Dear MET/MFET/MFET Graduates and Current Students,

The fall semester passed quickly and the department has another crop of MET and MFET graduates heading for the workplace or continuing education.  In December, there were 43 MET BS degrees and 3 MFET BS degrees awarded.  Job prospects for new graduates are improving and the College of Technology job fair next month is booked to overflow capacity as companies look for top quality graduates.  For May 2006 graduates, the job market was excellent.  The MFET program had 92.3% placement at an average starting salary of $52,050.  The MET program had 85.4% placement with an average starting salary of $46,801.  Enrollment in the department remains at record levels as the department maintains its position as the largest in the College.  We continued strong investment in new laboratory equipment with the installation of new CNC lathes and mills, new plastic injection molding equipment, and a planned new rapid prototyping capability.  There are some exciting events planned this spring as the college celebrates Technology Week.  Read on for more details.

Fall Alumni Event and Family Day

The department held a joint Family Day and Alumni Day on Saturday, September 9.  The department was open for family tours of the labs and facilities.  As shown in the picture, Professor French demonstrates a ping-pong ball cannon shooting through a can of soda (with devastating consequences) to visiting alumni and family.  We had an excellent turnout of family and alumni, many of them on their way to the Purdue/Miami of Ohio game.  MET hosted many alumni at the game, which was one of the most exciting of the season with a 38-31 Boilermaker win in overtime.

 

Faculty and Student Recognition

Graduate students Grant Robinson and Michael Whitfield won 2nd place in the Burton D. Morgan Entrepreneurship Center business plan competition.  Their business plan was for the start-up company that they formed with Prof. Mark Jackson, Micro Machinists LLC.  The company is developing a machine tool for high-speed machining at the micro scale.  Shown (L-R) are Prof. Jackson and graduate students Mike Whitfield and Grant Robinson holding the prize check for $12,000 to be used to get the company off the ground.

Every year, the department presents awards to its outstanding faculty and graduate students for excellence in the classroom and other aspects of their roles in the education of our undergraduate students.  This year, Prof. Henry Kraebber was selected as the Outstanding Tenured Faculty Member in MET for instructional effectiveness and innovation, and his work with undergraduate students.  Prof. Mark French was selected as the Outstanding Non-Tenured Faculty Member for instructional effectiveness and innovation, and he was also selected as the Outstanding Undergraduate Teacher for his excellence in teaching.  In addition, graduate student Jennifer Singh was selected as the Outstanding Teaching Assistant in MET.  Students select the award recipients through ballots and evaluation of faculty to specific criteria for each award.  We honor our selected faculty and graduate students on a recognition plaque outside the MET office.

 

What’s New in the Department?

2006 was a busy year for energy education and outreach! Professor Heather Cooper has delivered a variety of educational and hands-on energy workshops for youth, student, and public audiences throughout the year, including several “Camp Energy” sessions for the Lafayette Urban Ministry’s summer camp for 8-10 year olds. In addition, her portable museum exhibit “Our Energy Future: Hydrogen and Fuel Cells”, made possible by a grant from Purdue’s Energy Center at Discovery Park and the Lilly Foundation, will make its debut in early 2007. The purpose of the exhibit is to teach 3rd-5th graders and their parents about energy and power, hydrogen and its uses, and fuel cells. Design and construction of the exhibit were led by David Goodman (MET PhD student) and Tobe Woodrough (BS MET December 2006), with lots of help from Rob May (BS MET December 2006) and Steve Hahn. The exhibit will first appear as a featured component of the upcoming 2007 alternative energy exhibit at the Terre Haute Children’s Museum.

 

Purdue's Manufacturing Engineering Technology program has been awarded $10,000 by California-based Northrop Grumman Corp. for support of the university's faculty and student projects in advanced manufacturing.  Prof. Brad Harriger said the award is especially meaningful because it is the first time that Northrop Grumman, a defense and aerospace company, has given an award of this kind to a program that is not aircraft design-related.  "We are honored that a corporation we've had such a great relationship with in the past is recognizing the importance of production and manufacturing," Harriger said. "Purdue has had a number of collaborations with Northrop Grumman and we're eager to put our skills toward developing solutions for problems in the aerospace manufacturing industry."  The award was announced during the Aerospace Automation Consortium held in conjunction with the International Manufacturing Technology Show in Chicago in September.  Nick Bullen, Northrop Grumman principal engineer for production engineering, said the corporation's positive experience with Purdue was a key factor in awarding the university the first production engineering award.  "Purdue's research, support and educational program is a contributor to the advancement of aerospace manufacturing technology," Bullen said. "Its Manufacturing Engineering Technology program is involved in aerospace manufacturing challenges that directly apply to the products that Northrop Grumman produces."  Bullen said Harriger, along with mechanical engineering technology department head John Hartin, have supported and been involved with a number of Northrop Grumman directed research projects.  "Purdue's Manufacturing Engineering Technology and mechanical engineering technology programs are outstanding sources of students for us," he said. "Our collaborative research at Purdue and support from our suppliers have been instrumental in solving critical manufacturing problems, such as the ability to confirm the position of parts using radio frequency technology prior to the machining operation."

 

In late October, MET students (L to R) Brandon Schwoeppe, Stephen Uszak, Kendall Brubaker and Corey Clevenger met with Vic Edelbrock, President & CEO of the Edelbrock Corporation, and his family at the SEMA Trade Show in Las Vegas. This was part of their week-long internship at the trade show. The intern program was designed to provide valuable learning experiences for students to apply material learned in the classroom to specific field experiences in the automotive industry.  They were afforded the opportunity to observe, participate, and gain experiences within aftermarket segments to better prepare them for a career in the automotive industry.  The interns worked booths and participated in the behind-the-scenes work required by the show. This afforded them the opportunity to network with leaders in the automotive after-market industry.

 

Technology Week

The College of Technology is planning a Technology Week to celebrate innovation, a hallmark of the college.  A calendar of events is available in the January 22, 2007, College of Technology E-Newsletter at http://www.tech.purdue.edu/e%2Dnewsletter/   The week is full of events to celebrate technology and engage our students, alumni, and friends.  The MET Department will host the MET and MFET Industrial Advisory Committees  as well as our Distinguished Technology Alumnus who will be profiled in the next edition of this newsletter.  Stay tuned for additional information.

 

Call for Graduate Students

Our leadership in applied research is growing.  Our sponsored program activity remains strong and the success of our faculty and students continues.  Our faculty and students seek new initiatives in our strategic areas of energy, manufacturing, automation, fluid power, and design, and the research agenda for undergraduate and graduate students is broad.  As our research mission grows, we are looking for qualified and motivated graduate students to fill our available graduate teaching and research assistantships.  If you have ever thought about returning to complete a master’s degree or even a Ph. D., now might be the time.  You can go on the CoT website at www.tech.purdue.edu/academics/graduate/index.cfm  for information and application materials. 

The excitement continues as the department continues to expand the ranks of its faculty, enhance the facilities, and work to maintain a relevant and industry-focused curriculum.  We would like to share your stories with our students, faculty, and alumni, so send along items of interest. We are always on the lookout for alumni who have distinguished themselves in their career, whether technical achievement or advancement into management.  Please send nominations or leads to help us identify our next Distinguished Alumnus.  We will be planning at least one yearly event for our alumni, current students, and faculty.  Keep your eyes open for announcements for Technology Week in the spring.

On a personal note, I am leaving Purdue to take a position in the private sector.  It has been an honor and a privilege to serve as MET department head, and I wish the department, its students, and alumni the greatest success in the future. 

John R. Hartin

MET Department Head

jhartin@purdue.edu           

Be sure to keep your address and email address up to date with the Purdue Alumni Association.  Visit their site at https://awc.alumni.purdue.edu and stay connected!