EarthFest, an annual East Tennessee event to promote environmental awareness and reducing environmental footprints, is requesting donations for a silent auction.
The festival and auction will be held on April 26 from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. at Pellissippi State Community College.
You can read the letter from EarthFest's auction coordinator, Will Ward, here.
Ward writes, "Participating businesses will be recognized on the EarthFest Web site, as well as in the auction tent, when you decide to donate. In addition, we would be happy to place any of your business cards and/or brochures beside your donations for attendees to pick-up as they browse."
For more information, visit www.knox-earthfest.org.
Note: This release was sent from the University of Tennessee, a Knoxville Chamber member.
With help from the University of Tennessee's Center for Industrial Services and students from the UT Knoxville College of Engineering, a Tennessee tool manufacturer can help its clients make products faster.
Accu-Router Inc., of Morrison, employs 25 people and makes high-speed, computer numerical control (CNC) routers that cut everything from plywood to composite materials. Accu-Router's clients use these routers to mass-produce parts for products such as upholstered furniture, boats and airplanes.
As with any manufacturing process, time is money, and efficiency is top priority. The faster and more accurate the routers can cut, the more products can be produced.
A unique feature of Accu-Router's machines is a high-speed spindle that rotates a cutter at speeds up to 24,000 rpm. The cutter can move through a 1.5-inch-thick wood stack at about 2 feet per second. In doing so, the cutter generates a lot of wood chips and dust, about 18 cubic inches of sawdust per second. Accu-Router wants to continuously remove this debris from the router to ensure a cleaner work environment, to eliminate the risk of frictional heat and flammability of the wood chips, and to improve cutting efficiency.
"The quicker we can get the dust out, the faster we can cut," said Accu-Router President Todd Herzog.
When Accu-Router realized the need for a redesign of some equipment components, Mechanical Design Supervisor Bradley Graves and Director of Engineering John O'Connor turned to UT Center for Industrial Services (CIS) for help.
Bill Wiley and Norma Wilcox of CIS worked with Spivey Douglas and Bill Hamel, head of Department of Mechanical, Aerospace and Biomedical Engineering in UT's College of Engineering (COE), to clarify Accu-Route's needs and to determine available resources. Their analysis and search led to COE's Don Dareing, professor of mechanical engineering.
After visiting Accu-Router, Dareing assigned nine senior engineering students to analyze the router's dust chip collection, router enclosure and tabletop vacuum, and to propose design improvements for each component. Students studying the router enclosure were Steven Bain, Jack Holder, Joakim Werme and Jeremy Whitley. The dust chip collection team consisted of Frank Lord, Josh Mink and Shaan Mohammed, while Jason Coggins and Rahul Patel studied the efficiency of the tabletop vacuum.
Instead of creating a hypothetical, textbook problem for the seniors' capstone design projects, Dareing gave the students Accu-Router's actual problems that needed a time-saving, production-boosting solution.
"It's important that our seniors have exposure to real engineering problems and learn how to apply the analytical skills they've learned in the classroom before entering the professional environment. The situations posed by Accu-Router give our students the opportunity to develop engineering solutions to real industrial problems," Dareing said.
During the Fall 2007 semester, the student teams examined the current Accu-Router equipment and studied factors such as air velocities, ventilation and static charges. They found answers to questions such as "Which air flow and design will vacuum and remove the most wood waste?" and "Which materials are most durable for the enclosure and can withstand the force of flying wood blocks?" With a new design strategy, wood chips could be removed from the cutter area at an air velocity near 650 mph.
Halfway through the semester, the students presented viable design options to Accu-Router. The company was thrilled with the quality of the concepts.
"We have worked with senior project teams from other universities, as well as with summer mechanical engineering interns, and rarely have we seen the first wave of feedback as insightful as what we received from your teams," said O'Connor. "I don't recall any of the projects we have done in the past where the students covered the entire project, from understanding the initial problem to be solved through how it would be manufactured and implemented, while considering cost and maintainability."
In December, the students met again with Accu-Router, which accepted the students' design proposals and agreed to move forward with building prototypes of the redesigned equipment components. Some sheet metal fabrication will be completed at UT, and Accu-Router will pay for all costs associated with building the prototypes.
"It's a tremendous benefit for these students to see their design become reality and to work with a manufacturer," Dareing said. "When students get this kind of hands-on experience, they are better prepared for their careers in practical engineering."
"Our seniors are eager to make the transition from a classroom setting to the real engineering environment. Perhaps the biggest improvement in engineering education nationwide is the senior capstone design project requirement. The objective is to prepare seniors to make a quick transition into industry after graduation. Real projects from industry are ideal for this purpose," Dareing said.
"In our program at Tennessee, students create designs during the fall semester, and prototypes are fabricated and tested during the spring semester. In the end, student teams deliver an engineering report and a working prototype. The project concludes with formal presentations to the sponsor. Our engineering students graduate with the confidence that they know how to solve problems."
CIS has taken the resources of UT and other Tennessee Board of Regents schools to Tennessee manufacturers and businesses since 1963.
"While we tend to use engineering resources, we have requests for other types of expertise. This is an opportunity for faculty and students to apply their research to real-life problems," Wiley said.
Wiley is program manager of the Manufacturing Research and Development Institute (MRDI), a partnership between UT CIS and the COE. Through MRDI, faculty, students and advanced research centers help manufacturers tackle a variety of complex engineering problems, giving MRDI clients access to affordable university expertise.
While UT CIS does not compete with private industry on such projects, similar research activities typically cost thousands of dollars. In 2007, UT CIS partially funded and completed 50 projects with faculty and students. The economic impact of these projects from January-September 2007 exceeded $48 million, according to reports from Tennessee manufacturers.
UT CIS is an agency of the statewide UT Institute for Public Service.
"The Accu-Router project is a good example of applying university expertise to benefit Tennessee manufacturers. With research and student and faculty input, Accu-Router will improve its product design and effectively help customers cut wood faster and deliver consumer products in less time," said Mary Jinks, IPS associate vice president.
Note: This release was sent from LBMC, a member of the Knoxville Chamber.
Lattimore Black Morgan & Cain, PC (LBMC), one of the Southeast’s largest accounting and business consulting firms, has added Rhonda E. Chancey and Jacob E. Hutchison, in its Knoxville office.
Rhonda E. Chancey will be a manager in the state and local tax division of LBMC. Rhonda has prior experience in public accounting, including Big 4. She was employed with Goody’s Family Clothing prior to joining LBMC. Rhonda has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, and is a Certified Public Accountant, licensed in Tennessee.
Jacob E. Hutchison will be a staff accountant in the tax division of LBMC. Jacob, previously employed with Cattails at Meadowview, is a recent graduate or ETSU with a bachelor’s degree in accounting. He enjoys mountain biking, snowboarding and golf.
For more information on LBMC, visit its Web site at lbmc.com.
Local Famous Dave's Barbeque owners Mike and Tamara Lister and Doug and Laurel Renegar have won the company's first Community Involvement Award for their support of the Knoxville community.
Famous Dave's is a Knoxville Chamber member business.
"Having the change to help others ... that's what being 'Famous' is all about," said the Renegars.
Some of their philanthropic pursuits include working with the Make-a-Wish Foundation and a Memorial Day letter writing campaign.
Power Systems, a Knoxville Chamber member business, is holding total training seminars on March 15, 2008.
Here are the courses offered:
Strength Without Boundaries: Break away from tradition! Discover innovative alternative strength training ideas.
Speed Training – Explosive First Step: Learn how to design and implement a first-step program for any athlete, group, or team!
Agility Development & Group Training: Discover the four major principles of agility development and learn how to train agility for all positions throughout sports.
Balance – Training on the Edge: Don’t be afraid to live on the edge! Learn fun, creative methods for balance training.
Plyo Power for One & All: Develop explosive power for everyone! Learn to incorporate “plyos” into your programs.
Visit totaltrainingseminars.com for times, more information, and to register.
Note: This release is from the University of Tennessee.
UT President John Petersen today announced the promotion of Mary Jinks to vice president of public service for the University of Tennessee.
"In recent years, Mary has worked alongside us to strategically define the university's public service role and to chart a course for increased success in outreach initiatives. Her knowledge and experience in the field of public service will be invaluable as we advance this priority for the university," Petersen said. "We are pleased to recognize her leadership."
Jinks has been with the university for nearly 25 years, with more than 20 years at the statewide UT Institute for Public Service (IPS). Her history at UT includes a master's degree in public administration and an educational doctorate.
Jinks has served as associate vice president of IPS for the past year, and in her new role she will continue to lead and manage the institute.
Hank Dye, UT vice president for public and government relations whose office oversees IPS, said, "IPS has a tradition of excellent service and has made a difference to the state of Tennessee. Mary's leadership over the years has set IPS on a well-planned course to deliver results to businesses, local government officials and state agencies."
In fiscal year 2007, IPS helped businesses and government entities realize $868 million in economic impact through increased revenues, reduced expenses or jobs created. That success led the university's efforts to provide $1 billion in outreach activities by 2010.
Through its four agencies and leadership development programs, IPS answered more than 26,000 requests for assistance from government, law enforcement and business officials last year. More than 19,000 people took advantage of IPS training in 2007, logging more than 140,000 hours of training.
"Public service has been my life's work," Jinks said. "IPS has been tremendously successful in taking UT's expertise to the people of Tennessee. Our work with local government and industry leaders has been rewarding, and the opportunity to elevate these efforts for the university is one I graciously accept."
IPS collaborates with all campuses, institutes and divisions of the UT system, enabling the university to provide public service across the state. IPS has offices statewide in 10 cities (Johnson City, Knoxville, Oak Ridge, Chattanooga, Cookeville, Columbia, Nashville, Jackson, Martin and Memphis) and consultants assigned to every municipality and county in Tennessee.
Knoxville has captured a top-10 ranking for its population in the annual Site Selection Magazine's top metros. The list ranks cities by the number of corporate facility projects during that year.
Tennessee was tied for second place in the list of states with most top metros.
For its population range (200,000 to 1 million), Knoxville was tied for tenth place with Lexington, Ky., with 22 corporate facility projects in 2007.
Nashville was among the top ten in the over-1-million population group. Morristown and Johnson City, Tenn. were both in the top 10 in the under-200,000 population group.
Read the article from Site Selection Magazine about the top metros.
Note: This release was sent from Bandit Lites, a Knoxville Chamber member.
40 AT 40: STEPHEN POWELL
Job Title: General Manager
The people are what sets Bandit Lites apart from the rest of the industry. Once a week, for the next 40 weeks, Bandit will showcase an employee that has made a substantial contribution to the company, whether it be in an office, on the road or somewhere in between. Bandit would not be celebrating its 40th Anniversary without the hard work and dedication of every one these employees.*
*Employee Spotlights are released in no particular order.
Stephen Powell has worked at Bandit Lites for the last 9 years. Starting out as warehouse manager at the Knoxville location in 1999, Powell went on to be the lighting director for the Food Network, Board-op for Woodstock ’99, the project manager for WWE and various special events, and finally settled into the general manager position at Bandit’s Nashville location. Below are a few questions we asked to get to know him a little better.
Q: How did you get involved in this industry?
A: I was a professional musician in California for 10 years in the 80’s. I played with a bar band that traveled all over the western United States. I moved to Nashville in ’94 with my wife and two kids, partly because of the economy in Nashville, but also because of the entertainment business. I started doing sound for Cowboys LaCage and taught myself lighting with the help of a few friends. From there I did showcases for Starstruck Entertainment in the LaCage theater, which led to a job with the Louise Mandrell organization and then to Bandit in 1999.
Q: What is your favorite memory from working at Bandit Lites?
A: I think it was ’99 or 2000. We had set up lighting equipment for advanced elementary school and showed them some basics of lighting. It was at that event that I had a “light bulb” moment. I realized that I really enjoyed teaching and mentoring people.
Q: So you are a General Manager now. Are you mentoring people in your current position?
A: I feel as general manager my first priority is to help mentor the next generation of talent- lighting designers, crew chiefs, lighting technicians - the people that will be running this company 10 years from now. The 20-somethings here are highly motivated. Whereas baby-boomers were happy with being employed for 50 years, with the same company, with a pension, these new people want to rule the world in 2 years. They value change, expect it, and push to get it, quickly. The biggest and best challenge is finding ways to motivate these ‘millennials,’ focus their talent and move them forward to bigger opportunities.
Note: This release was sent from Pro2Serve, a member of the Knoxville Chamber.
Pro2Serve Professional Project Services, Inc. (Pro2Serve), announces that Joseph P. Hebert recently joined the company as Vice President, Physical Security Programs, and Manager of the Washington DC office.
Board certified by ASIS International in security management, Mr. Hebert has almost 40 years of experience and professional training in physical security, law enforcement, management and strategic planning both in the military and with civilian corporations. His most recent experience was with L-3 Communications in Chantilly VA where he served as the Business Unit Manager of Integrated Security Solutions and Services and as the Vice President for Division Programs. Previously Mr. Hebert was the Division Manager for Integrated Security Services with SAIC in McLean, VA.
Mr. Hebert’s military experience spans over 30 years in the United States Army’s Military Police including both senior command and staff positions and retiring with the rank of Colonel. In his last assignment with the Army, Colonel Hebert served as the Command Provost Marshal and senior Anti-terrorism Officer for the Army’s largest Command. He was selected as the Department of Defense’s best Senior Manager for Anti-terrorism Programs in 1999. He is a graduate of the Federal Bureau of Investigation National Academy (FBINA) and National War College.
Knoxville-based business Tindell's Lumber and Building Materials has won the 2007 ProSales Dealer of the Year award for excellence in the lumber and building materials market. Tindell's is a Chamber member.
According to an article in their monthly publication, the company won for its, "logistical innovations, creative thinking and service to its business and local communities."
Add comment