There remains little doubt that as our society grows more dependent on technology, developing a new generation of engineers is paramount to ensuring the speed of technical growth continues to advance. But what are the best methods to inspire young, fledgling engineers — be they boys or girls. What follows is a collection of gifts sure to make understanding complex concepts fun and quite possibly inspire children into considering an education and career in engineering.

Engineering Books Aimed at Young Readers and More

There are a host of excellent books that do a great job of explaining technology for the budding engineer. Some even are an enjoyable read for those currently in the industry or anyone with an interest in science. One such book is 1001 Inventions That Changed the World, an absorbing tome chronicling inventions that held, or continue to hold, a profound influence on daily life in the worlds of medicine, transportation, electronics and more. In addition to providing inspiration for a young engineer, it also serves nicely as a reference volume for the entire family.

This world needs more women engineers. A book aimed at girls in grades fifth through eighth, Girls Think of Everything: Stories of Ingenious Inventions by Women, offers a glimpse at a range of innovations developed by women. The book covers a variety of subjects, from the mother of The Monkees’, Mike Nesmith, inventing White-Out to a female engineer working for NASA, who created the “Space Bumper.” This is a title sure to invoke the possibilities for future female scientists.

Toys for the Engineers of the Future

How many current engineers received a LEGO set when they were younger? Is there a better toy to help youngsters discover the joy of devising and building their own contraptions? LEGO’s Builders of Tomorrow set features 650 colorful LEGO bricks that can used to construct nearly anything. It is aimed at children aged 4-10, a perfect age for inspiring a future engineer.

A book series with a small construction set aimed at young girls is GoldieBlox, developed by Debbie Sterling, a Stanford engineering graduate looking to foster the growth of more female engineers. A successful kickstarter funding campaign means GoldieBlox should be hitting the toy stores around the United States very shortly.

Inspiring the next generation of engineers is important, as is inspiring today’s current generation. Helping you find the best in engineering jobs, the Talley Group is known as one of the top engineering recruiters in the Seattle area. Schedule some time to talk with them today.

The Talley Group has several urgent needs for Electrical and Control Systems Engineers with experience in the Water/Wastewater industry for its Washington State locations.  Current job titles include: Project Manager, Project Engineer, Sr. Electrical Engineer and Sr. Controls Systems Engineer.  All are direct placement positions with well established companies offering competitive salary ranges, outstanding benefits and relocation assistance.  If interested in learning more about these opportunities, please contact Matt Sawicki at Sawickim@thetalleygroup.com.  Job details are as follows:

SR. ELECTRICAL ENGINEER

REQUIREMENTS

• Experience with 4.16kV and 12.47kV substation power systems equipment including transformers, circuit breakers, conductors, protective relays, substation automation (SCADA) and power system analysis software such as SKM.
• Water/waste-water experience and a power and control background below 600V is a strong plus.
• Minimum requirements include a BSEE
• 10 years of related industry experience
• Washington State PE license a plus
• Strong project management, business development, leadership, communication and interpersonal skills are essential.

SR. CONTROLS ENGINEER

REQUIREMENTS:

• Industrial power and controls experience preferably with water/waste water systems
• experience with 480V power distribution; motor control including VFD’s; lighting; PLC’s; SCADA; relay control logic; and process instrumentation.
• Minimum requirements include BSEE degree
• 10+ years of related consulting experience developing design plans and specifications.
• WA PE license (or ability to obtain within 6- months)
• Strong control system focus, troubleshooting, communication and interpersonal skills are essential.

PROJECT MANAGER

REQUIREMENTS

• BS in engineering related to Electrical, Control Systems, Chemical or related field.
• 7-10 years working as a Project Manager in an Electrical Controls environment.
• Ability to simultaneously manage multiple projects at one time.
• Excellent interpersonal skills to work with internal teams and external customer.
• Well rounded technically to understand the software, hardware and programming requirements of the work.

RESPONSIBILITIES

Effectively manage the complete project lifecycle for 10-15 electrical controls projects at any one given time.

Once project is assigned, handle the following:

• Meet with estimators and learn the scope and definition of the work to be done.
• Handle all contract administration with the customer.  Get customer all necessary PO’s, contracts, credentials of engineers, etc.
• Build project plans and put together forecasts.  Completely lay out the job based on fixed dates and timelines and review overall scope of the job of the job as to how many hours will be involved in each department to finalize the ship date of the project.
• Complete a budget forecast assessing all the quotes made and what the actual will be.
• Define schedule and tasks for project teams to execute on.  Work with sales/estimating team to understand their bid and who they had in mind to assign to the project.
• Work with engineering team to help, create the BOM’s and instruments design.
• Participate in bi-weekly updates analysis of dollars out on a job.
• Manage the schedule of each job.
• Provide monthly updated forecast & actuals to COO.
• Manage the HW submittal design process with the client.  Respond to questions or projections from reviewing engineer.
• Manage expectations of the customer and their interpretation of outlined specifications created in the original estimate.
• Manage the purchase process.  Assist in purchasing negotiations. Transmit all necessary data to vendors when making purchases.
• Write letters of intent to lock in pricing for delivery timeline of the job.
• Review materials received and get necessary documentation into shop for fabrication.
• Oversee the creation of documents necessary to ship out final product.  Manage the production of OEM manuals for customer.
• Coordinate with service group to get the project up and running.  Handle any issues that come up onsite at time of delivery and install.

PROJECT ENGINEER

POSITION OVERVIEW
The Project Engineer is responsible for the engineering, design, integration, programming, and troubleshooting of Programmable Logic Controllers (PLC), Process Instrumentation, Human Machine Interfaces (HMI), SCADA & Telemetry Systems, and Industrial Networks for systems controlling a wide variety of industrial applications including; water and wastewater plants, fish hatcheries, public transit systems, and power plants. This person will also ensure accuracy and completeness of associated technical documentation and support custom panel fabrication and field startup and commissioning processes.

REQUIREMENTS

• Bachelor’s Degree and three or more years’ experience designing, installing, commissioning, and troubleshooting industrial controls systems to include PLCs, OIT/HMI’s, VFD’s, and industrial networks (specifically Ethernet, Controlnet, Devicenet, and Modbus/Modbus+) preferred.
• Strong working knowledge with control system troubleshooting and tuning skills, experience with Ladder Logic and IEC programming of PLCs (Programmable Logic Controllers), and knowledge of Process Control.
• Ability to use electrical test equipment, troubleshoot electrical problems, and be familiar with National Electrical Code (NEC), UL508A design and construction, wiring in Hazardous Areas and related regulations, standards and practices.
• Experience with iFix, Wonderware, Panelview, RS logix, RS View, AutoCAD, Visual Basic, Allen-Bradley Controllogix and Modicon Quantum PLC hardware is preferred.
• Ability to plan, implement and document structured programming is essential.
• Knowledge of process instrumentation, control theory and various types of control systems, data acquisition, and industrial data communication coupled with experience working with industrial process controls, IT / networking processes and general analog and digital electronics required.
• Excellent interpersonal, communication skills and teamwork skills required.

RESPONSIBILITIES

• Develop electrical controls design by researching, analyzing, selecting, and applying electric controls engineering concepts, approaches, techniques, and criteria including panel layouts, distributed control systems, Operator Interface Terminals (OITs), Programmable Logic
• Controllers (PLCs), Supervisory Control & Data Acquisition (SCADA)
• Adapting and modifying electrical controls engineering options
• Developing and evaluating new electrical controls engineering architectures and algorithms
• Preparing layout drawings, schematics, and wiring diagrams; collaborating with related engineering design teams
• Evaluating components, materials, and suppliers; identifying and resolving design integration/interface issues
• Determining and establishing design specifications.
• Develop PLC and SCADA programming with an emphasis on Rockwell/Allen-Bradley, Modicon and Siemens in an industrial automation environment. This includes; documentation of programs, implementation, start-up and support.

CONTACT:

Matt Sawicki

Sawickim@thetalleygroup.com

(425)753-5061

In Feb. 2011, AeroVironment released its “nano-hummingbird” prototype. The miniature drone flew with a controlled precision hovering motion, much like the two-wings of a hummingbird.

The hummingbird motion was not the greatest achievement of the drone. It went beyond that. The Nano allowed for the aircraft to carry its own renewable energy source, created through the continued propulsion of the bird-like wings and structure.

The prototype was so successful that the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) contracted AeroVironment to create a drone aircraft for the Nano Air Vehicle program (NAV). According to DARPA, NAV’s are “airborne vehicles no larger than 7.5 cm in length, width, or height, capable of performing a useful military mission at an affordable cost, and gross takeoff weight (GTOW) of less than or equal to 10 grams.”

AeroVironment’s current prototype measures 16 cm and weighs 19 g. It can fly all direction, forward and backward while rotating clockwise and counter-clockwise.

The challenge to build a smaller, better, faster, more efficient drone was born.

Most NAVs are used by the military for defense purposes. Video cameras and sensors can be attached for surveillance, targeting, artillery spotting, mine detection, damage assessment and jamming enemy communications. AeroVironment not only has to make the drone work on a smaller scale, but also continue research on propulsion and energy storage, better aerodynamics, communications systems and manufacturing techniques for greater military use.

Challenges

• NAV propulsion and energy storage systems require a highly efficient power source to be able to fly for long periods of time. Creating a drone powerful enough, yet light enough to meet the requirements is a serious engineering design issue.
• The size of the NAV makes for aerodynamic challenges. The NAV looks to copy the flight aerodynamics of a bird or insect, which is greatly different from a typical aircraft.
• In order to integrate navigation, guidance and control sensors a single chip must be created on a nanoscale to meet the restrictive weight requirements of the NAV design. If NAVs are traveling in groups, that also brings about a sensory communication issue.
• Manufacturing these delicate and complex structures requires not only high tech engineering and design, but applicable manufacturing technology as well.

Contact The Talley Group for the most forward-thinking and challenging positions in engineering.

Engineering prospects are looking for much more than just a competitive salary in their place of work. It has been proven that when employees are happy, the work quality and output is better. And who doesn’t want to be excited to go to work?

Many of the top firms consider other benefits and options for employees including:

• A sense of team or family
• Reasonable health care insurance and retirement benefits
• Bonus programs
• Professional development
• Mentoring
• Advancement opportunities
• Wellness programs
• Honest and open environment for dealing with challenging issues

There are several top engineering firms that have been identified as innovators in company culture and as a best place to work. Each has its own characteristics to make the workplace better.

Bowers + Kubota Consulting, based in Waipahu, Hawaii, is committed to a continuous improvement philosophy. Since 1980 the civil engineering firm has focused on construction programs and project management as well as civil site and architectural design, and aviation planning.

The firm likes to focus on health and wellness to make it’s 120 employees better. The company pays 100 percent of employee premiums as well as holds a health fair, provides quarterly and annual awards, sponsors company sports teams. They also provide  a $200 wellness reimbursement for gym memberships,, exercise equipment, sneakers or other fitness-related items.

Another important aspect for the company is employee retention, and they feel the best way to do that is provide proper training and career development. Employees work on goals during the year and are given tools to meet them.

CRW Engineering Group in Anchorage, Alaska provides civil engineering design services for transportation, water treatment/distribution, wastewater collection/treatment, bulk fuel, and hydrologic/hydraulic projects. The firm is 31-years-old and has 50 employees.

CRW prides itself on small business values, doing everything they can for employees to function like a family. It’s key cultural term is named “CReW,” bringing all employees together.

CRW works to provide advancement opportunities to all employees every year, especially to young employees, to keep them with the firm. Ownership opportunities are also available.  CRW invites eligible employees to an offsite luncheon to explain these opportunities in detail. The firm also  initiated a “highly compensated employee” category, rewarding very successful employees.

Kjeldsen, Sinnock & Neudeck Inc. of Stockton, Calif. has worked hard to retain employees during difficult economic times. The firm provides services for engineering and surveying for public works infrastructure, transportation, commercial, industrial, institutional, and water resources projects. One of the ways it continues to improve company morale is to keep the information coming. Regular staff lunches allow for management or other colleagues to make informal presentations on employee benefit updates and company status reports.

The company also hosts many fun events throughout the year for employee bonding. KSN sponsors family events at  baseball or hockey games and picnics. Friday breakfasts are also very popular. The Talley Group will place you in a position with a top notch company culture.