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Engineering & Science Students Take Top Engineering & Science Students Take Top

Honors at 2012 Shell Honors at 2012 Shell

EcoEco--marathon Competitionmarathon Competition

Louisiana Tech University

College of Engineering and Science

March-May 2012

College News College News

ContentsContents

More Student

Honors (page 2)

Foundation

Board Elects

New Officers

(page 3)

Alumni Stories

(page 4)

More Photos

(page 5)

Stay in Touch!Stay in Touch!

Linkedin.com/

groups

Find the College of Engi-

neering and Science group

page

LaTech.edu/coes

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pages/Louisiana-

Tech-Engineering

318-257-4971

PO Box 10348

Ruston, LA 71272

Louisiana Tech’s new Urban Concept vehicle, “Hot Rod,” took the first place

award for miles earned in the diesel fuel competition in Urban Concept earn-

ing 488.7 miles at the Shell Eco-Marathon in Houston last month. “Hot Rod”

also won for best design with its retro hot rod look and red and white paint design

featuring flames on each side of the front of the car. “Roadster” competed again this

year and took second place in gasoline in the Urban Concept design with 321 miles

per gallon. No car at this year’s competition beat “Roadster’s” record from last

year so it retains its U.S. record of 646.7 miles per gallon.

“I couldn’t be more proud of our team and the way they have represented us,” said

Dr. Heath Tims, assistant professor of mechanical engineering and one of the

team’s faculty advisors. “Even as we competed and worked to correct problems

with our cars, we were still assisting other teams, especially the high schools from

Louisiana that competed in this year’s event.”

Benton High School, Bossier High School, Airline High School, Haughton High

School and North Desoto High School all competed in this year’s event and re-

ceived assistance from Louisiana Tech during the school year.

The ‘Roadster’ takes the

track in Houston

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Engineering & Science Students Take Top Honors (Engineering & Science Students Take Top Honors (continued)continued)

The Louisiana Tech Chapter of the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) has been named the 2011-2012

National Distinguished Chapter of the Year, the highest award any collegiate chapter can receive for being the

best chapter in the nation for exemplifying the NSBE mission statement. They also received the NSBE Retention Pro-

gram Award honoring their new Engineering Retention Program. In addition to the tributes, the national awards came

with cash prizes totaling $10,000, which the chapter plans to use to improve its programs and community service pro-

jects.

Nationally, there are over 120 collegiate chapters of NSBE. The Louisiana Tech NSBE chapter is in Region 5, the

Vanguard Region of NSBE, which includes all the chapters in the states of Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma,

Missouri, Kansas, Iowa, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota. The NSBE mission statement is “to increase the

number of culturally responsible, black engineers, who excel academically, succeed professionally, and positively im-

pact the community.”

The University’s student chapter of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) won first place in the con-

crete canoe competition during the Deep South Regional Conference at The University of Tennessee - Martin. The

students competed against 14 other southern universities in events including concrete canoe, steel bridge, surveying,

and the Mead Paper student contest. In the concrete canoe division, students participated in endurance races, sprint

races, technical paper, and aesthetics. This is the fifth time a Louisiana Tech team has won the regional competition

and moved on to compete in the national competition.

In addition to winning the overall first place award in concrete canoe, the team won awards in the following catego-

ries: 1st place – Final Product/Aesthetics, 1st place – Design Paper, 1st place – Co-ed Sprint, 2nd place – Women’s

Sprint, and 2nd place – Men’s Sprint.

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College NewsCol lege News

Engineering & Science Foundation Elects New Officers and Directors

The Louisiana Tech Engineering and Science Foundation has elected new members and announced its offic-

ers for the 2012-2013 year. The group met in Houston last week for their spring board meeting and an-

nounced the election results afterwards. Mike Pearson, CEO of Orion Marine Group in Houston will be

the new president. He joined Orion Marine Group as President and Chief Operating Officer in March 2006.

Pearson graduated from Louisiana Tech in civil engineering in 1969. He has previously served as the group’s

vice-president.

Sandy Johnson, President and owner of Barrios Technology in Houston will be the new vice-president.

Sandy graduated from Louisiana Tech in 1978 with a degree in math.

Tim Petrus, Vice President of XTO Energy (recently acquired by ExxonMobil) in Fort Worth, Texas,

will be the new secretary and George Baldwin, President of Baldwin-Madden Energy in Shreveport,

will serve as treasurer. Hilton Nicholson of Mobile, Alabama, will serve as immediate past president.

The new Directors include Pete Ball, Principal and co-founder with XRoads Solutions Group in Dallas, Tex-

as; Gerald McDaniel, Principal with Veer Advisers in Dallas, Texas; Zeffrey Lucas, Director Americas of the

Wood Group in Houston, Texas; Ed McGough, Senior Vice-President of Alcon Labs in Dallas, Texas; Phillip

Parker, President of the P.R. Parker Company of Shreveport; Kenny Smith, President of T.B. Smith Company

in Houma, Louisiana; and Michael Swain with HP Americas Intel Corporation in Houston, Texas.

The Louisiana Tech Engineering and Science Foundation Board of Directors meets three times annually and

advises the dean of the college on matters of need.

Pearson (left) and Johnson will lead the board.

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Alumni NewsAlumni News

Engineering Alumnus Takes Different Path

Jack Maxwell is one of three brothers who left Canebrake Plan-

tation in Ferriday, Louisiana, to attend college at Louisiana

Tech. He completed his B.S. in mechanical engineering in 1965

and after seven years with Exxon, moved with his wife, Sue, to

Tulsa, Oklahoma, where they opened several placement compa-

nies. However, it is his work with the Rotary Club that changed

his life and the lives of countless others throughout the world.

As past President of the Rotary Club in Bixby, Oklahoma, and

chair of the District 6110 Water and Health Concerns Commit-

tee, Jack has created a project whose goal is to provide clean wa-

ter to every person in Belize. He also established the Worldwide

Humanitarian Alliance of Rotarians and Friends (WHARF),

which provides humanitarian aid to third world countries over-

seas. He has received the Service Above Self Award, the highest

honor the Tulsa Rotary Chapter can bestow, for his humanitarian

work. Even though he and his wife have sold their business and

retired, they remain in the Tulsa area where he continues his

philanthropic work. Jack and Sue have three children and three

granddaughters.

Jack Maxwell in Tulsa

Members of the En-

gineering and Sci-

ence Foundation

Board join the Tech

Eco-marathon team

and faculty sponsors

at the opening cere-

mony in Houston

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Photos from the American Society of Photos from the American Society of

Civi l Engineers Deep South Civi l Engineers Deep South

Regional Competi t ionRegional Competi t ion

The 2012 Louisiana Tech Concrete Canoe Team

poses with their canoe prior to this spring’s re-

gional competition in Tennessee

The interior of the Louisiana Tech team canoe includes the

Tenets of Tech: confidence, excellence, commitment,

knowledge, integrity, respect, leadership, loyalty, enthusiasm,

caring, hope and pride