Jill Krutz, an engineer with Caterpillar, Inc., in Joliet, Illinois, is improving the hydraulic assembly processes and developing manufacturing processes for new electro-hydraulic products.

Currently in the Manufacturing Professional Development Program at Caterpillar, Krutz is completing three one-year rotations in operation supervision, manufacturing engineering, and purchasing or logistics.

Jennifer Mager, an engineer with Caterpillar, Inc., in East Peoria, Illinois, leads gear design, heat treat and shot peening process development projects as well as a project focusing on licensing Materials Technology Intellectual Property.

As Lab Supervisor, Mager led a re-engineering project in which dramatic improvements in response time and accuracy of lab results were achieved. She also represented Caterpillar on the ASTM Hardness Testing subcommittee. As Weld Engineering Supervisor, she led a team of engineers supporting manual and robotic welding processes. Mager also maintains an active teaching role as part of her job responsibilities. She teaches courses in Ferrous Metallurgy and Heat Treatment of steel and provides training on 6 Sigma diagnostic tools and statistical methods. 

Jason Ruhlman, an engineer at IBM in Poughkeepsie, New York, is involved in world-wide process development and manufacturing support for servers.

Ruhlman implemented processes and trained counterpart manufacturing engineers in Montpelier, France, and Dublin, Ireland. He developed enhanced support tools for the purpose of increased efficiency and systems intregration. Ruhlman also coordinated the semi-annual business control assessment for Worldwide Manufacturing Engineering and provided leadership and mentioning for new hires. 

Wendy Stary, an engineer at Phillips Plastics Corporation in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, is a project engineer customizing molds of plastics and metals.

Stary manages products from the time the job is initiated by the customer until it is ready for production. Her responsibility involves careful planning and communication with the customer, vendor, internal manufacturing and production support, and sales staff. A strong engineering background is crucial as she is required to provide design support, material property data, and information on any number of secondary operations that could be performed on a given part.

Jason Vierra, an engineer at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, is a Quality Assurance Officer working on the Mars Exploration Rover project.

Vierra validates the quality of the design versus fabrication for the mechanical subsystems on the rovers. The subsystems include the Descent Rate Limiter, Rover Lift Actuator, Lander Petal Actuators, Warm Electronics Box, and the Rover Electronics Module. The function of the Quality Assurance Team is to help ensure a successful mission to Mars for the scientific exploration of life on other planets.

National Engineers Week Foundation
1420 King Street   Alexandria, VA 22314
tel. 703.684.2852   email: eweek@nspe.org