and Geological Engineering, and her students work in Canada and around the world to identify the mineralogical properties that determine whether metals of concern will remain safely contained within mine waste or be released into air, soil, groundwater, lakes or rivers.

For instance, Jamieson is currently working with doctoral student Anežka Radková to determine the chemical mechanisms governing the release of antimony and arsenic into the water at a former

“ ”

venture capital company, GGV Capital, and staked a claim to help

freed up the gold for recovery but also left behind approximately

successfully; everyone thought we

300,000 tonnes of arsenic trioxide dust. Most was stored

were crazy.”

underground and contaminates ground and surface water. Some of the arsenic trioxide dust is now distributed around the area in

The gamble paid off. Fifteen years

tailings, soil and sediments in the vicinity of local water bodies such

after that fateful dinner, GGV Capital

as Great Slave Lake.

has $2 billion under management.

Successes include an early

Every day was a

street fight. Today

it seems obvious to

invest in China, but in 2000 no one had

done it successfully;

everyone thought we were crazy.

“We’re looking at the deposits in microscopic detail to figure out

investment in China e-commerce

whether the arsenic in the soils and sediments is sequestered in a way

giant Alibaba Group, widely expected to become the largest-ever

that’s going to minimize the risk to ecosystem and human health or

initial public offering in America since its filing in May.

whether it’s vulnerable to getting into the water,” says Jamieson.

Bonham attributes his success to hard work, “strategic serendipity”

Canadians in Silicon Valley created the C100, a non-profit focused on

antimony mine in Slovakia. The work is important because while

Jamieson and company also work at both closed and operating

much research has been done on arsenic, data on the behavior

and a piece of advice he received almost 30 years ago from Queen’s

mines elsewhere in the Northwest Territories, as well as in Alaska,

and toxicity of antimony is less common, raising the possibility

School of Business faculty member Norm Macintosh. Bonham was

Nova Scotia, and as far afield as Chile and Peru. In every case, she

that health and mining regulations relating to the metal are not as

considering leaving his job at General Motors, where he’d worked

says, it’s important to understand the processing history of the mine

rigorous as they might be.

since graduation, to attend law school. Macintosh suggested he

and the environment in which the mine waste is deposited; to do

apply to Harvard Business School instead.

pay forward the mentorship he received from Macintosh.

“He gave me the idea and the confidence to apply,” says Bonham,

“For me, it was having someone say I could do it. That nudge

“There are a lot of unknowns about how it moves into the environment,” says Jamieson, who says Radková’s findings may be applicable at the Beaver Brook antimony mine site in central Newfoundland. The mine is owned by a Chinese company and is not

rigorous characterization of the site; and, crucially, to study the mine waste in microscopic detail—in some cases at the nanoparticle level.

mentorship, partnership and investment. Bonham was recently named the C100’s co-chair, a role he says will give him the chance to

who earned a Harvard MBA and settled in Silicon Valley in 1989.

was all I needed. Queen’s engineers are world-class but often

Bonham remembered that advice five years ago when a group of

next Google. We could change the world.”

“The practical use of the research is to provide better risk assessment and a basis for better remediation design,” says Jamieson.

helping Canadian entrepreneurs succeed in Silicon Valley through

underestimate their potential. We could be the people behind the

currently operating, but further exploration is planned for the site.

14

THE COMPLETE ENGINEER

SPRING/SUMMER 2014

15

GR AD STUDENTS PROFILES

INTERNATIONAL TR ANSFER STUDENTS

International transfer students arriving, and thriving, at Queen’s Now in the third year of his studies, Ghaffar says he’s looking forward to fall, when he enters the twelve- to sixteen-month Queen’s Undergraduate Internship Program—after which he will have earned his degree in 2016.

While he’s adapted well to life as an international transfer student, Ghaffar says there’s been a lot to learn. Informality with professors, for example, is one big difference. “In Pakistan, you say ‘sir’ or ‘madam.’ Calling a professor by name is disrespectful. Here, they ask, ‘Why are you calling me sir?’”

Estee Jo Mathew, who arrived in August 2013 as an international transfer student from India’s Birla Institute of Technology, Mesra

Sebastian Hurtado

(BIT Mesra), in Ranchi in the eastern state of Jharkhand, says she can relate. “Back in India, I

MASc candidate

wouldn’t dare call my professors or

Open-pit mining is an expensive proposition, and a multitude of

managers by their first names the

internal and external factors determine a mine’s financial success.

way that’s customary here.”

Estee Jo Mathew

Mathew, who came to Queen’s as a third-year computer engineering student, also notes that learning methods are very different. “In some of my classes, we used the same textbooks as we did in India, but how we approach the material is completely different. There, we had to memorize a lot; here, we don’t, but there are many more Salman Ghaffar

assignments.”

Setting off on a long-haul educational adventure, international

Living in a cold country was also something new. “Luckily, I have a

transfer student Salman Ghaffar took a direct flight from

friend who studies at Queen’s and who is from Kingston. She drove

Islamabad to Toronto in August 2012. “It was the first time I’d

me around and told me what winter clothes to get.”

Graduate student Sebastian Hurtado, an employee of Andes Iron in Chile, is working with Dr. Ursula Thorley in the Robert M. Buchan Department in Mining on a master’s thesis that will focus on how certain mine processes can be optimized to maximize a mine’s profitability. His research looks in part at dilution, or the amount of waste material in mined ore, and cutoff grade optimization, the process that determines which ore will be processed and which should be sent to a stockpile or waste facility. “I’m trying to understand the impact of the inadvertent inclusion of waste on the economic performance of a mine,” says Hurtado. “The less waste there is, the more money a mine will make.

travelled abroad,” he says. “I was a little scared as before this I’d always lived with my parents.”

After a twenty-five-hour journey, Ghaffar, who transferred to Queen’s from Islamabad’s National University of Sciences and

MASc candidate

In September 2013, Salmiah Nawi travelled from her home in Malaysia to Queen’s to continue work on her masters thesis, which examines rehabilitation funds regulation that requires mining companies to contribute to the fund before they receive an operating permit from the host jurisdiction. After a mine has closed for good, these funds pay for remediating the site. In Malaysia, says Nawi, mining companies pay a flat fee of $3,000 CDN, but in most cases, she says, this amount is woefully insufficient to cover costs. Nawi is studying how remediation is funded in Canada and other selected countries and gathering data to develop a formula—based on mine size, tenure, degree of environmental damage and other factors— that mining regulators in Malaysia can use to calculate an appropriate amount to be deposited in the rehabilitation fund. “When I go home, I can present my research to the government, and I hope they will use the recommendations and formula from mining companies.”

Currently, Mathew’s new experiences revolve around the world of work: she’s employed under the Queen’s Undergraduate Internship Program as an information management technical enablement partnerships have come to fruition in recent years,” says Scott Yam,

internship—to get paid and gain valuable work experience in

Associate Dean (International and Special Projects) of the Faculty of

Canada—and opens scholarship and research opportunities to

Engineering and Applied Science.

future master’s and PhD students.”

to campus for her fifth year and looks forward to opportunities in

“The goal is to establish a few strong partnerships in key areas and

As well, Queen’s students get a valuable chance to collaborate

both North America and India upon graduation.

develop intensive relations,” he adds.

with transfer students. “Canada is a trading nation with a small

bachelor’s degree at NUST and then do his master’s abroad. “But

What’s the best thing she’s gained as an international transfer

So far, memorandums of understanding have been signed with

after hearing about Queen’s I thought, ‘Why not go now? This will be

student? “I learned to be more flexible and adapt to new situations,”

India’s BIT Mesra and the Manipal University in Udupi in the state of

beneficial for my career.’”

Mathew says. “Also, the internship is the first time I’ve ever had a

Karnataka, and with the Arab Academy of Science and Technology

nine-to-five job, so I’m learning how working life will be.”

in Egypt. Potential partnerships with NUST and other institutes

With this in mind, Yam welcomes input. “Working through the

around the world are also being explored.

Queen’s Engineering community is one way that we find good

Technology (NUST), one of Pakistan’s top engineering schools,

specialist at IBM in Markham, Ontario.

finally arrived in Kingston. “I woke up early my first morning and it

The internship and the experience in two different jurisdictions

was really beautiful—especially the lake, the first place I went.”

inspired her to transfer to Queen’s, she says. This fall, she will return

Six months before, Ghaffar, who came to Queen’s as a second-year electrical engineering student, had been planning to complete his

What inspired him was a presentation by two Queen’s professors

16

Salmiah Nawi

who visited NUST in February 2012. “I already knew about the

In the future, Queen’s Engineering expects to bring more

strong reputation of Queen’s. Then I was really impressed by the

international transfer students to campus. “We’ve been laying the

The international transfer program offers students many benefits,

talk. So I applied.”

groundwork for international transfers since 2007, and our initial

says Yam. “It gives them an opportunity to participate in an

THE COMPLETE ENGINEER

population, and these incoming students will potentially serve as our ambassadors and provide a wealth of international contacts based on the relationships formed while they’re on campus.”

partners, so we’re open to hearing from those in our network who have any ideas.”

SPRING/SUMMER 2014

17

ALUMNI NE WS

Alumni Events QYea!

Oil and Gas Speaker Series

Frosh week, first-year exams, the iron ring ceremony and

In January, alumni and friends from the oil and gas industry came to campus to share their experience, insight and knowledge at the Oil and Gas Speaker Series. This year’s theme was Future Challenges, Solutions and Opportunities.

graduation are just a few of the milestones which define an engineering student’s experience at Queen’s University.

Queen’s Young Engineering Alumni (QYea!), a Toronto-based group of passionate young alumni, is on a mission to add one more milestone to the list: giving back.

QYea! is the next generation of Queen’s leaders, and they understand the importance of philanthropy in building a firstrate university. “Queens Engineering will only thrive if more alumni contribute time and money to the university,” says Martha van Berkel (Garriock), Sc’00, the founding chair of QYea! The group was created as part of the ongoing Inspiring Greatness: The Campaign for Queen’s Engineering and is leading the charge to create a thriving community of young engineering alumni who start giving back right after graduation.

“We aren’t looking for large contributions. The goal is participation achieved by offering opportunities for graduates

Mike Rose, Artsci’79, President, CEO and founder of Tourmaline Oil delivers his presentation “Where is the Industry Going?”

Peter MacConnachie, MSc’88, Sr. Sustainability Issues Management Specialist at Suncor Energy, addresses the soldout conference in Ban Righ Hall.

Michele Harradence, Sc ‘91, (centre) General Manager of Shell’s Sarnia Manufacturing Complex, with student conference delgates.

Shane O’Leary, Sc’77, Chief Operating Officer of Gran Tierra Energy, chats with students during a break.

Martha van Berkel, Sc’00, founding chair of QYea!, with Emily Stock, Sc’00, Krist Papadopoulas, Sc’00, and Richard Hayward, Sc’01 who are just starting their careers to contribute in ways which excite them,” says Jim Elson, Sc’02, who took over as a co-chair in 2013.

They are on the right track, having reached over 300 alumni in the GTA. QYea! will be hosting their annual Welcome to Toronto event again this September. “It provided a great networking opportunity. I reconnected with classmates and met a lot of engineering alumni in the city,” says one newly-minted alumnus. Details for 2014 will follow later this summer.

To find out more, or to get involved, find QYEA! at Jim Elson, Sc’02, current co-chair of QYea!, with Damien McCotter, Sc’98, and Kevin Tanas, Sc`99

www.inspiring.engineering.queensu.ca/qyea, or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/QYea.TO. Contact them by email at qyea.to@gmail.com.

Dr. Dengler speaks to mining students about mining health and safety.

18 THE COMPLETE ENGINEER

This past academic year, Dr. Bob Dengler, Sc’65, visited the Robert M. Buchan Department of Mining.

SPRING/SUMMER 2014 19

ALUMNI NE WS

Alumni Events Dean Kimberly Woodhouse and several department heads headed west in April to host Queen’s Engineering receptions at the Petroleum Club in Calgary and at the Fairmont Waterfront in Vancouver. They then turned east for a reception in Toronto.

Vancouver: Sam Wong, Sc’85, Pamela Ip, Artsci’90, Karina Chan, Bobby Chiu, Sc’87

Toronto: Priyesh Intwala, Sc’09, Kadra Branker, Sc’09, Sam Leung, Sc’06, Rachel Adams, Sc’06, Kyla Sask, Sc’06, Jenna Usprech, Sc’10

Toronto: William Hendrie, Sc’68, Wasim Hassan, Sc’68, Richard Dobson, Sc’68, Dean Kimberly Woodhouse, Bruce Mitchell, Sc’68

Toronto: Wasim Hassan, Sc’68, Ilona Hassan, John Lill, Sc’73, Kamal Hassan, Sc’88, Helen Hassan

Toronto: Dean Kimberly Woodhouse, Carol Darling, Sc’78, Penny Fabbro, Sc’78, JoAnne Cavanagh Butler, Sc’78

Vancouver: Mike Birk, Sc’78, MSc’81, PhD’83; Ian Lipchak, Sc’03; Christie Lyons, Sc’06; Andrew Chong, Sc’07; Connor Langford, Sc’08; Kimberly Woodhouse, Dean

CIRQUE

Calgary: Jamie Fitzgibbon, Sc’86, Tim Kitchen, Sc’86

The 2014 theme for the student-run conference CIRQUE was Engineering Potential and featured a range of industry professionals who spoke about their careers and how they apply their engineering degree in industry.

Calgary: Elizabeth Philp, Sc’12, Andrew McVicar, Sc’13, Alexander Trifunov, Sc’13 Calgary: Harry Rankin, Sc’48, David Sask, Sc’78

Toronto: Richard Dobson, Sc’68, Jane Clapp, Robert Clapp, Sc’65

Calgary: Dean Kimberly Woodhouse, Michael Trowell, Sc’09

Vancouver: Bruce Townson, Sc’94, Michael Walsh, Sc’87, Graham Ross, Sc’89 20 THE COMPLETE ENGINEER

Toronto: Daniel Agnew, Sc’69, Thomas Hitchman, Sc’69

Brad Lamb, Sc’84, (right) President of Brad J. Lamb Realty & Lamb Development Corp, speaks with Greg Bavington, Sc’85, Executive Director of the Queen’s Innovation Connector, before his presentation at CIRQUE. SPRING/SUMMER 2014 21

inspiring.engineering.queensu.ca

Building Our Future.

The Queen’s Innovation Commons will provide the setting for cross-faculty and cross-university collaboration. Their collective goal: driving innovation forward in Canada and beyond.

FACULTY OF ENGINEERING AND APPLIED SCIENCE – Development and Alumni Relations Beamish-Munro Hall, Queen’s University, Kingston, ON K7L 3N6 www.inspiring.engineering.queensu.ca 613-533-6000 Extension 79533 inspiring@engineering.queensu.ca