MacEngineer Fall 2015

Spring 2015 1

THE

MacEngineerFaculty of Engineering, McMaster University – 2015

HELPING BUILD THE CITIES OF THE FUTURE PAGE – 10

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s the demand for engineer-ing graduates continues to grow so does the critical importance of the country’s universities in training the

next generation of engineers. According to the engineering labour market projections to 2025 by Engineers Canada, the labour market tightness rank of most engineering disciplines will be about 2. This tightness rank implies that a normal market situation will prevail where there will be demand for engineering graduates. Organizations will be able to rely on their traditional methods for obtaining workers. Demand growth will be normal and, while organizations may have to rely on migrants to meet supply, this situ-ation will not be different from what

ENHANCING ENGINEERING PROGRAMS TO MEET THE NEEDS OF TOMORROW

they would have faced in the past. McMaster University is a major provider of engineering undergradu-ates from Ontario. We graduate roughly a fifth of software engineers, half of the materials engineers, just over an eighth of chemical engineers, and about a tenth of electrical engineers in our province. By some estimates, only about a half of all engineers pursue careers within the discipline. According to Engineers Canada, the largest demand across the country over the coming decade will be for civil, me-chanical and electrical engineers. More importantly, the data shows that the job market for engineers will become more competitive, motivating us to enhance our program offerings to add value to students’ education. We are already addressing this issue through our renewed focus on experi-ential and problem-based learning.

Another way is by leveraging the unique five-year “and” programs of McMaster Engineering, such as engineering and management, and engineering and society. A discussion with Health Sciences has resulted in the development of a five-year undergraduate engineering and biomedical program. This program, with an initial intake of 50 new students and about fifty others who are already part of the electrical and biomedical engineering program will be submitted for consideration by our university this coming academic year. Then, if appropriate, the proposal will be routed for provincial approval so that students can be recruited to McMaster Engineering, potentially for Fall 2017. A special feature of this program will be a Level 1 emphasis on integrated learning where, rather than lecture-based instruction, students will be asked to solve engineering programs. A second effort to develop a similar undergraduate engineering and (inter-disciplinary) smart systems program, detailed in our cover story, includes integrated learning is underway in the Faculty. If successful, the discussion could result in a proposal to establish the program for student entry in Fall 2018. McMaster Engineering is proactive in thinking about our students’ futures.

Dean of Engineering, Ishwar Puri

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Do you have something to say or news to share? We would like to hear from you.

Contact Carm Vespi

Tel: (905) 525-9140 ext. 24906

Fax: (905) 546-5492

e-mail: [email protected]

website: www.eng.mcmaster.ca

The MacEngineer is published

by the Faculty of Engineering

for its alumni.

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provided by the Alumni Office.

Editor: Carm Vespi

Managing Editor: Monique Beech

Art Direction and Design: Jay Primeau

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Contents

Student Focus Driving Undergraduate Program to new Heights

Celebrating 40 years of Engineering & Management

Helping build the cities of the future

Q&A with Saud ADI

Making the most of their Summers

Joseph Ip and Dalvi Family Scholarship recipients.

Engineering grad’s company Telestream wins Emmy Award

Ride the Hammer

The Priceless Benefit of Job Experience

Summer programs a big success

DepartmentsProfiles – 4

Class Reunion – 6

Kudos – 23

NEWS – 26

EVENTS – 30

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Managing Risks Brings Its Own Rewards Every business venture carries risks, which led billionaire and Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg to remark that the biggest risk is not taking any risks. But fellow billionaire and invest-ment wizard Warren Buffett offers a slightly different perspective when he says, “Risk comes from not knowing what you’re doing.” Mac engineering alumni Cathy Taylor (Civil Eng. & Mgmt. 1982), who has made a career of helping companies manage their corporate risks, agrees that risk

ALUMNI PROFILEScan represent both danger and opportu-nity. The key, she says, is for businesses to understand and address risk in a systematic and explicit way. “As anyone who has ever been to a casino knows, there are upsides and downsides to risk,” she says. “Under-standing your risks allows you to make better decisions, helps you target re-sources to priority areas and ultimately, creates some peace of mind by elimi-nating surprises.” Over the last three decades, Taylor has helped organizations in the energy, manufacturing, finance and mining industries assess, manage and mitigate the risks of doing business. While it’s a role she admits to stumbling into, cour-tesy of a “fortuitous water cooler meet-ing” with the head of Risk Management at her first job out of university, the position is one Taylor sees as employing all her talents. “It’s the ultimate problem-solving job using both right and left brain skills,” she explains. “You need analyti-cal and detective skills to identify and assess risk issues. Then you often need to invoke your creativity in working with people to develop and implement programs to mitigate risk.” While she originally envisioned her degree in civil engineering would lead to work with a municipality, Taylor says the problem-solving skills she learned in engineering have been crucial to her career success. Her technical knowledge also gave her the opportunity for her initial secondment into a risk management position.“I truly believe that an engineering degree opens more doors than most programs,” she says. “The definition of what an engineer is and does is so diverse. “

Mentoring and Leadership Skills Recognized with Top Ten AwardLike many sons, Paul Smeltzer’s (Civil Engineering, 1979) career inspiration came from his father. Unlike many sons however, Smeltzer was nearly a teen when his father, who hadn’t graduated high school, resumed his studies to earn his ticket as a stationary engineer. “I thought it was pretty cool to have a father who was an engineer, and I de-cided that’s what I wanted to do too.” Now 36 years into his career, Smelt-zer recognizes the value that role mod-els and mentors have for young people. As Director of Water and Wastewater Services for the Region of Niagara, he leads a team of more than 230 employ-ees responsible for providing citizens with safe drinking water and effective wastewater treatment services. He has

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ALUMNI PROFILESalso made leadership, mentoring, and an open-door policy the cornerstones of his management style. “I don’t believe I could have accomplished what I have if not for the mentors in my life,” he says. “Young people need training, nurturing and above all, leadership. That’s where mentors come in.” Informal workplace mentoring opportunities are fostered through a culture of open communication and sharing. A comprehensive training program, established after mandatory certification for water and wastewater operators was introduced in the late 1990s, has helped employees develop skills and advance their careers. Smeltzer also worked with a local college to develop a training program for operators. As a result of his initiatives, the municipality has been able to develop a strong internal promotion process that has resulted in staff moving into increasingly responsible management positions. Beyond his workplace, Smeltzer’s commitment to inspiring others has carried over to both his community and his professional association. In 2014, he chaired the organizing committee that brought the American Public Works Association’s (APWA) 2014 International Congress and Exposition to Toronto. His commitment was recognized by his industry earlier this year, when he was named a Top Ten Public Works Leader by the APWA . It’s an honour he describes as “a really great reward,” in a career that’s melded the technical engineering challenges of large-scale public sector projects with the opportunity to inspire and direct people through leadership and mentoring.

Engineering Opens Door to a World of OpportunitiesFrom China and Papau New Guinea, to the Egyptian pyramids and the Canadian north, Mike Romano’s (Chemi-cal 1988) career has taken him around the globe. But he’s convinced it has been his engineering degree that’s of-fered the key to opening the door to a world of opportunities. For two decades, Romano has worked for manufacturing companies supplying technical equipment and value added services to the oil and gas, chemical and water and wastewater industries. His global travels have given him a front row seat to transformational changes taking place in countries like China, Qatar, Egypt, and even within the Canadian oil sands. “I was lucky enough to start my career with a large multinational chemical company that gave me great training I would need in future roles,” said Romano. “Plastics were a great place to start in the 80’s. “But my opportunity for global experiences arrived with my move into the field of oil and gas pipelines, where major projects are underway all over the world.” Along with a range of global adven-tures, Romano says his engineering education has given him the chance to be involved in fields including product development, product and marketing management, business and strategy development, and executive level sales and marketing leadership roles. Strong technical skills and knowl-edge allow engineers to quickly understand the products and technolo-gies in demand anywhere in the world, he says. “To start their careers, engineering graduates should seek to build a niche in a key technical area, where they can establish themselves as the go-to expert

and make themselves indispensable,” he suggests. “Early in my career, I worked on several new technology and process patents. It was very gratifying to see these patents issued on a global basis, and even more gratifying to take these technologies to the global pipeline market as the new industry standard, ultimately generating sales growth and establishing a technology leadership position for the company.” With the world – and a world of opportunities – at the fingertips of today’s engineers, Romano’s 17-year-old son recently took part in MAC’s LEAP program that gives high school students an introduction to engineering studies.

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PhD Pathways: Dwayne WasylyshynThe year was 1998 and materials engineering alumnus Dwayne Wasylyshyn just completed his PhD. A small company at the time, Research in Motion (RIM), was in need of someone to solve product issues with one of their devices, the email pager. Having a contact within the compa-ny, Wasylyshyn was able to secure a po-sition which they made just for him. A role that dealt with exactly what he had

done with his PhD in plastics. “What got me the job at RIM was the fact that my PhD involved analyzing types of plastics under high frequencies, in fact, radio frequencies” he said. “It just so happened the work I was doing and how I was doing it was a perfect match for what RIM was at the time.” It wasn’t always easy. Wasylyshyn spent nine years at McMaster in materi-als engineering. He would complete his undergrad, master’s degree, and finally his PhD. Graduating with his master’s de-gree in 1995, job weren’t promising and options looked bleak. He found himself weighing the pros and cons of pursuing a job or returning to school for a PhD.As soon as he learned he’d have the chance to work again with his master’s degree supervisor, Professor Gyan Johari, the decision was easy. After completing his PhD, Wasyly-shyn became the problem solver RIM was looking for. “I had just come from that environ-ment doing my PhD, so I said if you can

CLASS REUNION ’65, ’70, ’75, ’80, ’85, ‘90

Thank you to all those who came out to celebrate their class reunions on Saturday, June 13, 2015.

Hope to see the classes

’66, ’71, ’76, ’81, ’86, ’91 next year. Saturday, June 4, 2016

get me a piece of equipment, I can set up an experiment to figure out why this screw is rusting or why this is happening,” Wasylyshyn said. “I could talk the language from my materials background where a lot of engineers here know a lot about their respective fields but materials were a black box to them.” Being a critical component to RIM would lead to many opportunities for Wasylyshyn. His team would finally grow to a point where he would become senior man-ager of materials research, a position he holds today. Looking back at his time spent at McMaster and the choices he made aca-demically, he would not change a thing. “If you don’t hit the lottery by mak-ing an app or a product that doesn’t make you a billionaire within the year, the skills of a PhD help you to think critically,” he said. “Of all my colleagues who have done PhDs, they are all doing quite well in highly technical fields, highly demanding fields.”

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Associate Dean of Engineering, Dr. Ken Coley leads the conversation back to student success and experience when you ask him about the undergraduate engineering program at McMaster. His role as associate dean (aca-demic) is to look after all aspects of the undergraduate programs, from recruit-ment and curriculum development to accreditation. “The reality is, everything comes back to student success and experience,” says Coley. “We have to support student success and enrich their experiences every way we can.” The goal is to attract students who want to change the world and equip them with the tools and skills to make that happen. Coley adds, “While we as-sume that was always the case, we have more confidence today about saying so, knowing that we have a shared commit-ment to delivering on that.” He insists that the culture and tradition of focusing on student success preceded his arrival at McMaster nearly 20 years ago. He carries on that tradi-tion by trying to make changes that will ultimately benefit students. Coley gets excited talking about new programs for engineering and biomedical engineer-

ing, and engineering and smart systems, currently in development, and foresees growing enrolment and even lower attrition in the years ahead. He lets the numbers speak for themselves. In his time at McMaster, en-rolment in engineering has grown, entry qualifications are higher, more students advance beyond first year, there are more programs, more engagement out-side the classroom and among students, and greater collaboration at every level. (See graphic)

Reluctant to take credit for the ever-improving undergraduate numbers, Coley believes they reflect the student-focused philosophy in engineering and combined contributions by faculty and students to the student experience. He mentions the new Gerald Hatch Centre for Engineering

STUDENT FOCUS DRIVING

UNDERGRADUATE PROGRAM TO NEW HEIGHTS

Experiential Learning that will be home for clubs and teams run by students, the peer tutoring and mentoring programs students are leading, and the macLab Endowment Fund where students con-tribute and determine how to disburse raised funds for equipment to improve their lab experiences. There’s more value placed today on experiences outside the classroom and bringing these experiences into the classroom, and more emphasis on developing well-rounded professionals.

All of that bodes well for the future of the undergraduate program and the success in life for engineering students.

Engineering I and Engineering I Co-op 1995 2015 Future

Admissions Average 78% 89% 90%+ with exemplary supplementary application

Level I Enrolment 450 to 500 880 1,100

Attrition (Level I to Level II) 25% 8% Less than 4.5%

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What is your best memory from your days at McMaster?My best memories involve the many people from whom I learned so much when I wasn’t in class. A summer of working with Dr. Alan Smith to write the “Orange Book” to familiarize students with the brand new VAX-11/780. Getting the faculty into the business of financed PCs for incoming students with Dr. Gilles Patry. Destroying various things on the earthquake shake tables with the team in the Applied Dynamics Lab. Plotting an Engineering-led University-wide Ethernet with Dr. Art Heidebrecht. Getting called into the President’s office after it came to light that some of us had … never mind.

The Bachelor of Engineering & Management program was the brain-child of progressive leaders at McMaster University who understood the changing dynamics in Canada’s job market. Knowing the value of engineers with a background in business, the faculty married engi-neering and management together. In honour of the 40th anniversary of this unique program, a special dinner was held on June 13, 2015. More than 140 alumni and distin-guished guests attended the gala-style event at McMaster Univer-

sity’s Convocation Hall. Engineering & Management alumnus Stephen Elop, former executive vice president of the Microsoft Devices Group, gave a speech to the crowd entitled ‘Engineering and Management: The Crucible of Destruction.’ Previously, Elop held the position of Nokia’s CEO. Leading up to his speech at the event, Elop took time to answer a series of questions from the MacEngineer on his distinguished career and some of the challenges that come with being on top.

CELEBRATING 40 YEARS OF ENGINEERING & MANAGEMENT

Q&A with STEPHEN ELOPHow did a degree in Engineering and Management from McMaster prepare you for your career?As one studies the many large techno-logical and product disruptions that have positively impacted society, it is often the case that a disruption is the successful marriage of innovation in both product-making and in the busi-ness model around those products. The Engineering and Management program prepares one to pursue these disrup-tions by equipping students with both the engineering and business prowess required to contemplate the “whole” innovation.

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If you could go back in time and give advice to your 18-year-old self, what would you say?I began to think that I would advise myself about managing one’s level of intensity, to strike the right balance, but I realize that “we are who we are”. I think the counsel would be more nu-anced; specifically, to push for greater diversity in where one applies his or her intensity. Be it diversity in the range of topics and disciplines that one explores, diversity in how one manages his or her life, or diversity in geogra-phy or culture, I believe that the best outcomes are derived when one has the greatest diversity of information and ex-periences on which to draw. The advice is therefore simple: pursue diversity in what you do and how you do it, and you will be better for it.

You’re someone who has held sev-eral high profile positions at major tech companies. What has been the most difficult part of being in the public spotlight these last few years and how did you work to overcome that adversity?

High profile positions naturally bring an opportunity for public scrutiny and commentary – it’s part of the job. And no matter what the circumstances, no matter what decision you make, there are people who will agree with you and there are those who will disagree, with lots of passion on both sides of the de-bate. I often found it helpful to actually absorb feedback, and judge for myself the various points of view. Of course, it is human nature to too easily dismiss the naysayers, because you see flaws or missing context in their arguments. But one has to remain humble: in the same way that many naysayers disagree for the wrong reason, there are surely just as many people agreeing with you for the wrong reason. In other words, don’t let too much of the positive or negative go to your head!

What advice would you pass on to students, particularly engineering students, who are looking to break into the tech sector? (Besides getting an Engineering and Management degree at McMaster University)

With the steady demand for engineer-ing talent, I think the challenge is less about breaking into the tech sector and more about what you do when you get there. The work of Carol Dweck, the Stanford psychologist and author of Mindset: The New Psychology of Suc-cess describes the “Growth Mindset” concept that has become a popular topic of conversation within Microsoft. In short, the Growth Mindset is about being on a continuous arc of learning, of embracing failures and using those moments to improve in the future. The tech sector is filled with examples of efforts and people that faced setback after setback, who learned from those setbacks, and still moved forward and ultimately succeeded. And then suc-ceeded again. A Growth Mindset is a huge component of the dynamism and constant reinvention of the tech sector.

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Want to learn more about smart systems at McMaster University? Watch the video: http://bit.do/mcmastereng

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ENERGY

Jim Cotton, Mechanical Engineering ProfessorLost and Found: Thermal Energy Conservation

To make most products, it takes energy. Too often, a lot of energy used in indus-trial production and other businesses goes to waste. Same goes for energy transmission through electricity, natu-ral gas, pipe oil pathways that supply our homes and communities; as much as 70% of potential energy is wasted during production. Tapping into this valuable resource is McMaster Engineer-

ing’s Jim Cotton. Cotton, a mechanical engineering professor, is finding ways to gather energy through harvesting heat. With a focus on integrated energy systems, Cotton and his research team are working on several projects, includ-ing capturing lost energy from Pizza Pizza’s ovens. This year, Cotton and a team of researchers was awarded a $3.8M grant from the Canada Founda-tion for Innovation (CFI) and the Ontar-io Research Fund to create Integrated Building Energy Harvesting Systems, which will allow researchers to pursue the alternative to the current ‘siloed’ energy sources we currently use.

MANUFACTURING

Chris Swartz, Chemical Engineering ProfessorSmart processes: Optimizing production lines

Imagine a factory that’s run by remote control. For Chemical Engineering Pro-fessor Chris Swartz that’s already a real-ity. Swartz spends a lot of time thinking about the factory of the future and the details required for integrated systems to work. Swartz, the ArcelorMittal Do-fasco Chair in Process Automation and Information Technology, explores the coordination of how varying systems

The increasing connectivity of our world, or the Internet of Things, continues to change everything, from how we catch a taxi, book a trip or turn on the thermostat.

There are forecasts that 50 billion devices will be connected to the Internet by 2020, representing a $19-trillion (U.S.) global market.

At McMaster Engineering, we’re ready to take on this challenge. As we envision the future of engineering in this digital age, our faculty members are contribut-ing their wealth of experience in exploring new frontiers and mapping the way for new systems, capabilities and organizations.

“McMaster Engineering is future-focused,” says Ishwar K. Puri, McMaster’s dean of engineering. “We, therefore, place major attention on smart systems. Its cen-trepiece is to make cities smarter about how they function, connect people and services, and grow.”

The faculty recognizes the urgent need for the problem-solving expertise of systems engineers, who have the sophisticated and up-to-date training, skills and knowledge required for our 21st-century world. As a result, we’ve started developing a new five-year undergraduate engineering and smart systems program.

“Engineers will play a pivotal role in outlining for society by articulating the oppor-tunities and costs associated with really radical new ways that deliver health care, transport goods, and create and use energy,” says John Preston, Associate Dean, Research and External Relations, McMaster University.

Work in the area of Internet of Things is already being done at McMaster. Meet eight engineering faculty members who are contributing to smart systems technology and ideas to help build the city of the future:

E HELPING BUILD THE CITIES OF THE FUTURE

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interact. Swartz, who also serves as director of the McMaster Advanced Control Consortium, and his research team, use mathematical algorithms and models that predict the future behav-ior of these processes. This is done so all systems operate in a coordinated fashion, something that is extremely necessary as cities and manufacturing systems become more and more auto-mated through the use of technology.

TRANSPORTATION

Saiedeh Razavi, Assistant Professor, Civil EngineeringUsing Locational Awareness for Safety

Although construction areas are easy to spot, sometimes the dangers they pose are not. Civil Engineering Associate Professor Saiedeh Razavi is paving the way for safer construction zones using innovative technology that will shape the way humans interact with heavy machinery. By using smartphones and sensors, Razavi’s work is provid-ing reliable and accurate situational information, warnings and emergency responses that can be used by construc-tion workers, equipment operators and motorist to avoid hazards and conges-tion. This is one of many projects for Razavi, whose research focuses on

connectivity, productivity, and environ-mental sustainability in construction and transportation.

WATER

Sarah Dickson, Associate Professor, Civil EngineeringSeeking and Securing Clean Water

Finding clean and abundant drink-ing water is a challenge around the world. Sarah Dickson, an associate civil engineering professor, is working to turn the tide on this harsh reality through the use of emerging technolo-gies. By using a global database and smartphones, Dickson intends to help smaller, marginalized regions around the globe pinpoint the location of and secure access to water supplies. The program director for Water Without Borders, Dickson’s research focuses on the input, transport and fate of contami-nants in groundwater systems. Water Without Borders is a collaborative graduate program in water, environ-ment and health between McMaster and the United Nations University that takes a trans-disciplinary and global approach to the water quality problem.

SAFETY CRITICAL SOFTWARE

Mark Lawford, Computing and Software ProfessorPutting the Standards in Software

When an engineer builds a bridge, she is required to perform standard analy-ses that produce direct evidence that the design satisfies regulations that help to ensure public safety. The same can’t be said for software, which can be found in everything from cars to home appliances to health care equip-ment. Mark Lawford of the Department of Computing and Software has spent the past 17 years researching how to make software-controlled systems safer. By determining the best means of developing safety critical software and demonstrating system safety in a cost effective manner. Prof. Lawford is providing the key enabling technology of the smart systems and smart cities of the future - safe, dependable software.

WASTE WATER

David Latulippe, Assistant Professor, Chemical EngineeringWaste Not, Want Not

Bill Gates amazed the world in early 2015 by drinking sewer sludge that had been transformed into safe water. McMaster’s David Latulippe has similar plans to turn sludge into something useful. The focus of the assistant chemi-

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cal engineering professor’s research is turning wastewater into energy – specifically in the form of biogas. The advanced treatment strategies that are being developed through his research will allow future cities to turn their wastewater facilities into revenue gen-erators, as they will be producing more energy than is needed to run them. This type of research is multifaceted and serves environmental and alterna-tive energy fields.

HEALTH CARE

Carlos Filipe, Chemical Engineering ProfessorPreventing Disease through Technology

If this technology had a flavour, it would be cool mint. Specializing in dis-ease prevention, Chemical Engineering Professor Carlos Filipe and his research team are using the concept of a mint breath strip to test water for contami-nants. While traditional methods take weeks for results, Filipe’s method takes minutes, and virtually anyone will be able to do it. Comparing the process

to that of dropping sugar into a cup of coffee, the water tester (which comes in a pill form) is key to not only helping expedite this lengthy process, but also available to those in remote regions. Filipe and his team intend to apply the same principle to vaccines.

RISK MANAGEMENT

Wael El-Dakhakhni, Associate Professor, Civil EngineeringBuilding for Catastrophe

Building structurally sound buildings alone isn’t enough anymore. With

climate change causing more natural disaster events than ever before, and with technological disasters increasing, creating resilient communities goes be-yond just engineering. That’s why civil engineer Wael El-Dakhakhni intends to combine traditional science, social science, and medicine with engineer-ing knowledge within the Institute for Multi-hazard Systemic Risk Studies. This institution brings together all of these areas to reflect the communities in which these buildings are being con-structed in, for perseverance, longevity, and safety of future resilient cities.

14 The MacEngineer

McMaster University alumnus Saud Adi (BTech. 2013) has created a successful condo development business with his brother, Tariq. The brothers launched Adi Development Group in 2007 in Burlington, while Saud was attending McMaster’s Bachelor of Technology program. The pair has found success building contemporary condo develop-ments aimed at a young, design-con-scious crowd. A testament to its growth and success, the company is forecasting $100 million in revenue this year. Saud Adi, who also studied construction engineering at George Brown College, talks to McMaster Engineering about how he got his start, who inspires him to succeed, and the advantages of a technology degree in the business world.

Q: How did you get your start in condo development?Adi: It all started with a bid on a piece of property around the corner from our

Q&A WITH SAUD ADI

SAUDTARIQ

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house. The bid went out to the l argest developers in the region. At the time, we had no name estab-lished in the industry, we were two young guys suddenly launched into the big leagues. Ten offers were short-listed and we were one of them. Incredibly, we ended up winning the bid only because of the relationship we had built with that agent. We realized afterwards that winning the bid was the easy part. We had to jump through dozens of hoops before launching the project. It was a really challenging time. At the end of the day, we pushed through all of these roadblocks to get it built. We made a great return on that deal and we just decided to keep rolling everything back in. Since then, we have been constantly growing to the point now where we have a portfolio of about roughly 5,000 units in the works, between planning, construction and acquisition.

Q: How has your education prepared you for what you’re doing now?Adi: My dad kind of forced me into it. He told me to go into business and I was like, ‘what does that mean? What is my job?’ I was looking for some sort of guidance. All I knew is that I didn’t want to work at a bank. So I took some time off. I went to George Brown and began working and studying in con-struction and engineering and loved it. It’s funny, on my graduation day my dad looked at me and said ‘Okay son, it’s time for the big one,’ and I’m like ‘this is probably the happiest time of my life and you’re telling me it’s time for the big one as in go to university?’ So I went to university just for him. I knew I could get it done. I was busy with work, but I had to get it done for him. At the end of the day, it taught me valuable lessons in perseverance and determination because it was really hard. It wasn’t easy. There were some classes that were very challenging and I tested myself, all the while starting up a business. I continued to tell myself that

these guys in the room aren’t smarter than me, it’s just a matter of working hard. I knew if I focused and gave it my all then I could do really well. And I did do really well. I graduated with honours at the exact time that my company was really taking off.

Q: You must’ve been working at your business while you attended McMaster.Adi: Oh yeah, it was literally a full time thing. I had no life and no friends dur-ing that time. I had a goal. I wanted to be successful in life and I knew what I wanted to do. School was my focus and work was my focus, and in the end, it paid off tenfold. I’m very happy now.

Q: Our dean is always saying that engi-neering is the liberal degree of the 21st century. What he means by that is really is that it prepares you to do virtually anything. You’re doing something like that, something that’s not directly related to engineering.Adi: Absolutely, I’ll be honest with you. I could honestly say engineering is probably the hardest undergrad degree you could do coming out of high school. Hats off to kids that do it right out of high school because I didn’t do it; I needed time to collect myself. It’s not an easy degree. If you do well in an engineering program it really sets you up for a few things in life. Your work ethic is a little bit better because you need that to suc-ceed in the program; your teamwork is better because you need that to survive your courses; your problem solving is a little better because you do that on a daily basis. It really sets you up for the future.

Q: What advice you would pass on to current students here. Adi: Honestly, don’t ever quit. I’ve had

my own parents tell me to stop what I’m doing and get a job. They had all the best intentions but at the end of the day, that was their first gut reaction to starting my own business and not having the safety net of a pay cheque. They’re my biggest fans now. My advice is this: Follow your dreams, get a mentor. Find a role model to look up to and learn from the risks they’ve taken, the mistakes they’ve made, and the success they’ve had. That’s how to make your dream come true. Everything takes time. Nothing is overnight. It’s taken us a really long time to get where we are and I still don’t think I am at where I want it to be. I’ll keep pushing until I get there.

Q: You mentioned mentorship. Who is your mentor?Adi: Through reading, I learned a lot from Donald Trump. I read The Art of

the Deal. It was a great book. It showed me the internal side of the devel-opment industry, the chal-lenges and stuff like that. My dad is a huge, huge role model that I look up to. He started from noth-ing and became a doctor and eventually became the director manager of medical health services in the airports in Saudi Ara-bia. In terms of success I look up to him, but as far

as the real estate business, I look up to Donald Trump. I love what he did with his brand. We want to elevate our brand to that level and I think we have done that pretty well, actually.

Q: What’s next for you and your brother? Adi: Our developments are in Burling-ton, our offices are in Burlington, I live in Burlington, but we are expanding beyond the city’s boundaries. We’re looking to be the top real estate brand in Ontario and we’re slowly growing into the space.

Q&A

16 The MacEngineer

As she enters her second year at McMas-ter, Jovellanos will be using this sum-mer’s experience to take on new things. What’s next on this busy bee’s list? Creating the Women in Technology Society.

TAKING CONTROL OF MIXED FEELINGS

Fourth year chemical engineering and management student Moustafa Kas-sem found himself indecisive. After falling in love with electrical engineering after seeing the final year capstone projects from the ECE Poster Day, he thought it was his path. Yet, after a conversation with chemi-cal engineering professor Carlos Filipe and some research, Kassem felt it was a better fit. Wanting to gain practical skills and learn more about the field, he became an undergrad researcher for chemi-cal engineering professor Christopher Swartz. “Right now I’m working on the dy-namic modelling for this process called

During the summer months, undergraduate students had the opportunity to work as Research Assistants (RAs) in the Faculty of Engineering. This past summer, there were over 140 students working as RAs with engineering professors, researchers and graduate students. They worked in the faculty’s research centres and labs. Many of the under-graduate RAs are also McMaster Engineering students, and some are from other McMaster faculties (e.g., Science) and different universities.Here are the experiences of three McMaster Engineering undergraduate summer researchers:

MAKING THE MOST OF THEIRSUMMERS

COMPUTER SCIENCE SUPER STAR

Alyssia Jovellanos is a quintessential busy bee. The second-year computer science student has a full schedule. The 19-year-old is the McMaster Computer Science Society president and recently selected Microsoft Student Partner. She is also the organizer for an annual event at McMaster where hun-dreds of students from across Canada participate in creating software and hardware projects, called DeltaHacks. With what spare time she has, she uses it to represent McMaster in hack-athons across the globe. On top of that, Jovellanos spent this past summer as an undergrad research-er for computing and software profes-sor Christopher Anand. Becoming an undergrad researcher helped her hone her skills and explore her interests. Being a student that wants to explore all things computer science, she is taking full advantage of what McMaster offers.

“I realized that there are a plethora of directions in which I could go re-garding a future career,” she said. “I saw participating in the summer research program as a great way to be more acquainted with McMaster and its re-sources, prepare for potential graduate school, as well as gain the opportunity to meet other researchers.” She combined her passion for soft-ware with work while in computing and software outreach. In this role she taught the basics in computer science to students in grades four through eight. Part of a team, she made software tools to help these students create their own simple programs. One of the perks of being an under-grad researcher was being able to ask for guidance while in a familiar setting. “Professor Anand demonstrated to me that he is, undoubtedly, a great mentor,” said Jovellanos. “I also received support from a fellow student in computer sci-ence, Joanathan Boulanger, who reas-sured me when I felt overwhelmed.”

Spring 2015 17

a good guidance.” The support doesn’t stop there.Kassem values the seminars offered to undergrad researchers and recom-mends those to attend them if they can. “They were wonderful, instead of learning the hard way when it comes to, for example, communication skills, you’re learning through other people so it’s definitely a great experience” he said.

A SUMMER TO REMEMBER Ryan Rogers is often called the guy who has it all figured out. But the fourth year Mechanical Engineering and Management student and president of the McMaster Engineering Society often feels the exact opposite. But like a lot of students, he’s still determining what to do after graduation. So Rogers turned to one of his me-chanical engineering professors, James Cotton, for help. He asked if he could work with him over the summer to explore his interest in heat transfer. “It was the right place, right time, and I was really grateful for it because I’ve learned so much,” Rogers said. “I’ve gone from yeah I could do this to yeah I actually really want to do this, there’s a huge mind shift that comes with it”. In about three months, Rogers has gone from never considering grad

school to it being an option. His role as a paid summer under-graduate researcher has also led him to new opportunities, such as the niche market that his research serves. Working under Cotton entails lab work centered on a project that cap-tures wasted energy from pizza ovens dubbed the TEG POWER Project. The project is a collaborative effort between Cotton and Pizza Pizza to har-ness wasted energy from conventional pizza ovens. Through this experience, Rogers connected the dots between his skills and interests. “My main goal is very much wanting to be engineering mechanical systems for environmentally friendly purposes,” he said. “When I found out I could have a similar impact, and help the environ-ment from a completely different angle, that was really rewarding.” As he concludes the summer as an undergrad researcher and begins the school year as MES president, Rog-ers can now look back at the past few months and say with confidence that he has finally figured it out.

the Tennessee Eastman problem” he said. “It’s an actual industrial chemical process but it’s used in literature as a way to all around test different control algorithms, optimization, and just try-ing multiple approaches.” An open-sourced process, the Ten-nessee Eastman problem is a way of allowing chemical engineers to attain an equal level benchmark in order to compare the performance of different algorithms for controlling and operat-ing the process. Kasem’s role is to implement mathematical equations that capture the behavior of the actual industrial process into a computer system, which are solved numerically to simulate the response of the plant under various conditions. “This is the industrial process of creating chemicals and isolating the ones you want out of the feeds that you are putting into it” he said with a laugh. “What I do is the modelling of the process which will hopefully lay the foundation for the future works.” Understanding that he would learn a lot this summer, gaining a mentor was a pleasant surprise. “Mohammad Zamry Jamaludin, the Ph.D student I’m working with would be a role model, as he’s the person I always go to when I need help on some-thing” Kassem said. “I feel I get more life advice from him as he’s working the same stream I want to go into, he’s been

18 The MacEngineer

t McMaster Engineering, we acknowledge excellence. That’s why we are pleased to recognize this year’s Joseph Ip Entrance Scholarship

and Dalvi Family Entrance Scholarship award recipients. The four recipients of the Joseph Ip Entrance Scholarship ($10,000 each) achieved a minimum admission average of 95% and demonstrated leadership skills and involvement in extracurricu-lar activities. “I would like to congratulate Lauren McGregor, Giorgos Kyprianou, Dylan Genuth-Okon and Andrea Obungen for their outstanding academic achieve-ments and excellent leadership skills,” says Joseph Ip (EngPhys 1979, M.Phys

1979), a former executive at what is now JDSU who contributed $1 million to the Faculty of Engineering for stu-dent scholarships and the Distinguished Engineering Fellow Program. “I am very pleased that they have chosen McMaster Engineering program for further development, and wish them continued success in their individual paths forward.” The two recipients of the Dalvi Family Entrance Scholarship ($7,500 each) achieved achieved a minimum admission average of 95%. Gregoy Lech and Rashan Bashar received this year’s awards. “My parents were very passion-ate about education and made many sacrifices for my education,” says Ashok Dalvi. “So this is partly in appreciation of their efforts. I have been associated with McMaster University and Hamilton

since the day I arrived in Canada. I spent the first four years of my stay in Canada at the university campus as a graduate student. Since my graduation I have been involved with the university in many ways. In addition to me, we have two more family members who are McMaster alumni – my son Anil and his wife Briana. So we have strong fam-ily ties with the University.” LEARN MORE ABOUT THIS YEAR’S IP AND DAVLI SCHOLARSHIP WINNERS:

Andrea Obungen, Giorgos Kyprianou, Lauren McGregor, Dylan Genuth-Okon

E

JOSEPH IP AND DALVI FAMILY SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENTS.

A

Spring 2015 19

Gregory Lech Rashan Bashar

JOSEPH IP ENTRANCE SCHOLARSHIP

Name: Dylan Genuth-OkonAge: 18Hometown: Buenos Aires, ArgentinaIf you could send a message to those who established your scholarship or award, what would it be?: Thank you so much. The scholarship made my choice of picking McMaster so much easier to make. This money helped me out so much because I have no financial assistance from anyone or an RESP plan. Having first year paid off is also going to help me focus on school and learning rather than worry about payments and debt.

Name: Lauren McGregorAge: 17Hometown: Bracebridge, OntarioWhy did you choose McMaster Engineering?: I chose McMaster’s Engineering program for a number of reasons. McMaster is well known for the quality of its engineering program and is one of Canada’s top universities overall. The aspects that really drew me to McMaster, however, were its collaborative atmosphere and its focus on sustainable engineering practices. I hope to be able to use my education in engineering in an environmentally focused career in the future.

Name: Andrea Obungen Age: 18 Hometown: Toronto, Ontario

If you were to send a message to those who created the scholarships you received, what would you say?:There are no words to describe how grateful I am for the people who cre-ated this scholarship and for those who decided to award me with it. Not only has this scholarship taken a huge financial load off my shoulders but it has also brought me to a school with a welcoming and supportive community. That in itself is priceless. All I can say is thank you from the bottom of my heart for this amazing opportunity and I truly hope to make the most of it.

Name: Giorgos Kyprianou Age: 18 years old Hometown: Brantford, ON

Why did you choose McMaster Engi-neering?: McMaster is undoubtedly an excellent and prestigious university, but further than that I knew McMaster could give me the University experi-ence I was looking for. From my first visit, I could feel a sense of belonging and inclusiveness and realized that McMaster possesses all the elements that make a school great; high aca-demic levels, hundred of clubs that take

learning outside the classroom, sports

and athletics and a ton of school spirit.

Now, having experienced the McMaster

lifestyle the last few weeks, I know I

made the right choice for me.

DALVI FAMILY ENTRANCE SCHOLARSHIP

Name: Rashan BasharAge: 18Hometown: Milton, ON

If you could send a message to those

who established your scholarship or

award, what would it be?: First, I would

thank them repetitively and then I

would thank them again for giving

so many students the opportunity to

thrive and to share their ideas with the

world.

Name: Gregory Lech Age: 18 Hometown: Hamilton, On

Why did I choose to come to McMas-

ter?: I chose McMaster because of their

reputation for excellence on the world

stage, in both academics and sport. The

campus is absolutely beautiful, and the

faculty and ambassadors are extremely

welcoming. The combination of these

factors creates an atmosphere at McMas-

ter that is unlike any other University I

visited, and I wanted to be part of it.

20 The MacEngineer

CAFE E-XpressFriday, October 30, 2015JHE-328, Grad Lounge John Hodgins Engineering Building, McMaster University

Key Challenges to Sustainable Steelwith DR. NESLIHAN DOGANAssistant Professor, Materials Science and Engineering

Due to an ever increasing demand for high quality steels, there is a worldwide increasing push for steelmakers to improve their steelmaking processes. This push is even becoming greater as automotive manufacturers require stronger thinner sections for lighter vehicles because recent regulations impose demanding vehicle greenhouse gas emissions and passenger safety goals. Another aspect is the effect of the steelmaking process itself on the environment. Global awareness of the adverse effect of increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide content in climate change is increasing. As one of the major CO2 emitters, steel industry is facing increasing pressure to reduce the environmental impact of their pro-duction processes. This talk touches on the concept of sustainability within the wider steelmaking industry and elabo-rates on the successes and struggles that steel industry faces in working towards a more sustainable business.

Hamilton’s “smart bike” program is the first bike share program of it’s kind in Ontario. The program’s uniqueness comes from the track-ing technology built into the cycles themselves. Launched last March, it’s hard to miss seeing one of the 750 blue bikes or 110 hubs that identify Hamilton’s bike share program, called SoBi. “Bike share is the fastest growing transportation mode in the world,” explains Peter Topalovic (Computer Engineering and Society, 2004 and Engineering and Public Policy 2008), Project Manager in Transportation Demand Management with the City of Hamilton, and a two-time McMas-ter Engineering graduate. He adds, “Bike share complements existing public transit and provides first and last mile connectivity by filling in transit gaps.” Topalovic is responsible for planning and developing the pro-

the Hammergram as part of the City’s integrated mobility strategy. After contact with McMaster’s Sustainability Office, he engaged with students from various faculties including Business, Arts and Science, and Engineering, gaining important insights and research op-tions that led to development of the city-wide program. Topalovic says he learned the importance of collaboration as an Engineering and Public Policy grad student in the W Booth School. “I gained the tools and skills to under-stand the context of my engineering work in the community. It’s hard to be successful without collaboration.” Similar to car share programs, riders can reserve a bike through the SoBi app, and pay for a one-time use or purchase monthly or yearly mem-berships. Although there are SoBi Hubs (bike racks) located throughout the city, because of the built in GPS, SoBi bikes can be left on any bike rack for a small recovery fee. Annual passes are offered to McMaster students at a special rate of $70. Interested riders can sign up for the bike share program at sobihamilton.ca

Spring 2015 21

Shawn Carnahan, an Electrical

Engineering grad from the Class

of 1982, is co-founder and chief

technical officer of Telestream.

The company won an Emmy

Award Sunday night for its inno-

vative work in closed captioning.

ENGINEERING GRAD’S COMPANY TELESTREAM WINS EMMY AWARD

similarly proud of their Tonys, so should the team at Telestream feel uplifted by its achievements in the demanding area of broadband cap-tioning.” Carnahan, co-founder of Telestream, also serves as its chief technical officer. “The importance of captions goes far beyond legal requirements,” he says. “From helping deaf and hard of hearing individuals enjoy television to assisting viewers with language ambiguity and allowing a weary traveler catch the news in a crowd-ed airport, captions play a critical role in our society. “To be recognized in this way is a fitting tribute to all the hard work that our team has invested. We feel honoured to have been recognized.”

BO’s smash hit drama Game of Thrones wasn’t the only winner at Sunday night’s Emmy Awards.

Electrical Engineering grad Shawn Carnahan’s company Telestream also took home hard-ware for its pioneering work in closed captioning. The Nevada City, California-based company has developed fast and simple ways to author and edit closed captions and subtitles for any type of video. The company was named the winner of an Emmy Award for Tech-nology and Engineering ahead of Sunday’s main ceremony. “We award the Technology and Engineering Emmy to companies who are the ‘tool makers’ of the in-dustry that have materially affected the television viewing experience,” says Robert P. Seidel, chairman, En-gineering Achievement Committee, National Awards Committee. “Just as screen actors are cited for Oscars and stage performers are

H

22 The MacEngineer

fter three years of study in the Materials Engineering and Society Program, Paul Tallon says he was attracted to an internship as a way of earning

some cash to pay his tuition bill. But while the salary he earned during his year-long working experience was help-ful, he’s decided it was the experience that was priceless. From May 2014 to April 2015, Tallon worked as an intern with Suncor En-ergy in Fort McMurray, Alberta. Under the direction of a materials engineer, he worked in quality assurance and reliability for the company’s extraction section, which contained six different plants and kilometres of pipeline. “It’s a very big sector to be in with

a lot of things that could fail, so my department was really critical,” he said. “We were constantly looking at things that could fail and we were constantly looking to upgrade things. It was really kind of a metallurgist’s dream, I’d say.” Along with undertaking root cause analysis of failed components, such as sections of pipes, Tallon was respon-sible for documenting all failures in the extraction section. He was also involved in a project that upgraded a kilometre of pipeline from carbon steel to stainless steel, in an attempt to address rusting issues. The experience taught him that workplace success relies on a different form of learning than he is accustomed to in a classroom. He saw the need to absorb verbal instructions and explana-

tions, and learn as you progress through a project. “It is a different muscle almost, to learn in the workplace instead of in academics, but there is definite cross-over,” he said. “The most exciting thing, I think, was to see something I knew from my textbooks in real life, and think, ‘I can understand why I need to learn this.’” Tallon says his experience has focused his career aspirations on the energy sector, although most likely in a renewable energy field. “To have real life experience after my degree, I think is huge. I think it will put me on top of some others who don’t have it in terms of interviews and getting jobs, as well as understanding where I want to be after school.”

THE PRICELESS

BENEFIT OF JOB

EXPERIENCE

A

Spring 2015 23

DIRECTORS

Dr. Michael Noseworthy on his appointment as Acting Director, School of Biomedical Engineering commencing July 1, 2015 to June 30, 2016.

Michael Noseworthy is currently an Associate Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. He joined the depart-ment on July 1, 2007. Michael obtained his Ph.D. from the University of Guelph in Applied Physiology and Biophysics/MR Imaging in 1997 and is currently serving as Co-Director of the School of Biomedical Engineering to June 30, 2015. During his tenure as Co-Director, Michael has been instrumental in developing a School that offers a collaborative environment in medical sciences and engineering.

Dr. Ken Coley on his ap-pointment as Director of the McMaster Steel Research Centre. Initially, Dr. Coley held a co-Director appoint-ment in this Center with

Dr. Gordon Irons which commenced July 1, 2011. Dr. Gordon Irons has since retired and Dr. Coley has been appointed sole Director of the McMaster Steel Research Centre to June 30, 2016. Dr. Coley has been an integral leader within the McMaster Steel Research Centre. He has played a significant role in promoting industrial collaborations, enhancing the facil-ity and advancing research which has led to the Centre’s substantial growth.

Dr. Eu-Gene Ng on his appointment as Director of the Master of Engi-neering in Manufacturing Engineering Program in the Walter G. Booth School of

Engineering Practice. Dr. Ng is an Associate Professor in the School of Engineering Tech-nology and the Department of Mechanical Engineering. Eu-Gene is an exceptional role

model of our research-intensive, student cen-tred philosophy, being an active researcher in Mechanical Engineering, and a valued instruc-tor and mentor to both his home department and to the School of Engineering Technology. His research into machining systems and more broadly in manufacturing processes, gives him an ideal survey of manufacturing roles in industry. This industrial experience has been beneficial to the undergraduate students in our BTech degree program and we look forward to that same strong mentorship being given in the graduate level Manufacturing program in SEP.

APPOINTMENTS

McMaster University welcomed Greig Mordue as the new ArcelorMittal Dofasco Chair in Advanced Manufacturing Policy in July. Mordue is an as-

sociate professor, jointly appointed with the Department of Economics in the Faculty of Social Sciences and the Walter G. Booth School of Engineering Practice in the Faculty of Engineering. Previously, Mordue was General Man-ager of Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada (TMMC) responsible for Corporate Planning and External Affairs. During his 20 plus years with Toyota he held a range of responsibilities related to Government Relations, Human Re-sources and Strategic Planning. Prior to joining Toyota, Mr. Mordue worked as a Special As-sistant to the Treasurer of Ontario and Ontario Minister of Finance, the Ontario Minister of Financial Institutions and the Ontario Leader of the Official Opposition. He holds a B.A. from Wilfrid Laurier University, a B Comm. from the University of Windsor, an MBA from Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh, Scotland and a PhD in Manage-ment from the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow, Scotland. He is a former municipal councillor.

It gives me great pleasure announce the following newly approved Administrative Academic Appointments. Ishwar PuriKUDOS!

DR. RAY LAPIERRE

He is currently Department Chair and an Associate Professor in the Department of Engineering Physics. Ray obtained his BSc in Physics from Dalhousie Univer-sity, and his MASc and PhD in Engineer-ing Physics from McMaster University. Upon completing his PhD, Ray joined JDS Uniphase as a Product Engineer/Research Scientist. After seven years with JDS Uniphase, Ray moved on from his position as Manufacturing Engineer-ing Manager to join the Department of Engineering Physics as a Sessional Lecturer. Ray has been a member of the Department since 2004 serving as both Undergraduate and Graduate Associate Chair. During this time, Ray also began a start-up company, Si35, which aims to commercialize nanowire-based solar cells. In addition to the above, Ray has sat on a number of Editorial Boards and is currently a member of the Editorial Board for the journal Nanotechnology. He is also a member of the NSERC Stra-tegic Projects Selection Panel and holds Executive positions on the Scientific Advisory Committee and is the Project Leader for NSERC Photovoltaic Innova-tion Network. In 2014, Ray received one of seven Faculty of Engineering Distinguished University Fellow honorific awards. Ray’s research focuses on con-trolling and manipulating the structure of semiconductor surfaces on the atomic scale for various optoelectronic device applications.

KUDOS!

24 The MacEngineer

HER CAREER TOOK FLIGHT AT BOMBARDIER

During her first year in McMaster’s Co-op Engineering program, Mina Nourmansouri had the opportunity to sample different engineering

disciplines before having to pick a particular path. When a group of alumni students made a presentation about the aluminum foam they had invested, she found her calling. About five years ago she became part of the Material and Process Engineering team at Bombardier Aerospace with a focus on metals and failure analysis. “I face new challenges each day and I’m constantly learning, which makes every day exciting for me,” says Nourmansouri. Her advice to emerging engineers and technolo-gists is to follow your passions and interests and let them lead you to an exciting career - and keep learning. “ Do not stop learning no matter what point you’re at in your career. Don’t be afraid of challenges. Ask questions and follow your curiosity, just as you did as a child.”

THE THRILL OF THE AHA! MOMENT

For Emily Nichols, her favourite part of any job is that Aha! moment when creative thinking and en-gineering principles come together and you suddenly

know how to solve a problem. It’s even better says Nichols when you reach the Aha! as part of a team. Nichols’ undergraduate degree is a Bachelor of Science in Engineering Systems & Computing from the University of Guelph and she has a Masters of Applied Science in Chemical Engineering from McMaster. What has surprised Nichols most about a career in engineering is discovering the flex-ibilities of engineering skills. She put those skills to use doing earthquake relief work while backpacking in South America and as a project leader on a water infrastructure project in a remote location near Peru. “ It was a week of non-stop thinking on my feet and optimizing the work while keeping it fun and safe for the team.” Her dream for women in engineering 25 years from now is that there will be no more discussion about women in engineering and women can simply be great engineers with

plenty of role models and mentors of both genders.

CHEMICAL ENGINEERING PROF COM-BINES MEDICINE WITH ENGINEERING

Heather Sheardown was trained as a Chemical Engineer at McMaster but moved toward Biomedical aspects of Engineering during her doctoral training

at the University of Toronto. Now she is a Professor at McMaster where she is making engineering contributions to the treatment of eye diseases. Sheardown’s research group includes about 10-12 undergraduate students, gradu-ate students and post doctoral fellows whose projects relate to contact lenses, better eye drops for delivering medicines to the eye and overcoming the need for freque3nt needles in the eye when treating diseases of the back of the eye. Heather says she’s loved engineering since her first days of classes and the ability to combine her interests in medicine with engineering is just icing on the cake.

Three McMaster Engineering students were selected from a pool of over 630 impressive applicants from coast to coast for The Next 36, Canada’s most selective program for young entrepreneurs. Kurtis Berg, (mechanical engineering), Janelle Hinds, (electrical and biomed)

and Joshua Segeren (mechatronics) were judged to be three of Canada’s most prom-ising entrepreneurs and chosen for the 2015 program. A National Selection Weekend is staged in January were applicants must compete for a spot in the Next 36. The

competition is open to Canadians of all academic background. Once selected, the candidates spend the next seven months building their companies with support from their mentors, a pool of business advisors, access to capital and world-class academic instruction.

THE NEXT 36 CHOSES THREE MCMASTER STUDENTS

KUDOS!

Spring 2015 25

New VP of PEO

Congratulations to Bob Dony, (PhD Electrical and Computer Engineering 1995) new VP of Professional Engineers Ontario.

An associate professor at the University of Guelph since 1997, Dony was first elected by the PEO membership in 2012 as a Councillor-at-Large, and re-elected for a two-year term in 2014. He was appointed VP by members of the PEO Council at their first meeting following the 2015 Annual General Meeting. Last year Dony was appointed as the Ontario representative on the national Canadian Engineering Accreditation Board (CEAB), which accredits engineering programs in Canada on behalf on provin-cial regulators.

McMaster Grad appointed to Expert Network In Australia

The Australian Govern-ment has appointed Robert K. Perrons (McMaster Mechani-cal Engineering 1995) to its Expert Network.

In addition to his duties as an Associate Professor at the Queensland University of Technology in Brisbane Australia, Per-ron will provide advice to the Australian Government about the energy industry and emerging innovations in that sector with the objective of accelerating the commer-cialization of new energy technologies.

Named to Canada’s Order of Military Merit

McMaster Engineering alum, Major George Garrard (Mechanical Engineer-ing 1985), Deputy Commandant, Royal Canadian Electrical and Engineers School, has been named a member of the Order of Military Merit. The prestigious honours were bestowed in a ceremony at Rideau Hall by His Excellency the Right Honour-able David Johnston, Governor General and Commander-in-Chief of Canada in recognition of meritorious service and de-votion to duty by members of the Canadian Armed Forces.

2015 Stephen Leacock Humour Award Winner

A year after receiving the McMaster Faculty of Engineering’s L.W. Shemilt Distinguished Engineering Alumni Award, Terry Fallis

has won the Stephen Leacock Medal for Humour for his fourth book, No Relation (McClelland & Stewart). It’s a second win for Fallis who won his first Leacock Medal in 2008 for his self-published work, The Best Laid Plans. A 1983 McMaster grad in Mechanical Engineering, and former MSU president, Fallis is also an inductee to the McMaster Alumni Gallery (1986) and 2008 recipient of the MSU Alumni Association’s Lifetime Achievement Award for Leadership.

KUDOS! NEWSSiemens provides McMaster University with $458M software grant for product design and developmentA multi-million dollar software grant from Siemens Canada in April will give McMaster University students the opportunity to use the same technology that companies around the world employ to design some of today’s most sophisticated products. The in-kind software grant from Siemens product lifecycle manage-ment (PLM) software business has a commer-cial value of more than $458 million. The grant announcement was made on April 9 during the McMaster Manufacturing Forum hosted by the McMaster Manufacturing Research Institute (MMRI). Engineering students and faculty will use the sophisticated software at the MMRI, one of the largest institutes of its kind in Canada. The 15,000- square-foot facility is designed to meet the complex needs of leading manufacturers in the polymer, automotive and aerospace industries, as well as the tool, die and mold industry.

Three McMaster engineering professors recognized as Canada Research ChairsThree McMaster faculty members were among those recognized as Canada Research Chairs in an announcement in April made by the Hon-ourable Kellie Leitch, Minister of Labour and Minister of Status of Women.

• Chemical engineering professor Heather Sheardown was awarded a Canada Research Chair in Ophthalmic Biomaterials and Drug Delivery Systems (Tier I) to continue her inter-nationally recognized research in ophthalmic materials and drug delivery systems.

• Younggy Kim, Assistant Professor, Civil Engi-neering, will use his Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Water and Health to develop new sustainable water and wastewater treatment technologies.

• Jamal Deen, Professor, Electrical and Com-puter Engineering, will maintain his world-class research program with his Canada Research Chair in Information Technology.

26 The MacEngineer

MCMASTER ENGINEERING NEWS

EUROPEAN ACADEMY OF SCIENCES AND ARTS Jamal Deen, Professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering, and the Canada Research Chair in Information Technology, was elected as a member of the esteemed European Academy of Sciences and Arts (EASA) in March. Deen has been published extensively in the areas of micro /nano-electronics and optoelectronics. Based in Salzburg, Austria, t he EASA brings together more than 1,500 scholars, including 29 Nobel Laureates, from around the globe focusing on scientific, social, cultural and ethical issues.

COVER OF PRESTIGIOUS SCIENCE MAGAZINE Making the cover of Physics Today for a scientist is like a musician making the front of Rolling Stone. That’s exactly where McMaster University Materials Science and Engineering Assistant Professor Kathryn Grandfield found herself in April: Featured on the front of the most influential physics magazine in the world. Grandfield’s featured article covered a range of topics from the history of bone, implants and their interfaces to why devices such as hip replacements or dental implants fail in the body.

UNIVERSITY AWARDS Jamal Deen, a professor in electrical and computer engineering, and Shiping Zhu, a professor in chemical engineering, were among five professors who received McMas-ter’s premier honour: Distinguished University Professor. The award recognizes the highest level of excellence in teaching, learning and research. Associate Professor in Chemical Engineering Todd Hoare earned a University Scholarship prize, which recognizes faculty members in mid -career who have already distinguished themselves as international scholars.

SCOTIABANK SCHOLAR

The Black Business and Professional Asso-ciation recognized electrical and biomedical engineering student Rotimi Fadiya’s achieve-ments as a Scotiabank Scholar during its annual Harry Jerome Awards in Toronto in April. Fadiya is the vice chairperson of the National Society of Black Engineers.

ASME In May, Mechanical Engineering Professor Saeid Reza Habibi earned the distinction of being named an American Society of Mechan-ical Engineers (ASME) Fellow, a recognition of service to the organization and research accomplishments.

SPRING CONVOCATION Congratulations to our honorary degree recipients: George Roter, co-founder of Engineers Without Borders, and Tom Jenkins, chairman of Open Text Corporation. Alumnus Sam Virtue (Engineering Physics 2015) and Sean Mercer (Chemical Engineering & Bioen-gineering 2015) served as valedictorians.

TEACHING AWARD Kevin Dunn, Assistant professor, Chemical Engineering, was recognized in June with the 2015 President’s Award for Outstanding Contributions to Teaching and Learning from McMaster University. This award acknowl-edges excellent teaching practices on campus.

CIVIL ENGINEERING AWARD McMaster Engineering Professor Ghani Razaqpur was awarded the with the Horst Leipholz Medal of the Canadian Society for Civil Engineering for his outstanding contribu-tions to engineering mechanics research and practice in Canada in June.

WASTE HEAT PIZZA PROJECT WOWS OCE SHOWCASE A McMaster Engineering project designed to revolutionize renewable energy gained major attention at last spring’s Ontario Centre of Excellence Discovery Innovation Showcase in Toronto. James Cotton, a mechanical engineering professor, has led a team of student research-ers on a project designed to reduce wasted heat and energy loss from pizza ovens during the cooking process. The HARvEST initiative has helped Pizza Pizza reuse wasted heat from ovens into more useful forms such as space heating and lighting. Ninety per cent of the energy being used was previously wasted. The Pizza Oven Waste Energy Recovery (POWER) system was featured on the Busi-ness News Network during the showcase.

AWARDS GALA HONOURS FACULTY, STAFF AND ENGINEERING ENTREPRENEURS University, corporate and community leaders gathered to recognize engineering entrepreneurs and McMaster Engineering faculty, staff and students during the annual Applause and Accolades Awards Gala on Thursday, May 7. Among those celebrated were Trueman Goba who received the McMaster University Faculty of Engineering Leadership Award. Goba is chairman of Hatch Goba in South Africa. ArcelorMittal Dofasco President and CEO Sean Donnelly was recognized with the L.W. Shemilt Distinguished Alumni Award.

volume 68, number 4April 2015

A publication of the American Institute of Physics

www.physicst day.org

also:The top quark turns 20 ◄

Japan's electrical woes affect science ◄Cavity gains for atom interferometry ◄

BONEIMPLANTS

IN 3D

Spring 2015 27

Donnelly graduated with a Bachelor of En-gineering in Metallurgical Engineering in 1981.

PHD GRADUATE PUBLISHED IN NATURE PHOTONICS Engineering Physics PhD graduate Jason Ackert work on producing a novel photodetector published in esteemed journal Nature Photonics in May. Working under

the supervision of Professor Andy Knights in the Department of Engineering Physics, Ackert’s reimagined photodetector is capable of fast operation at longer wavelengths of light than before.

TWO NEW FELLOWS FROM MCMASTER INDUCTED INTO THE CANADIAN ACADEMY OF ENGINEERING Two McMaster Engineering professors have been elected by their peers to join a distinguished engineering academy that offers key advice on matters of critical importance to Canada. Natalia Nikolova, an Electrical & Computer Engineering Professor, and Gu Xu, a Professor of Materials Science and Engineering, were both inducted as Fellows into the Canadian Academy of Engineering during the organization’s annual meeting and symposium held in Hamilton on June 4, 2015.

The academy is a national institution through which Canada’s most distinguished and expe-rienced engineers provide strategic advice on matters of critical importance to Canada.

ELECTRIC VEHICLES AND HARVESTING WASTE ENERGY RESEARCH PROJECTS AMONG THOSE TO RECEIVE $15M FROM ONTARIO GOVERNMENT Two major McMaster University engineering projects were among those to receive nearly $15-million in research funding. More than $4.4-million from the Ontario Research Fund was announced to establish the Virtual Electric and Hybrid Electric Vehicle Powertrain Integration Lab (HEPIL). Under the direction of McMaster’s Ali Emadi, who holds the Canada Excellence Research Chair in Hybrid Powertrain, engineers and scientists

Sean Donnelly

Natalia Nikolova

28 The MacEngineer

will research and test the next generation of vehicles with electrified powertrains using a sophisticated dynamometer which can test vehicle force, torque or power. Mechanical Engineer James Cotton and John Preston, Professor and former Chair of Engineering Physics, and a team of collabora-tors received $1.9 million for the Research Facility for Integrated Building Energy Harvesting Systems (ReFIBES), the only test facility of its kind in North America. Their team will investigate new ways to capture the energy—electrical, thermal or fuel energy—which is lost during transport to our homes and communities. The project received matching funds from the Canada Foundation for Innovation.

MCMASTER ENGINEERING WELCOMES TWO NEW SCHULICH LEADERS The Schulich Leader scholarship program that supports high-performing students at leading Canadian universities is doubling down on McMaster, naming four incoming

students - including two from engineering - as recipients of the prestigious award. The program, founded by philanthro-pist Seymour Schulich, has been providing undergraduate scholarships in the STEM fields since 2012. It is funded by The Schul-ich Foundation and co-administered by UJA Federation of Greater Toronto. Under the program, each participating university selects its Schulich Leaders from a pool of candidates nominated by their high schools. Schulich Leaders in Engineering each receive $80,000 to support their undergradu-ate studies. Welland’s Conary Coyne, a graduate of Notre Dame College School (Engineering) Newmarket’s Melissa Cusack Striepe, a graduate of Newmarket High School (Engineering).

MCMASTER ENGINEERING RESEARCHERS WIN CFI GRANTS McMaster engineers will explore ways to improve tooling in the manufacturing sector, use sensors to help seniors in their homes and

study bone implants thanks to the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI). Researchers in McMaster’s Faculty of Engineering received more $600,000 through CFI’s John R. Evans Leadership Fund (JELF). The funding was announced July 29 in Moncton, New Brunswick. Mechanical engineering professor Stephen Veldhuis, director of the McMaster Manufacturing Research Institute (MMRI), garnered a $398,380 JELF award to improve the performance of tooling using an inte-grated coating strategy involving material and process parameter optimization. Qiyin Fang, Canada Research Chair in Biophotonics, received $149,036 to lead an interdisciplinary team of researchers for the project Intelligent home Sensor Networks for the Elderly. Materials science engineer Kathryn Grandfield received a $61,889 JELF award to develop new methods to identify the underly-ing mechanisms involved in the bonding of implants materials to bone with very special-ized high-resolution techniques.

Jason Ackert

Spring 2015 29

We’re one of the world’s top 100 universities and we are changing the world. McMaster Engineering provides opportunities to examine, understand, communicate and act to improve our world. We address the great challenges that face society by producing solutions that combine social responsibility with technological advances. Our researchers, educators, students and graduates are engaged citizen scholars who are changing the world.

World-Changers

www.eng.mcmaster.ca ENGINEERING

Meet our World-Changers: Natalia Nikolova Ph.D., IEEE Fellow, P.Eng - Using microwaves to improve health and security - Inductee Canadian Academy of Engineering Gu Xu M.Sc., Ph.D., D.E.S. - Creating reliable, renewable energy from plastic - Inductee Canadian Academy of Engineering

Frances Lasowski Ph.D. candidate - Drug delivery to the eye - 2014 Claudette MacKay-Lassonde Ph.D. Scholarship

Tom Jenkins, Innovator and alumnus Digital Information Management pioneer, entrepreneur and leader - RHFC, OC, QDJM, Chairman, Open Text


World-Changers






World-Changers





30 The MacEngineer

EIt is September once again, and for the McMaster Engineering Society that means another great opportunity to welcome the first year class to everything McMaster Engineering has to offer. This Welcome Week, more than 150 Engineering Representatives welcomed 1100 first year engineering students with record McMaster pride. The team received praise from the university, faculty, and most importantly the first year class themselves throughout the nine days of intensive programming. This program-ming included the same old traditional events such as the annual Bus Pull event to raise money for Cystic Fibrosis Research, The Glorious Engineering Kickback Faculty Night event and the Engineering Olympics Games. However, some fresh initiatives we’re introduced such as providing fruit from Fiddes Wholesale Produce and sunscreen to first years and reps throughout the week, and our brand new MES 3v3 Shinerama Soccer Tourney will hopefully be a fundraising staple of the week moving forwards. As always, our Engineering Reps kept spirits high and did not only spread the love for McMaster Engineering culture, but wholeheartedly supported the goals and strategic priorities of the Student Success Centre. We had an amazing, successful, high-energy week that we are very proud of - but this week would not have been possible without the support we received from the Faculty of Engineering and our amaz-ing team of Representatives.

WELCOME WEEK

The Faculty of Engineering hosted the 1st Annual First Year Students and parents BBQ on Saturday, September 12, 2015. Dean of Engineering, Ishwar Puri, admin-istrative and upper year students had an opportunity to meet and mingle parents and students wel-coming them to our community. We expect it to be an annual event.

PARENTS BARBECUEE

EVENTS

Spring 2015 31

As our summer comes to a close, we would like to give a big thank you to all of our supporters, who made it possible for us to engage our students this year. Venture has been fortunate enough to receive the support of parents, teachers, generous companies and national organizations, all of whom play key roles in our continued success. This year, Venture has taken on many new initiatives, allowing us to provide more diverse program-ming throughout our camps and outreach programs. This summer, we hosted our first, Six Nations camp at McMaster University. This program contains a great focus on cultural relevance, joining the science and engineering projects students have learned at camp with aboriginal traditions and culture. In 2015, a partnership between McMaster Engineering’s Venture program, Actua and Google sparked the creation of a brand new com-puter science initiative, Codemak-ers, focused on introducing youth to the exciting world of computer programming and opportunities computer science can provide. In addition to our Codemakers program, this year Venture started a new all-girls program, Yes SHE Can!, focused on providing girls in grades 6, 7 and 8 with a positive STEM experience. With this camp, Venture succeeded in providing a space where girls felt comfortable to experiment and learn, dispelling stereotypes surrounding women in STEM. Throughout this year, Venture has continued to grow and has achieved many successes. This suc-cess, however, would not be pos-sible without the continued support of McMaster Engineering, mentors and staff that make such program-ming possible. Venture will contin-ue to expand and we cannot wait to see what we will accomplish in our 25th year.

SUCCESS

SUMMER PROGRAMS A

BIG

32 The MacEngineer

4 @ $10,0004 @ $10,00024 @ $7,500

24 @ $7,500100100

HatchSchhoolarships

Hatch Scholarships

Hatch Scholarships 2 @ $48,000@@@@2 @@@22

00032,00000322,032,$32$32$3$3$$ 2 @ $32,000Dean’s Excellence

EEntrance Scholarships

Dean’s Excellence

Entrance Scholarships

Dean’s Excellence

Entrance Scholarships

Undergraduaattee Summer

Research Awarrdds

Undergraduate Summer

Research Awards

Undergraduate Summer

Research Awards

FACULTY OF ENGINEERING

We are one of the world’s top 100 universities and we are changing the world.

DEADLINE DATE FOR APPLICATION: APRIL 5, 2016

HATCH SCHOLARSHIPS:1 @ $32,000 HATCH SCHOLARSHIP1 @ $32,000 HATCH SCHOLARSHIP

FOR ABORIGINAL STUDENTS

DEAN’S EXCELLENCEENTRANCE SCHOLARSHIPS

For students entering Engineering I, Comp Sci I, or B.Tech. I as of Sept 2016Admissions average ≥ 95%For students with strong leadership skills and a commitment to community contribution

APPLY AT www.eng.mcmaster.ca/future

Documents

MacEngineer Fall 2015