News Archive


January 2017

Professor El Damatty inducted as EIC Fellow
Western Engineering News | January 5, 2017
The Engineering Institute of Canada (EIC) announced recently that Professor Ashraf El Damatty, Chair of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Western has been inducted as an EIC Fellow..
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Wastewater solutions eyed for Ghana
Western News | January 12, 2017
Environmental Engineering graduate student Ahmed Abuhussein recently spent five months in the west African country of Ghana where he addressed gaps in applying treated wastewater in agriculture at city level.
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Western asks faculty, staff to 'Speak' up.
Western News | January 19, 2017
Western faculty and staff will again have their say about how satisfied they are at work.
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Kids in the Hall.
Western Alumni Gazette | January 23, 2017
Family Engineering tradition continues into a new generation.
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Western Engineering Toboggan Team set to compete in Winnipeg.
Western Gazette | January 26, 2017
The Western Engineering Toboggan Team (WETT) is once again poised to compete at the annual Great Northern Concrete Toboggan Race (GNCTR).
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Engineering gifts to bring students together.
Western News | January 30, 2017
Through the Midas Touch Foundation, the Harquail family are helping provide collaborative work spaces for future students.
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February 2017

Western Engineering students advance to Canadian Engineering Competition.
Western Engineering News | February 2, 2017
The Faculty of Engineering congratulates the six undergraduate students who brought home top prizes recently at the 2017 Ontario Engineering Competition (OEC).
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Western Engineering professor Elizabeth Gillies has received the E.W.R. Steacie Memorial Fellowship.
Western News | February 8, 2017
Western professor Elizabeth Gillies (Chemistry, Chemical and Biochemical Engineering) has received the E.W.R. Steacie Memorial Fellowship from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, an award which honours some of the country’s outstanding and highly promising scientists and engineers..
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March 2017

CEO alumnus boasts a career of connectivity.
Western News | March 2, 2017
Western Engineering alumnus becomes CEO of Festival Hydro.
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Western Engineering students win top honours at national engineering competition.
Western Engineering News | March 7, 2017
The Faculty of Engineering congratulates the six undergraduate students who brought home top prizes recently at the 2017 Canadian Engineering Competition (CEC).
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Award reception brings together students, faculty and alumni with Entrepreneurial Spirit.
Western Engineering News | March 8, 2017
The Faculty of Engineering hosted a reception to award the Entrepreneurial Spirit Award.
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Linamar CEO speaks at 26th annual Lynda Shaw Memorial Distinguished Lecture.
Western Engineering News | March 9, 2017
On the day after International Women's Day, Linda Hasenfratz speaks at the annual the memorial lecture.
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ECE Professor Quazi Rahman recognized for excellence in teaching.
Western News | March 16, 2017
Professor Quazi Rahman received the Edward G. Pleva Award for Excellence in Teaching.
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Engineering students flip for bottle craze.
Western News | March 23, 2017
Four Western Engineering students created an app that became the top download in nearly 20 countries.
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Western time capsule project celebrates Canada's 150th.
The Gazette | March 27, 2017
Western Engineering students to design sesquicentennial time capsule.
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April 2017

2017 Florence Bucke Science Award goes to Professor Beth Gillies.
Western Engineering News | April 3, 2017
Beth Gillies, an associate professor in the Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, was recently awarded the Florence Bucke Science prize.
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Professor Jim Johnson honoured for research contributions.
Western Engineering News | April 18, 2017
MME Professor Jim Johnson receives the 2016 Engineering Award for Excellence in Research.
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May 2017

PhD student Jon Kissi is keeping a sharp eye on the Red Planet.
Western Engineering News | May 2, 2017
Kissi becomes first engineer involved in NASA's HiRISE project.
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Adrian Moody, BHSc’05, and Adam Haines, BESc/BSc’04, create a musical world without barriers.
Western Alumni Gazette | May 8, 2017
As an engineer, Haines got excited about the practical application of technology to change lives. If the technology Moody had in his studio could manipulate digitized sound and help one aspiring, however differently-abled, child make music, what else could be done?
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Entrepreneurs take root in desire for microgreens.
Western News | May 10, 2017
Engineering students Richard Lacroix and Jolien van Gaalen have developed an affordable countertop hydroponic growing system for microgreens.
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Project looks to improve region’s water quality
Western News | May 25, 2017
Engineering professor Clare Robinson has partnered with the City of London on a project to determine the effectiveness of stormwater management technologies.
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Claire Naudi recognized as an outstanding employee.
Western Engineering News | June 5, 2017
Claire Naudi received the 2017 Sharon A. Ling Award of Excellence, presented annually to a Western Engineering employee who has gone above and beyond.
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Paul Schmidt receives award of recognition.
Western Engineering News | June 5, 2017
Paul Schmidt received the Engineering Award of Recognition, presented annually to individuals or teams who have made an exceptional contribution in the past year.
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The Fraunhofer Project Centre receives award of recognition.
Western Engineering News | June 7, 2017
The Fraunhofer Project Centre for Composites Research is one of this year’s recipients of the Engineering Award of Recognition.
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Next gen batteries powered by Western-industry teamup.
Western News | June 7, 2017
Western Engineering professor Andy Sun is ready to give his research – and the university – a charge with his latest partnership with a Beijing battery research company.
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Young researchers get boost from provincial honour.
Western News | June 7, 2017
Five up-and-coming Western researchers will share in $700,000 in research funding, thanks to the Early Researcher Awards, all part of a larger $10-million provincial program supporting 77 researchers at 17 institutions across Ontario.
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Sedra: Envision a great future that is your own.
Western News | June 16, 2017
In recognition of his accomplished career as an engineer and academic, Adel Sedra, professor emeritus at the University of Waterloo, was awarded an honorary Doctor of Science, honoris causa (D.Sc.) at the Friday morning session of Western’s 309th Convocation.
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Engineering grad student revved up for motorsport.
Western News | June 22, 2017
In October, the Masters of Engineering Science student heads to the United Kingdom where he will spend a year split between working in the Renault Formula One Team’s Technical Center and the Infiniti’s European Technical Center.
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Bone anatomy shows one size doesn’t fit both.
Western News | June 29, 2017
Patient health may be compromised, and health costs higher, when the same kind of stabilizing plate is used in a woman’s forearm as in a man’s after a bone break, say researchers at Western University’s Bone and Joint Institute.
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July 2017

Engineering looks to build more resilient students.
Western News | July 12, 2017
Although Western has a robust system of student mental-health and wellness supports, many students tend to wait until they are severely compromised or in a state of crisis before reaching out for help.
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Ingratta, Shah named Schulich Leader Scholars.
Western News | July 19, 2017
Luke Ingratta and Joy Shah, two of the nation’s highest achieving secondary students, will begin their undergraduate studies at Western this fall as recipients of prestigious Schulich Leader Scholarships.
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Sneak peek showcases construction on campus.
Western News | July 20, 2017
Piece by piece, construction workers are shaping the building to become a campus showpiece of collaboration among engineering and related professions and disciplines.
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MP Kate Young talks STEM with Western Engineering's Just for Girls Summer Camp.
Western Engineering News | July 27, 2017
MP Kate Young participated in the Bring your MP to Camp Day by visiting elementary school children enrolled in Discovery Western’s Just for Girls Engineering Camp.
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Western Engineering welcomes four new faculty members.
Western Engineering News | July 31, 2017
Western Engineering is pleased to announce that on July 1, 2017, four new faculty members joined the team.
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August 2017

Aero Design Award presented to Western Engineering student Justin Laing.
Western Engineering News | August 14, 2017
Western Engineering is pleased to announce that Biomedical Engineering Masters student Justin Laing, BESc’15, has been named the winner of the 2017 CAE Bruce Aubin SAE Aerospace Award. 
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Western professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Martha Dagnew, is applying her resource recovery expertise to AWT project.
External | August 30, 2017
The AWT program connects businesses in Ontario with academic experts to develop and demonstrate water technologies for successful introduction to the market. For this project, SOWC paired Hydromantis with Dr. Martha Dagnew, an Assistant Professor of Environmental Engineering at Western University.
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Work keeps a ‘smart’ eye on glaucoma.
Western News | August 30, 2017
Engineering professor Aaron Price is developing a contact lens made from smart polymers (plastics that conduct electricity) that can capture a patient’s complete IOP history, ensuring the earliest possible detection for those at risk for glaucoma.
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September 2017

BASF supports chair in composite materials at Western University.
Western Engineering News | September 6, 2017
BASF Canada has announced its support for a proposed research chair at Western University in the area of composite materials for high volume production, especially in the automotive sector.
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Four scholars named among nation’s elite.
Western News | September 7, 2017
Four Western researchers have been named Canada Research Chairs (CRC), a program which recognizes the country’s best scholars across disciplines. Two additional researchers also had their existing Chairs renewed for an additional five years.
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Western Engineering Outreach selected as $20,000 Prosperity Fund grant winner.
Western Engineering News | September 7, 2017
Western Engineering Outreach, spearheaded by Joanne Moniz, Manager, Outreach Programs has big plans for the $20,000 grant they received. The money is being used for community partnership programs to reach underrepresented youth. These programs will introduce them to the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) fields through a number of initiatives.
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Researchers building resilience amid the roiling waters.
Western News | September 14, 2017
At Western – where world-class labs focus on mitigating the effects of wind, rain and flood – the intense storms have made researchers all the more determined to find ways to reduce the human cost and property loss.
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October 2017

Honour celebrates passion within professor.
Western News | October 11, 2017
“I love it without fail – with all my conviction,” said the Electrical and Computer Engineering professor, recently named one of Ontario’s most outstanding university teachers by the Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations (OCUFA). Rahman will receive his award Oct. 21 in Toronto.
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UNENE annual workshop on Nuclear Instrumentation and Control (I&C) held at Bruce Power.
Western Engineering News | October 13, 2017
University researchers, industry experts and representatives from the Canadian nuclear industry gathered at Bruce Power on October 10th for the 13th Annual University Network of Excellence in Nuclear Engineering (UNENE) Workshop. The UENE is a workshop on Instrumentation and Control (I&C) Systems for Nuclear Power Plants. This annual event was organized by Jin Jiang, a Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Western and the NSERC/UNENE Senior Industrial Research Chair (IRC) in Instrumentation and Control.
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Engineering class seizes golden opportunity
Western News | Ocober 18, 2017
Members of Western Engineering Class of 1967 saw a golden opportunity to celebrate their 50th class reunion. For the past five years, the class has worked together to increase the value of the endowment fund that supports the Canadian Centennial ’67 Class Award.
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Patry: Value your education; value innovation
Western News | October 26, 2017
In recognition of his distinguished career in engineering, and his dedication to innovation, Gilles Patry, former President and CEO of the Canada Foundation for Innovation, was awarded an honorary Doctor of Laws, honoris causa (LLD) at the Thursday morning session of Western’s 310th Convocation.
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Brian J. Bonnick is the 2017 recipient of the Lauchland Engineering Alumni Medal
Western Engineering News | October 27, 2017
For the last seventeen years, Bonnick has been at IMAX Corporation, the Canadian theatre company which designs and manufactures IMAX cameras and projection systems. At IMAX, Bonnick and a team of dedicated engineers and technicians design the world’s highest resolution cameras as well as working with film development, production, post production and distribution to IMAX affiliated theatres worldwide. 
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November 2017

Design captures a moment in time
Western News | November 2, 2017
Engineering student Ethan Kellough created and designed a one-of-a-kind time capsule to help the university celebrate Canada’s 150th birthday. 
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Book celebrates hundred issues of certitude
Western News | November 2, 2017
Slobodan P. Simonovic published the first volume of the Water Resources Research Report, also known as the Blue Book.
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Civil Engineering ranked tops in Canada
Western News | November 9, 2017
The 2017 Shanghai Rankings Global Ranking of Academic Subjects ranked Western’s Department of Civil Engineering No. 1 in Canada and No. 12 globally.
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Karakatsanis earns top engineering honour
Western News | November 16, 2017 
Western Engineering alumna Catherine Karakatsanis, BESc ’83, MESc ’91, often touted as one of the most powerful women in Canada, added another honour to her long list of accolades when she received the Professional Engineers of Ontario (PEO) Gold Medal, recognizing her profound influence on the profession.
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Partnership to move new plastics forward
Western News | November 23, 2017 
Professor Takashi Kuboki hopes to gain the attention of the automotive and aerospace industries as he develops an advanced plastic in partnership with northern Ontario-based mining company Zenyatta Ventures Ltd.
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Work pushing wave of printable electronics
Western News | November 23, 2017 
Western researcher Jun Yang is looking to push the ‘paper’ envelope when it comes to printable electronics.
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