Lunch Speakers

One of the great opportunities IRE students have is to listen to lunch speakers. Engineers working in industry come to IRE to talk about their experiences as an engineer. This is a great way for students to network and get a perspective on what it’s really like to be an engineer. So far this year we have had 2 lunch speakers, both IRE generation 1 graduates. Both of the speakers did a great job on telling about life after IRE. They both also work in mining but have had very different experiences. Lunch speakers also bring the IRE community closer together by having a small group of students make lunch so everybody gets to eat together, catch up, and take a short break from their busy day. By having lunch speakers that work at a variety of companies also let the students know how diverse the engineering world is. We all have the opportunity at some point to talk to industry members, but the lunch speaker program is special because it is time that engineers take to talk to us about their personal experiences. We want to thank all of the past and future lunch speakers that have visited IRE for taking the time to tell us about their everyday experiences.

Power is a commodity

        Last week part of the Grand Rapids Public Utilities hydro turbine generator group visited MN Power.  While we were there, we learned how electricity is bought, sold, and delivered to our houses. Kevin Lindstrom gave us some great insight into how power is distributed around the Midwest.  Every day, a power company must purchase the amount of power that their customers demand.  That power is bought and sold like a stock market and the price changes every five minutes.  The price varies with seasons and with the time of the day; the more people use, the more the price rises.  Any generator over five MW is able to be part of the network and is told when to produce by MISO, the overseeing body for the Midwest region.  The amount of energy produced is determined by the load that is demanded.   Generators are brought online based on their price and their consistency, which means that a generator that sells for less will run more, but may not make as much money as the generator that is not run all day, but charges more. One thing that I learned is that if a company could use power during off-peak times, their power bill would decrease.  I would like to thank Kevin Lindstrom and Minnesota Power for the explanation and for their time.   

Proofread by Jeremy Goodell

IRE construction progress

Iron Range Engineering          23 October, 2012

The Minnesota State University, Mankato department of integrated engineering, Iron Range Engineering at Mesabi Range campus is progressing on track.  The sub structure is in place and the walls are going up.  The expansion is scheduled to be completed before spring semester.  Many of the students and faculty are patiently awaiting the day to move in to new project rooms and make use of the expanded work areas.  It is great to see things coming together, not just the building but the entire concept of Iron Range Engineering’s partnership with industry to “grow” engineers from the region with students who want to continue to live here and work for local industries. 
Some of the equipment has started to show up and the rest is scheduled for delivery when the space is available.  A few equipment items already in use: Hurricane Laser cutter, drill press, scroll saw, and sander.  There are a couple items that are still boxed up mig welder, and welding safety equipment.   We have some great new spaces too.  Electronic circuits lab is up and running with its state of the art equipment put to use daily.  One other active space has already had an impact on the students, the new physical fitness room, treadmill, elliptical, plus control and free weights help to build strong bodies along with strong minds.  We look forward to the new facility and the supporters who are sure to come help open the doors to let us learn how to learn at Minnesota State University, Iron Range. See you there.

Dan Marshall

Student Life Activities

The IRE Student Life Committee put on the annual IRE golf outing again this fall. It was held at Giants Ridge (The Quarry) in Biwabik, one of the premier golf courses in Minnesota. This experience helps the students get to know each other on a more personal level helping with the team building process while having lots of fun. Many engineering topics were discussed on the course like the projectile motion of the golf ball, how the DC motor worked on the golf cart, and one player was caught trying to design a new earth moving tool with his seven iron (He hopes to intern with John Deere some day). It is events and people like this that make IRE a special community to belong to.