The Hampton Roads chapter won the best website award for the past year at the 77th International Conference on Mass Properties in Irving, TX.
Jeff Cerro Wins Peninsula Engineer of the Year Award
On Saturday, February 24, 2018, the Peninsula Engineers Council held its annual Engineer of the Year Banquet at the Embassy Suites hotel in Hampton, VA. This year’s winner was none other than our own Jeff Cerro, from NASA Langley Research Center.
It was a great night and the SAWE HR Chapter was able to secure its own table for the evening. Amanda Cutright gave a great introduction for Jeff and Jeff also gave a great acceptance speech.
All of the SAWE congratulates Jeff on his award and he is well deserving.
Photos, once posted, can be seen on the PEC Website.
This was the second year in a row that the SAWE has nominated and won the PEC Engineer of the Year award. There have been 3 other winners from the SAWE Hampton Roads chapter, including last year’s winner, Alan Titcomb in 2017, Bill Boze, our SAWE International President, and Ian McConochie. Also, Alan’s wife, Eileen, has won the award as well through a different society. As you can see below, we have been in good company both years
HR Chapter Supports Peninsula Engineers Council (PEC) Annual Career Day Event at NASA Langley
On February 22/23, 2018, the Hampton Roads Chapter of the SAWE supported the Peninsula Engineers Council (PEC) Career Day event at NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC). This is an annual event that provides an opportunity for local high school students to learn about careers in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM).
The SAWE mans a technical society table to discuss the mass properties discipline and related career fields with them as well as provide an opportunity to interact with us and see the models, posters, and videos we bring with us as well.
On Thursday, Nick Marickovich, Amanda Cutright, and David Cash manned the table and on Friday, Amanda, Jeff Cerro, Anjie Emmett, and Dave Covington did as well. Amanda, Jeff, Anjie, and Dave all work at NASA, so this year we were really able to show off mass properties in the aerospace industry. When the event is held at Newport News Shipbuilding, there is a focus on the marine industry.
The students also get a chance to perform hands-on activities and here presentations as part of the main program during the morning.
Additional pictures of the day can be seen on the PEC Website when the photos are posted.
Hampton Roads Chapter Annual Holiday Social
In December 2017, the Hampton Roads Chapter met for it’s annual holiday social gathering at the Park Lane Tavern in Hampton, Virginia. A time to socialize and catch up with each other, the chapter avoids technical presentations for these events. We had a great time and a couple of us got to sit in the “King” chairs as the Park Lane is an English Pub style restaurant and tavern, a favorite among us. A good time was had by all and it’s always nice to relax and catch up with each other one last time at the end of the year before the holidays.
Bill Boze, SAWE International President, presents “Mass Properties Discipline – Risk and Opportunity”
On November 2, 2017, Bill Boze, the SAWE International President, gave a presentation titled “Mass Properties Discipline – Risk and Opportunity” to the Hampton Roads chapter of the SAWE. It was very informative and has been given to others as well including at the International Conference in Montreal, Canada, at the Texas Regional Conference, and at meeting of the newly formed San Diego Chapter.
Jeff Cerro Nominated for Engineer of the Year
Congratulations to Jeff Cerro on being selected as SAWE’s nominee for the Peninsula Engineer’s Council Engineer of the Year Award! Jeff’s dedication to professionalism is supported by his service to the SAWE and the Hampton Roads Chapter. Along with being an Honorary Fellow of the SAWE, his numerous technical achievements, publications and NASA accommodations illustrate how well deserved this nomination is.
The voting will take place over the next month, were nominees will be evaluated based on their technical achievements in engineering, leadership, community service and service to the profession.
Good Luck Jeff!
Picturing Innovation: The First 100 Years at NASA Langley
The Chrysler Museum of Art in Norfolk will be hosting a photography exhibit in celebration of NASA Langley’s 100 year anniversary. Selections from NASA’s archives will be on display from October 2017 through March 2018. The photographs will highlight the beginnings of space exploration and the contributions of NASA Langley in aerospace and aeronautics over the past 100 years.
Admission to the museum and the exhibit is free.
More information available at
http://www.chrysler.org/exhibitions/upcoming/
Let’s Get This Season Started!
With the new season kicked off with the annual picnic last week, we are ready to embark on another year of monthly meetings and presentations!
As discussed in the past, we are still looking to find a new location for our monthly meetings. I know we all love the Chinese food at Peking Buffet, but variety is the spice of life as they say. So far we have not had much luck in finding a venue that has a separate room for us to hold presentations while also providing quick meal service (ie buffet style or order when you walk in). If anyone has any suggestions or ideas of a possible location please let us know! We are open to suggestions!
But who is going to entertain us while we eat? That’s up to you! If you have a topic relating to the vast world of mass properties, are writing a paper for the upcoming conferences or have an idea for a special guest speaker, we want to know! Please contact Dave or Nick with any suggestions or ideas.
NASA Langley’s Centennial Open House October 21st!
2017 Marks the 100th anniversary of NASA Langley Research Center! Centennial celebrations have been occurring throughout the year and continue with an Open House event on October 21. This event allows the public to come see some of the exciting work the oldest NASA field office has participated in both past and present! The daylong event will feature hands on activities, lectures and facilities tours to include wind tunnels, laboratories and a historic aircraft hangar! You won’t want to miss this exciting event celebrating 100 years in aerospace history!
Admission to the event is FREE!
October 21, 2017: 9am-4pm
More information available at
Hampton Roads Chapter Annual September Kick-Off Picnic
The Hampton Roads Chapter held it’s annual September picnic to kick off the new year for the society. We normally hold it at a local city park, but after coordinating for several years now, I wanted to give it a try at my own house. I noticed we were having more and more children coming and with a recent playground addition to my backyard, I figured I’d give it a shot. It turned out very well, although, as my wife pointed out, it was a lot of work to get our house in good enough condition to host guests, especially with 3 children of my own. It was worth it though as I got a lot of positive feedback and the weather held off to make it a very nice evening. Unlike the park, we didn’t have to leave by dusk either, which allowed us to take our time, especially when it’s more convenient for guests to work a full day and then come by.
We had 32 attendees, including 14 members, 10 spouses/guests, and 8 children between 1 and 8 years old. As always, we had a full menu of hamburgers, hotdogs, chicken salad sandwiches, a number of sides, some dessert, and plenty of drinks.
Please enjoy the photos in the link.
SAWE Hampton Roads Chapter Picnic 2017
– David Cash, Hampton Roads Chapter President