IMechE Texas group and University of Houston host the first Speak Out for Engineering competition in the United States

On 11 October 2017, members from the IMechE Texas Group got together with a handful of students from the University of Houston to talk about some work they’ve been doing. More specifically, to talk about how they talk about it.

A panel of judges was assembled from the IMechE Texas Group: Jim Cowling, Nikki Morrison, and Adam Bowler. The judges, all experienced professional engineers, gave three students marks and valuable feedback on their ability to communicate a complicated technical topic simply and effectively. 

The presenters, all students from the University of Houston College of Technology and Cullen College of Engineering gave presentations on a wide variety of subjects. First up to bat, Jorge Guevara gave a great talk on optimizing HEPA filters for increased protection against airborne particulate matter. Next, Roman Stromeyer presented his work using CFD to model the vortices shed by airplane wingtips, and the challenges of accurately meshing and simulating a complex flow problem. To close out the evening, Frederick Bock described an automated brewing system complete with heat exchanger and closed loop controls on a fully fabricated portable workstation.

Each presentation was well prepared, reflected countless hours of hard work, and gave an informative glance into a very different specialized engineering topic. For us alumni and working engineers it was nostalgic glance back into the grueling workload of our undergraduate days.

While the judges deliberated, a discussion took place regarding both the IMechE local group activities and the international Young Members Network. In addition, the audience was updated on the progress of the Speak Out for Engineering competition, which continues with the regional final taking place at the University of the West Indies, Trinidad & Tobago in November 2017.

Participants in the Houston event

The evening's winner was  Roman Stromeyer, with his presentation "Modelling Wingtip Vortices with CFD".  The judges awarded the runner up place to Jorge Guevara with his presentation 'Atmospheric Filtration using Carbon Nanotubes".

After winners were announced Judge, IMechE Texas Group Chair, and CEeng Interview Coordinator Jim Cowling gave feedback to the students on their presentations as well as advice and encouragement for those working towards becoming Chartered with the Institution of Mechanical Engineers.

Special thanks to Adam Bowler, Frederick Bock, Jon Fulbright, Jorge Guevara, Nikki Morrison, Prof. Raresh Pascali, Roman Stromeyer, Troy Tabner, and Sam Turner for making the event a success and to William Daniel Hesser, Americas Young Member representative, for his report.