The UALR American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) Student Chapter participated in the ASME Student Professional Development Conference (ASME/SPDC) Student Design competition.

This year’s competition team consisted of mechanical engineering technology students Ben Morin, Garrett D’Amato, Anthony Elkins, Harrison Blume, and Joseph Early.

Although this year’s team did not win the competition, its unique design became quite popular, and many of the students and faculty advisors came by after the competition and inquired about it.

The unique thing about the UALR design is that the concept can be seen in action, as high-strength transparent polycarbonate tubes were used.

Several of the team members enjoyed the project enough that they decided to work to perfect the device even though it will not compete again.

The design competition was held Saturday, April 16, at Oklahoma State University at Stillwater.

Faculty Advisor Dr. Srikanth Pidugu said he was very proud of the competition team and its hard work. The ASME Student Design Problem Statement is available online.  

Students also were given the opportunity to take the Certified SOLIDWORKS Associate (CSWA) Examination. Two of the team members, who had previously completed ETME 2333 Advanced CAD, took and passed the exam.

The team thanked:

• The Office of Campus Life for providing partial funding for the project and conference expenses
• Prof. David Luneau for providing technical support on the electronics issues
• Prof. George Tebbetts, chair of the Engineering Department for providing partial funding and strong support
• Armand Tomany for helping students with suggestions regarding mechanical aspects of the design
• Amy Frets, administrative assistant of the Engineering Technology Department, for her support of the students
• Dr. Pidugu with travel, material purchasing and moral support