NEW TRENDS IN ENGINEERING: VIRTUAL REALITY

Virtual design environments and collaborative work structures were just two of the exciting  developments in engineering discussed at the recent ASME/AFM 2009 World Conference on Innovative Virtual Reality in February 2009, which welcomed high-level speakers from the virtual reality industry and academia, and over 150 delegates from Europe, USA, Malaysia, Indonesia and South Africa.

Virtual design environments are exerting an increasingly strong influence on the engineering profession. Driving this positive move include the urgency to preserve the global environment, improve health conditions worldwide, and develop sustainable energy sources. Collaborative work environments and partnerships are also playing a strong role, enabling efficiencies in such areas as sales forecasting and just-in-time manufacturing. For engineers, the collaborative enterprise is creating exciting opportunities to innovate and contribute value to organisational goals.

 

Highlights included:

• A fascinating debate amongst global experts on the scientific and technological challenges and the barriers to developing virtual reality. 
• An update on future trends, research focuses, and the best industrial practices and applications.
• A panel discussion on “Virtual Reality Implementation Successes” with Jerry Duncan (Deere and Company), Holger Schmidt (EADS Innovation Works), Professor Bruno Burbaum (Hochschule Mannheim), and Michael Russo (Tridelity Display Solutions).

Like many emerging technologies, virtual reality adoption has been subject to the “hype cycle”. Popularized by Gartner in the mid 1990’s, the hype cycle characterizes the tumultuous life cycle of a new technology which initially receives wildly over heated market attention (Peak of Inflated Expectations), followed by rapid decline in enthusiasm (Trough of Disillusionment), a rehabilitation phase in which the technology and market matures (Slope of Enlightenment), and finally a stable phase of general market acceptance (Plateau of Productivity).

One of the speakers was James Oliver, member of the Conference Scientific Committee, a technology visionary in the development and application of virtual reality technology, and leader of one of the world’s largest research centres in emerging interface technologies. According to Oliver, virtual reality has survived its hype cycle and is emerging as a viable, cost effective problem-solving tool in a wide spectrum of application domains.

With roots primarily in government and university research laboratories, VR enjoyed a flurry of commercialization from the mid-1980s through the mid-1990s resulting in a numerous hardware and software technology providers. “However, the relatively high cost, lack of compelling applications, and weak integration with existing processes, conspired to dampen the initial excitement of many early adopters of virtual reality,” says Oliver. “As a result, the past ten years has seen a dramatic consolidation in the commercial virtual reality technology industry.”

As an enabling technology, virtual reality has several niche market applications in manufacturing, energy exploration, entertainment, research, and others. While each of these applications is in its own stage of market development, the past several years of steadfast market education by emerging market leaders combined with the continued and accelerating development of virtual reality technologies, indicates that we may be nearing the end of the “Slope of Enlightenment,” and that virtual reality may finally be entering its “Plateau of Productivity.”

ASME CODES AND STANDARDS –IMPACTING INDUSTRY

CONTRIBUTE!
This section of the ASME EMEA eUpdate is open for your comments, news and issues on the use and implementation of the ASME Codes and Standards in the EMEA region. Write a short one to two paragraphs of a maximum of 200 words answering the question: "How have you been implementing the ASME Codes and Standards, and which ones? How has it made a difference?"

This could be an excellent opportunity for you or your company / organisation to share your experience / success stories with over 27.000 mechanical engineering professionals in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Please also enclose your photo, company logo or a company photo (jpg format, high resolution if possible). Send it to fortesc@asme.org

CONTINUING EDUCATION

To progress in your job, attend the new ASME Training opportunities in Stockholm. Book now to benefit from the early bird fees and gain the knowledge you need on:

• ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code - Section VIII, Division 2: Pressure Vessels
• B31.1 Power Piping Design
• B31.1 Power Piping Materials, Fabrication and Examination

To register visit: http://www.asme.org/Education/Europe/

Testimonials from previous Trainings:

"The course is very relevant to life situations and put participants on the cutting-edge of the industry. It provided me innovative insight into the manufacturing and engineering of pressure  vessels"
(Gbenga Mobolade from Ascot Fabricators & Constructors Limited, Nigeria, attended courses on Section VIII Division 1 and Inspections Repairs & Alterations of Pressure Vessels in Amsterdam, March 2009)

"An excellent overview of B31.3 delivered by a passionate enthusiastic and knowledgeable presenter"
(Patrick Hough, Conoco Phillips Ltd, UK, attended a course on B 31.3. Process Piping Design in Barcelona, Nov 2008)

"Excellent overview of ASME Section III and associated regulations"
Alexander Fraser, Clyde Pumps Ltd, UK, attended a course on Section III in Barcelona, Nov 2008)

In Partnership with ALITUR (Associazione dei Laureati in Ingegneria di Tor Vergata, Università di Roma); BSMEE (Belgian Society of Mechanical and Environmental Engineering); Coordinamento Mecanica; DMS (Danish Society of Mechanical Engineers); FABI (La Maison de l'Ingénieur); SNE (Spanish Nuclear Society).

Upcoming Courses
Don’t miss the upcoming educational opportunities in Europe to gain the necessary know-how and expertise to advance in your career!

Other Educational Activities
ASME organises a variety of educational activities worldwide. Check the upcoming dates and locations and further your knowledge and ensure the next steps in your professional future.

For the Online Educational opportunities please click here

CONFERENCE AND EVENTS

ASME EMEA Events Calendar
See all the events in EMEA and select the event you want to attend.

ASME EMEA Events

The ASME Bioprocess Technology – Europe conference is built as an essential learning experience from which participants can take practical applications described by experts in the field.

By attending the technical seminars and industry exhibition you will benefit from:

• Presentations of real case studies from key industry players
• Interactive workshops on BPE standard
• Panel discussions
• Attendance by industry experts, top companies
• Valuable networking

For more information and to register please visit:  http://www.asmeconferences.org/bioprocesseurope09/

 

The International Conference on Nuclear Engineering (ICONE) is the premier global conference for addressing the needs of the nuclear industry. The conference will take place July 12-16, 2009 and will be held at the Sheraton Brussels Hotel.
Topics are divided into 15 tracks:

• Plant Operations, Maintenance, Engineering, Modifications and Life Cycle
• Component Reliability and Materials Issues
• Structural Integrity
• Advanced Applications of Nuclear Technology
• Next Generation Systems
• Safety and Security
• Codes, Standards, Licensing and Regulatory Issues
• Fuel Cycle and High & Low Level Waste Management and Decommissioning
• Balance of Plant for Nuclear Applications
• Thermal Hydraulics
• Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD), Neutronics Methods and Coupled Codes
• Current Advanced Reactors – Plant Designs, Construction, Workforce and Public Acceptance
• Instrumentation & Controls (I&C)
• Student Paper Competition
• Nuclear Industry Forum - Panel Sessions on Current Topics

There are also two workshops taking place at the event:

• Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) Seminar: targeted at young researchers and engineers and discusses the basis and results for selection of several CFD applications for certain flow problems.
• Engineering Reliability and Life Cycle Management (ER & LCM) Seminar: discusses the basic principles of engineering risk and reliability analysis of engineering systems, and the principles and requirements of equipment failure and life cycle management database development and applications.

For more information and to register: http://www.asmeconferences.org/icone17/

 

This major event on the ASME calendar provides participants with opportunities to further their knowledge base by being exposed to, and exchange opinions and ideas on, different topics related to Pressure Vessel and Piping technologies for the power and process Industries.

The conference’s Technical Programme contains over 600 technical papers organised into more than 150 technical and panel discussion sessions, tutorials, and the Student Paper Symposium and Competition. The NDE and Software Demonstration forums are organised as part of the technical programme. Technical papers presented at the conference will be published in the form of a CD ROM. 

Topics covered in the main programme include Codes & Standards; Computer Technology and Bolted Joints; Design & Analysis; Fluid-Structure Interaction; High Pressure Technology; Materials & Fabrication; Operations, Applications & Components; Seismic Engineering; Non Destructive Examination; and Nanotechnology.

Tutorials and Workshops at the conference offer both the experienced and early career engineers excellent opportunities to refresh their knowledge and to venture into specific technical areas outside their expertise. 

For more information and to register: http://www.asmeconferences.org/pvp09/

DISTRICT AND COMMUNITY NEWS

The ASME Leadership Training Conference (LTC) took place in Los Angeles, USA, on 5 - 8 March 2009. Several European Section Leaders attended the Conference and have shared their impressions.

 
Andre Burdet, Swiss Section Leader, Bernard Gindroz, French Section Leader,
Luca Gaetani, ASME Italian Member, Koray Safak, Turkish Section Leader

“The Leadership Training Center 2009 Conference (LTC09) in Los Angeles has been a very new and interesting experience to me. This was the first time I participate to such a kind of event so I was very open minded on what I could have encountered and learned. The LTC09 conference contents and  the way it has been managed by the committee has given me the chance to understand much better the ASME principles, methods, procedures and resources available to the volunteers and which are the best practices applied right now in the Knowledge and Community (K&C). I want to say that I’ve learned a lot from the conference and I will try to transfer all the information gathered to the people in my (brand new) section. The application and implementation of the ASME “K&C standards” will be then tailored considering the geographical, environmental, and behavioral needs of our local ASME community at section and District level.” Luca Gaetani, ASME Italian Member

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