 |
|
 |
 |
Awards & Achievements The Charles Stark Draper PrizeVladimir Haensel has been selected by the National Academy of Engineering to receive the engineering profession's highest honor, the $450,000 biennial Charles Stark Draper Prize. Haensel is honored as the 1997 Draper Prize laureate for his revolutionary development of the "platforming" process. He will receive his prize in Washington ceremonies on February 25, 1998. Platforming is a breakthrough chemical engineering technology that uses a platinum-based catalyst—a material that enhances chemical reaction—to convert petroleum into the high-level fuels that we rely on for nearly all of our transportation needs. It also produces "aromatic" petrochemicals, the raw materials used in the manufacture of plastics. Platforming has made today's transportation fuel vastly more efficient, environmentally friendly and easier and cheaper to produce than anyone thought possible just a few decades ago. Haensel invention platforming in 1947. Today, more than 4 million barrels of petroleum per day are refined throughout the world wiht platinum-based catalysts. Currently Haensel, 83, is a professor of chemical engineering at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. Federal Engineer of the YearWilliam W. Brubaker, P.E. was named 1997 Federal Engineer of the Year on February 21, during National Engineers Week, 1997. Brubaker is Director of Facilities Engineering for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration in Washington, D.C. During a period of large agency budget reductions, Brubaker was able to stretch the buying power of facilities investments. He also helped NASA to significantly improve its facilities’ prediction testing and inspection methods. The Montgomery Point Lock and Dam is a first-of-its-kind, featuring dam gates which lower to allow barge traffic to pass over during high river flows. Project design also allows the locks to be submerged. Clement was one of ten finalists from among 29 agencies competing for the award, which is presented by the Professional Engineers in Government division of the National Society of Professional Engineers. He is Little Rock's District Engineering Division Technical Manager for the Montgomery Point project. Clement holds a B.S. in civil engineering from the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville. In addition to recognizing his professional accomplishments, the Federal Engineer of the Year Award recognized Clement's community contributions. National Medal of TechnologyThe National Medal of Technology is the highest honor awarded by the President of the United States to America's leading innovators. The President recognizes technological innovators who have made lasting contributions to America's competitiveness and standard of living. The annual award is bestowed upon individuals, teams, or companies for innovations, developments and commercialization of technology that results in improved products, services or processes. The 1995 National Medal of Technology recipients included:Edward R. McCracken, Silicon Graphics, Inc., for his groundbreaking work in the areas of affordable 3D visual computing and super computing technologies; and for his technical leadership skills in building Silicon Graphics, Inc., into a global advanced technology company. IBM team: Praveen Chaudhari, IBM TJ Watson Research Center, Jerome J. Cuomo, North Carolina State University (formerly with IBM) and Richard J. Gambino, State University of New York at Stony Brook (formerly with IBM), for the discovery and development of a new class of materials - the amorphous magnetic materials - that are the basis of erasable, read-write, optical storage technology, now the foundation of the worldwide magnetic-optic disk industry. 3M, for its many innovations over the decades, producing thousands of successfully, commercialized products, from the unique optical film that revolutionized the design of laptop computer screens to breakthrough technologies that make possible the ubiquitous Post-ItTM Repositionable Notes. For aggressive international expansion producing nearly half of 3M's $14 billion in sales, including $1.5 billion in U.S. exports. And for creating 86,000 jobs worldwide, including 48,000 in the U.S. Black Engineer of the YearArthur E. Johnson, President of Lockheed Martin Federal Systems, was named 1997 Black Engineer of the Year. Johnson, of McLean, Virginia, accepted his award as part of National Engineers Week 1997 on February 15 in Baltimore. Johnson leads an organization of almost 8,000 employees that provides advanced information technology products and services, including complex systems, and integration solutions to the U.S. Department of Defense, civilian agencies of the federal government, and selected international customers. National Engineers Week salutes the women engineers and inventors who contribute to our quality of life. Women in EngineeringMeet the real moves and shakers in this world: engineers. From astronauts to mystery writers, women engineers make their marks. Real stories feature fascinating women ahead of their times in "Genius: Not Gender". A chemical engineer is putting her talents to work in medicine. Read more about engineers and their achievements by visiting our Eweek News and Feature News sections.
|
 |
National Engineers Week Foundation
|