Dear Members & Guests:
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The Viking 32 is an electric and natural gas hybrid with an
aerodynamic design built to withstand a 50-mph crash |
| Other tag and tech news |
| Bellingham TechNight on October 25 -A One-Night IT Career Fair |
| Visit TAG's Booth at the NW Business Expo on Oct 18 (pdf file) |
| TAG expands programs to IT professionals in all industries |
| Bellingham Waterfront Awarded Innovation Zone Designation |
| Bellingham's .Net Users Group - Upcoming Meetings |
| Microsoft Project Course, Ext. & Professional Education |
| Volunteers needed for Math Masters at Whatcom Middle School |
Join us on Friday October 19, to learn about Western Washington University's Vehicle Research Institute and their work creating cars and renewable fuels for a sustainable future.
We are pleased to invite Eric Leonhardt, Director of the Vehicle Research Institute to present a behind-the-scenes look at VRI. Eric will talk about their hybrid vehicles - the award winning Viking cars, and will also talk about the work they are doing on biomethane from organic waste. According to Eric they are looking at fueling all of Whatcom's public transportation on biomethane and possibly 20,000 cars in Whatcom County from dairy and other organic waste.
This will be a popular meeting so please RSVP by clicking as soon as possible.
Date and Time: Friday, October 19 from 12:00 - 1:15 pm.
Location: DIS building at 1315 Cornwall Ave., Bellingham, WA
Cost: Free for members, $10.00 at door for non-members to cover lunch.
For those interested, Eric Leonhardt will give a guided tour of the Vehicle Research Institute on campus following the TAG luncheon downtown. We will provide carpooling up to Western leaving our meeting location on 1315 Cornwall at about 1:15PM. The onsite tour will be about 45 minutes. In your RSVP please indicate whether you are interested in the on-site tour and if you are interested in carpooling.
About Eric Leonhardt
Eric Leonhardt is the Director of the Vehicle Research Institute at Western Washington University where he teaches courses in powertrain, vehicle design and engineering. The Vehicle Research Institute has built more than forty vehicles during the past 35 years. Several of the vehicles have set benchmarks for safety, fuel efficiency, performance, and environmental emissions. Most recently he has worked with the students to build the Viking 32 and Viking 40 carbon composite vehicles. He has also worked with students to develop record setting endurance kayaks.
Prior to teaching at Western, he worked at DaimlerChrysler developing tools to improve the powertrain product development process, especially the link between design features and manufacturing. Prior to DCX he worked for Electronic Data Systems providing engineering services to General Motors Powertrain, Truck, and Midsize/Luxury Car Division. He supported and led lean manufacturing efforts and helped develop applications for virtual manufacturing tools. He received a Masters in Automotive Systems Engineering from the Rackham Graduate School of the University of Michigan. He holds a B.S. from in Industrial Technology/Vehicle Design from Western Washington University and a B.A. in Economics from Whitman College.
About the Vehicle Research Institute
The VRI has been building an award-winning line of experimental Viking cars since 1970. For more information and to see VRI photos, go to vri.etec.wwu.edu .
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