Chattanooga Engineers Club

www.ChattanoogaEngineersClub.org

New Location, Free Parking, Great Food, Great Programs

 

NEXT MEETING___________________________

Monday, Apr. 27 - Noon – DOUBLETREE HOTEL, Second Floor (407 Chestnut St., Chattanooga, TN 37402)

“Exciting stories of Thomas Edison’s inventive life” – Jim Frierson

Most of us are aware that Thomas Edison was a prolific inventor, credited with over a thousand patents and revolutionizing the world with his famous invention of the light bulb. Much of his work, which began in 1876, was done in a laboratory at Menlo Park, New Jersey, with a team of about 25 men. One of those men was Edison’s head machinist, John Kruesi, who was responsible for translating Edison’s numerous rough sketches into working devices.

Our own Jim Frierson is the great-grandson of John Kruesi. This family association has given Frierson a keen interest in the history of innovation and invention and has provided him with unique insight of how Thomas Edison pursued his ideas. Jim will provide us an inside story of Thomas Edison's laboratory and Edison’s early days of invention at Menlo Park as seen through the eyes of the Kruesi Legacy.

 

FUTURE MEETINGS________________________

Monday, May 4 - Noon - “Solar Energy:  Solution to conservation” – With a renewed emphasis on conservation and using renewable energy, more and more people are looking to solar energy as a solution.  For those solutions to become a reality, trained and certified installers will be needed to support this growing industry.

Allan Gentry, Instructor, Interim Dean and Chair of the Technology Department at Cleveland State Community College will speak on Solar PV Installer Training and Certification.

Speaker:  Allan Gentry, Cleveland State Community College

Meeting Place:  DOUBLETREE HOTEL

Monday, May 11 - Noon - “A visionary transportation system that could change the world” - Personal Transportation remains a key infrastructure in the economic framework of any nation.  With today’s public concerns about economical energy requirements and foreword momentum in consumption, and responsible environmental stewardship, Steven Rasor with Vertical Axis Integration Company (VXICOM) will present a new approach to transportation and energy storage.

Speakers:  Steven Rasor, principal architect and founder of VXICOM, a Chattanooga enterprise; and Stephen Smith, Chemical Engineer, Coalsmith Consultants

Meeting Place:  DOUBLETREE HOTEL

 

PREVIOUS MEETING_______________________

Dave Vernetti, General Manager of Steward Advanced Materials, reviewed the history of products manufactured by Steward over its 130 year history:  gas burner tips, radios, insulators, television deflection yoke cores, and ferrites for EMI (electro magnetic interference.)

Steward Advanced Materials was formed in 2004.  The company makes ceramic products for the Department of Defense and the communication industries.

Steward has licensed SAMMS technology from Pacific Northwest National Labs (PNNL).  SAMMS is a family of adsorbents for the air and water pollution control process industries.  The ceramic and ferrite (magnetic) supports have special coatings to adsorb contaminants.  David described the manufacturing of Thio-SAMMS to adsorb Hg, Ag, Cu, Cd, Pb, and Pd as well as Chelate SAMMS to adsorb CO², Cu, Ni, Co, and Zn.  SAMMS has high capacity, fast kinetics and forms a strong covalent bond to the contaminants.  David reviewed many potential uses of SAMMS including water treatment, gas treatment, chemical treatment, sediments, filters, pharmaceuticals and sensors.

 

ITEMS OF INTEREST_______________________

The Chattanooga Engineer's Club has relocated its meeting place to the DOUBLETREE HOTEL, CHATTANOOGA (407 Chestnut St., Chattanooga, TN 37402).  Free parking is available in the gated parking lot on the south side of the Hotel. The gate will be open from 11:30 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. There is additional free parking east of the Hotel on Chestnut Street in the paved parking pit.

Looking for details on a local society meeting? Links to local engineering societies are available to you at: http://www.chattanoogaengineersclub.org/engineer.

 

QUESTIONS and SUGGESTIONS______________

If you have any questions, items of interest to the Chattanooga Engineers Club, or suggestions for 2009 programs, please contact Joe Robbins by e-mail at jrobbins@robbinsbohr.com or by phone at 423-756-4430. You can find membership application forms, references to future programs, historical data, and other info at: http://www.ChattanoogaEngineersClub.org. To receive future meeting announcements by email, join the Chattanooga Technology Organization mailing list at: http://www.ChattanoogaEngineersClub.org/email