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May 12th, 2005 - Vol 1 Issue 3

In this issue...

COUPLING  SEPAC Perfects Jet Engine Brake; Apollo 13's Unsung Heroes... MORE

FILTER  Marsh Mellow® Springs; Split Taper Sprockets; Custom Bevel & Miter Gears; Stackable Mounting Collars... MORE

CAREER  Sr. Power Electronics Engineer; Sr. Mechanical Engineer; 2005 SME Annual Meeting... MORE

DIVERSIONS  What Engineers Are Talking About; Redneck Engineering; It Happened in History... MORE

LINKAGE  New Guide to Brakes and Clutches; New Engine-Braking System; Rube Goldberg National Challenge 2005... MORE

MANUFACTURER'S SPOTLIGHT  Custom Rotary Solenoids; Self-Lubricated Bearings; Miniature Electric Clutch; Roller Chains... MORE

 

COUPLING
Joining engineers together with the latest technologies, applications, news
and technical information.

SEPAC Perfects Jet Engine Brake

Jet Engine BrakeSEPAC, a clutch and brake company from Elmira, NY, used an engineering support program funded by NASA to perfect a brake used on jet engines. The program offers 40 hours of free engineering service. SEPAC has been developing new thruster-reverse brakes to be used on Airbus' A380 jumbo jet, which will hit the skies in 2006. Airbus has used SEPAC's brakes to hold the thrust reversers in place in the company's jet engines. The thrust reversers work in combination with the A380's wheel-braking system, slowing the aircraft on landing. Airbus asked SEPAC to reduce the weight of its brake components without sacrificing strength and reliability. Thanks to the NASA grant and with help from Design By Analysis, the company succeeded in making the brakes thinner. More details can be found here.

Apollo 13's Unsung Heroes Receive First GlobalSpec Great Moments in Engineering Award

On Tuesday, April 19th, the GlobalSpec Great Moments in Engineering Award was presented to NASA's Crew Systems Division (1970) at the Space Center Houston.

This April marks the 35th anniversary of their heroic efforts to bring the imperiled Apollo 13 safely home. The Crew Systems Division showed engineering ingenuity and quick thinking under extreme pressure to conceive and implement an in-flight modification to the environmental control system in order to utilize the Command Module carbon dioxide absorbers in the Lunar Module.

Former Chief of Crew Systems Division, Ed Smylie accepted the award on the team's behalf. Fred Haise, Apollo 13 astronaut, and TK Mattingly, Apollo 16 astronaut, were also both on hand to celebrate the Crew Systems Division's outstanding achievement. Click here for the full story.

FILTER
Passing you valuable information and updates on indispensable products
for your designs.
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Firestone Industrial Products Company

MarshMellow Springs

Marsh Mellow® Springs

A Marsh Mellow® spring is a fabric reinforced rubber cylinder. A main advantage of a Marsh Mellow spring over an air spring in isolation applications is a Marsh Mellow does not require air. Marsh Mellow is a trade name of the rubber and fabric spring developed by Firestone Industrial Products in the early 1970s...

Martin Sprocket & Gear, Inc.

MST - Martin Split Taper Sprockets

MST – Martin Split Taper Sprockets

Now there's a choice. Martin MST is available for immediate shipping. Features include: fast hardening on unhardened sizes; special tooth and brushing combinations; allows for blind assembly; Key-to-Key drive. Martin's 23 Page brochure provides product information on their new MST Sprockets, Bushings and Hubs.

Learn more about Martin Sprocket & Gear.

Rush Gears Inc.

Custom Bevel Gears & Miter Gears

Custom Bevel Gears & Miter Gears

Rush Gears has been the leader in custom Gear Manufacturing since it's inception — spur, bevel, helical, worm, straight tooth or whatever your need is. Rush Gears specializes in made-to-order and reverse engineering gear services. Custom services include: proto-types of 1 piece to 200 pieces... More info...

Click here to learn more about Rush Gears Inc.

Stafford Manufacturing Corp.

Stackable Mounting Collars

Stackable Mounting Collars

Stackable Mounting Collars are sized to clamp securely on standard pipes or shafting. They can be mounted to a flat surface, hung from a threaded rod, or stacked one over another. They provide an easy-to-use means of neatly securing pipe(s) or shaft(s)... Click here for more information about Stafford Manufacturing Corp.

CAREER
Seminars, training, webcasts and job opportunities.
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Senior Power Electronics Engineer

Are you experienced in designing AC and DC drives, custom industrial control systems, clutch and brake systems and gear coupling and flexible shaft products? Aerotek CESM is looking for a full-time engineer to work out of their Chambersburg, PA facility. Starting at $60K a year, you should have a knowledge of UL/CSA/CE specs and switching power supplies, as well as an ability to design IGBT gate drives and knowledge of thermal management techniques.

The details are available here.

 

Montana Calling for a Senior Mechanical Engineer

Here's a unique opportunity for an MSME or Ph.D. with five to 15 years of experience for Resodyn Corp. in Butte, MT. The job requires strong management skills as well as enthusiasm for working in a diverse, demanding and exciting technology environment. If you've got strong analytical mechanical design skills and a real talent for innovative solutions to improbable design problems, then check out this position; click here for the full job description.

 

2005 SME Annual Meeting

2005 SME Annual Meeting

Where Manufacturers, Technologies and Innovations Connect

Coming to the Renaissance Harborplace Hotel, Baltimore, MD, June 1 - 5, 2005. Some of the topics to be presented at the annual meeting include:

  • The Next Industrial Revolution: Molecular Nanotechnology and Manufacturing
  • Developing a Competitive Edge for Manufacturing Professionals
  • Webinar Topic - Getting Started on Lean: Value Stream Mapping in the Tool & Die Shop
  • Keynote Presentation by Economic Futurist Jeff Thredgold

Click here for more information about the 2005 SME Annual Meeting.

Dear N.G. Knear:

This is my first job and I love the company I'm working for, the team of individuals I work with and believe it or not, even my manager. So what's the problem? Unfortunately for me, my manager has been promoted to our home office 1,000 miles away and we're getting a manager who is a stranger to all of us. I feel like my mentor has been taken away. How do I get off on the right foot with the new person?

—Afraid of Change

Dear Afraid:
Sorry to break this to you, but change is going to happen. Good managers get promoted. Some day, especially if you stay with the company, your former manager may have a say in your promotion. Until then, it's important to remember that all good managers want to help you succeed because your success means his or her success. If you regard this new manager as a nemesis or try to compare him with your former manager, you are setting yourself up for failure. One way to help both yourself and your new manager is to be a "can-do person," the one your manager can depend on. One key point to remember — when you do a job and look good, it reflects well on your manager. Good Luck!

Need some career advice from N.G. Knear? Drop us a note at
comments@globalspec.com
(Please note: N.G. Knear receives so much e-mail, replies to all inquiries are not possible.)

DIVERSIONS
Stretch your mind, test your abilities, challenge your peers.
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Want To Know What Other Engineers Are Talking About?

GlobalSpec has created a place so that you can find out. It's called Conference Room 4 (CR4 for short) and was designed specifically for the engineering and technical community. It's your place to talk about stories of interest with fellow engineers, ask for technical help, and get answers to burning questions. Additionally, at CR4 you can keep a journal (blog), moderate discussions and connect with colleagues from around the country and around the world.

Some of the recent discussions at CR4:
Goin' nowhere
- The world's smallest motor

Visit CR4: The Engineer's Place for Discussion and News

 

Redneck Engineering

Jeff Foxworthy, eat your grits out! Here it is, an engineering exam for y'all livin' south o' the Mason-Dixon line and heck, even y'all that live north, too. We’ll even give you a question to help y'all git 'er dun'...calculate the smallest limb diameter on a persimmon tree that will support a 10-pound possum. Click here for some amusement.

It Happened in History

Early Electric Clothes DryerOn May 20, 1892 George Sampson patented the clothes dryer — U.S. patent #476,416. Sampson, an inventor, also patented a sled propeller (U.S. patent #312,388). Electrical clothes dryers appeared around 1915. Read more... (scroll down to the Clothes Dryers section)

LINKAGE
Linking you to novel applications, demos, guides, downloads and sites to bookmark.
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2005 Guide to Deltran PT Brakes and ClutchesNew Guide to Brakes and Clutches

Download the 2005 Guide to Deltran PT Brakes and Clutches, a 140-page PDF file. The guide includes features, options, specs and application examples to assist in the selection process. There are great product selection charts by motion type of capability, operation design principles and additional engineering guidelines. Check it out here.

 

New Engine-Braking System Hits the Track

Ducati MotoGP team riders have been testing the motorcycle company's new engine braking system. The new system is designed to optimize braking stability by reducing excessive engine-braking forces and reducing fuel consumption. In addition, the racers are also testing a new clutch system. While the new systems may not be street-ready for a up to a year, you can see how the bikes are doing at the Ducati racing site here.

Rube Goldberg National Challenge 2005Rube Goldberg National Challenge 2005

For the third time in a row, the Purdue Society of Professional Engineers again captured first place in the 2005 Theta Tau Rube Goldberg Machine Contest.
This year's challenge was to remove both old batteries from a two-battery flashlight, install new batteries and turn the flashlight on in at least 20 steps. The Purdue machine was a hunk of vacuum tubes, cycle spokes, boxing gloves, wire tracks and billiard balls. Take a look here.

 

Rube Goldberg National Challenge 2005Tutorial on Belt and Chain Tensioners

Motion System Design magazine offers a look at the differences between rotary and linear tensioners, with several questions and answers to common topics. The article also explains how to keep tensioners close. Check it out.

MANUFACTURER'S SPOTLIGHT
News of interest.
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Ledex & Dormeyer Products

Custom Rotary SolenoidsCustom Rotary Solenoids — Intermittent Duty

Engineers understand that designing for production results in the most cost-effective solution. They take all your inputs and then simulate a design that represents the most cost-efficient production design. Ledex & Dormeyer employ the latest technological tools such as solid modeling, CAD and FEA (Finite Element Analysis) to quickly and efficiently... Read more...

OILES America Corporation

Plastic Steel-Backed Self-Lubricated BearingsPlastic Steel-Backed Self-Lubricated Bearings

Drymet LF™, a lead free PTFE-lubricated sintered bronze bearing, is part of a family of steel-backed self-lubricated bearing products, each designed to address specific bearing problems as indicated below. Available as standard parts, 5 mm to 160 mm. Click here for more information.

Learn more about OILES America Corporation here.

Reell Precision Manufacturing Corporation

EC75LL Miniature Electric ClutchEC75LL Miniature Electric Clutch

The model EC75 Long-Life (EC75LL) design is optimized for applications, which have higher hour and/or input revolution requirements up to 80 million bearing revolutions. The EC75LL is rated for one million actuations at 75 Lb-in (8.5 N-m) of total load. Read more...

Learn more about Reell Precision Manufacturing here.

Stock Drive Products / Sterling Instruments

Roller Chains - Ladder Chains - Plastic ChainsRoller Chains – Ladder Chains – Plastic Chains

Stock Drive Products / Sterling Instruments is an ISO 9001 manufacturer of over 68 roller chains, ladders chains, plastic chains, roller chain links and all types of chains. We can modify our standard catalog parts to your specs or produce completely custom components for you. Read more...

Coming Next Issue...

It's all about power and control: Power transmission and machine and motion controllers. Plus jobs, games and "It Happened in Engineering History."

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