End of the semester

The fall semester is winding down at IRE, with only two weeks remaining stress levels are high among the majority of the students.  Students are working to finish up all their competencies and most of all their semester project.  It is time for students to start applying for jobs and/or internships for the upcoming summer, if they have not already.

Competencies are to be completed by the end of next week and all that remains for the semester is to present the projects to the rest of IRE as well as the clients and for each student to complete their final oral exam on a specific engineering system.  "The expectations of an IRE graduate are that they are professional, technical, designers, project managers, and learners."  Each student is asked to prepare and practice a presentation describing their abilities in the mentioned areas.  An engineering system of expertise is chosen by each individual and asked to identify and clearly explain all of the components, functions, and engineering principles.

Once a student has completed all of their tasks for the semester, their month long winter vacation begins!  The majority of the students will be returning in the spring to continue their learning along with a number of new students beginning the program, but four students will not be returning.  These four students will be graduating at the end of this semester and their life in the work force begins. 

Written by:  Danielle Goebel
Proofread by:  Mike Carlson

Community Outreach

At Iron Range Engineering, part of the curriculum is professional development. One of the ways we, as students, improve in that regard is to practice professional responsibility by performing community outreach in a variety of different ways. Over the course of the semester there are many different opportunities for community outreach, some more impactful than others. This semester, there were two experiences that impacted me the most.

The first experience was in participating with the United Way of Northeastern Minnesota for their “Buddy Backpack” program on the dates of the 17^th and 24^th of September. The program goal is to feed children who are at risk for going hungry over weekends and breaks from school on the Iron Range along with Koochaching County. This is a great project and the students at Iron Range were more than willing to lend a helping hand with packing these bags with food.

The second experience was when my dad’s house burned down late September. No one was injured in the fire, but the house was a complete loss. When I mentioned this to my fellow students, many of them wanted to know if and how they could help. After the fire inspectors cleared us for cleanup, a group of Iron Range students came out and helped to remove the ash and debris. Thanks to their help, we were able to successfully clear out the old foundation of debris and begin construction on an outer “shell” before winter fully hit.

 

The students from Iron Range have proven that they are dedicated to their professional responsibility and their communities, both regional and personal. My experiences from these events have shown me what this group of young engineers are capable of doing for their community.

Written by: Kody Kamunen

Reviewed by: Justin Magnusen

SME Tour of US Steel's Drilling and Blast Operations

On October 24^th students from the Iron Range Engineering student chapter of the Society of Mining, Metallurgy and Exploration had the opportunity to observe drilling and blasting operations at Minntac, one of the two facilities that make up U.S. Steel’s Minnesota Ore Operations. U.S. Steel employees Guy Holmes and Jeremy Williams presented the students a full tour of the operations involved in the pit. The students first observed a two hundred forty-hole mine blast from a lookout point in the pit some 4,000 feet away. After the blast, students where shown the drilling equipment used to prep each drill site. Students were also shown the logistical operations at Mine Control. At Mine Control, students learned how the haul trucks are coordinated, how communications within the pit are operated, and how the correlation between the locations of the ore body affected pellet quality. The overall learning experience for students emphasized the importance of communication and safety.

Dave Ellis Leadership Training

Dave Ellis Workshop

From October 5th-7th, 2013 a handful of Iron Range Engineering students attended the Realizing Your Fullest Potential workshop provided by Dave Ellis. The workshop was held at the Sisters of Saint Joseph of Carondelet building in St. Paul, Minnesota. IRE students had the chance to participate in the event and meet many of the other people who attended.

                Attendees came from all over the country: California, Texas and Virginia along with many attendees from the Iron Range. Students learned many valuable leadership skills during the 2 ½ days they attended. Out of all the topics learned I felt the most valuable for me was learning to change complaints into requests. Rather than complaining about a person’s actions, we were instructed to complain in a constructive manner that includes requests that the person change the behavior. Other topic included active listening and keeping notecards of desires and wants to keep you focused on your goals.

Over all I thought this was a very valuable workshop and I enjoyed going. Not only for the topics covered but the chance to meet new people and to better bond with my fellow IRE students.

Proof read by James Wilson

Turkey Dinner Tuesday Nov 26th

Campus Wide Free Turkey Dinner!

Tuesday Nov 26th

11:00AM-1:00PM

Virginia Campus Commons

IRE sponsored!  Please join us! 

Betz Law

Albert Betz, a German physicist, published a book in 1919 where he concluded that only 16/27 of the winds energy (approximately 59.3%) can be used (in ideal conditions) by a wind turbine.  Ideal conditions do not actually exist, but we can imagine them in theory:  no friction; mass-less turbine blades; no eddies.  In these ideal conditions it seems like 100% efficiency could be achieved, but Albert Betz was smart enough to recognize that if we were to harness all of the winds power, the wind would not leave the blade and would therefore be in the way of the rest of the wind.

In fact Betz experimented and proved mathematically, under the previously mentioned ideal conditions, the best case scenario happens when approximately 2/3 of the winds power is extracted and 1/3 of it is not (allowing the air to move out of the way of the rest of the wind).  In this way Betz calculated a theoretical maximum power extraction for wind turbines.

When a wind turbine company reports that their turbine is 60% efficient, then, they mean that it is 60% of the 59.3% (Betz limit), or really only 35.6% efficient.  Because of mechanical losses, such as friction from bearings, noise and heat, the most efficient turbines available today produce about 80% of 59.3%, or you could say they are just over 47% efficient.

I participated in the Nelson Wind Turbine Project at Iron Range Engineering this fall and it was imperative to get an understanding of the Betz limit and how the wind turbine industry compares their efficiency.  The project provided excellent practice at applying engineering principles such as Impulse and Momentum, The Conservation of Mass, and The Conservation of Energy to a real world project.  It would take an hour to tell you everything that I learned during this project, but I hope I have clarified any misconceptions that you may have had about how Betz’s Law is applicable to wind turbine efficiency.

Written by Jim McCluskey    

Proofread by Charlie Schuh 

Enjoying Time as an Iron Range Engineering Student

Bailey Lake- a few blocks away from IRE

If you are an outdoor lover, one of the many benefits of being a student at Iron Range Engineering is having the outdoors in your front yard.  There is something for everyone when it comes to outdoor activities.  Get a healthy dose of fresh air by taking a relaxing walk, jog, or bike ride around Bailey Lake, Silver Lake, and Olcott Park; as you can see, all three are just a few blocks away from IRE.

Spend a weekend camping, fishing, and hiking in peaceful solitude at the Whiteface Reservoir located just 37 miles southeast of Virginia.     

Bailey Lake

In the winter, grab your skis or snowshoes and hit the hundreds of kilometers of trails and explore the wonderful wilderness of northeastern Minnesota.  

In late spring to early autumn, head west to Hill Annex State Park near Calumet and hunt for fossils while you tour the old mine. 

Load up your fat tire or mountain bike and head north to hammer out the Big Aspen Trial. 

There is so much to do if you are looking for a little adventure!  A short get-away is a great way to get exercise and recharge your batteries.  

Other outdoor options include: golfing, fishing, ice fishing, hiking, off-roading, biking, rock-picking, boating, kayaking, camping, down-hill skiing,  cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, hunting, sight-seeing, birding, swimming, diving, snowmobiling and more. 

Here is an incomplete list of more options for enjoying the outdoors:

·         The Mesabi Trail http://www.mesabitrail.com/

·         Giant’s Ridge http://www.giantsridge.com/

·         The Virginia Golf Course www.virginiamngolf.com

·         Gilbert’s Off-Highway Vehicle park http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/ohv/trail_detail.html?id=13/

·         Camping http://www.fs.usda.gov/recmain/superior/recreation

·         Diving http://www.sdtn.com/dive_resources/travel_articles/minnesotas-mines-unexpected-treasury-dive-sites#.Uop3zeKJSvk

·         Laurentian Divide http://www.ironrange.org/things-to-do/laurentian-divide-recreation-area

·         Snowmobiling http://www.snowmobiletrail.com/us/mn/city/Virginia

Mineview-in-the-sky http://www.irontrail.org/attractions/mining/mineview-in-the-sky/

Written by Brandy Maki
Proofread by Kate Olafson

Chemistry 2 at IRE

This semester, approximately 18 students from IRE are completing a Chemistry 2 course offered from ICC. The course is taught by ICC instructor Gordy Savela every Wednesday evening from 6:00-9:00p.m. and is modeled similarly to a typical IRE competency. Each week, a different group of students presents and teaches the class real world applications of core chemistry 2 principles and then a lab is conducted that applies to the topics covered. For example, the Auto Tech. group taught the chemistry in your car's battery, along with how the deployment of the airbag is a complex chemical reaction.

In my opinion, this course is valuable because it applies the core topics of a typical Chem 2 class to real-world examples. It helps me to better understand these topics and carry them with me into my future career. Below are a few picture of students conducting a lab experiment, and Gordy talking with students about a topic covered.

By: Justin Magnusen

Proofread By: Kody K.

 

There's no magic bullet

There’s no magic bullet. The magic bullet is the marketing strategy for appealing to the desire for one easy solution.

Many of us try to look for that one thing to make us successful…  When we meet and try to learn from high-performing people, it is easy to try to figure out the one thing they did:

• What is one thing you would do differently if you were getting your first job again?
• What is one thing I can do to be more productive?
• If I can do [verb], then I will be great in [worthwhile endeavor].

In reality, high-performers do not do just one thing. They spend years sculpting and refining a collection of habits that work for them. They also spend a lot of time learning from mistakes: their own and others. It takes a lot of hard work and a lot mistakes. It’s simple to say, hard to do.

By embracing the opportunities at IRE, students are able to make and improve from many mistakes that most graduates make at their first job. The result is a group of college graduates that have the habits of someone who has already started their career. These students are able to bring much more value to their companies. IRE students are constantly improving in many different habits and skills, including:

• Managing projects and tasks
• Successfully sharing responsibility and resolving conflicts in a team
• Acquiring new technical knowledge and skills in a short amount of time
• Making ethical decisions everyday
• Practicing effective written, spoken, and graphical communication
• Designing engineering systems
• Etc.

As I complete my final semester at IRE, I can confidently say that I feel well prepared to start my profession as an engineer. IRE provided an environment where I had the freedom to make and grow from countless mistakes. As a result, I was able to build a strong foundation of habits that will continue to expand along side my career.

There’s no magic bullet. I have known this simple truth for a long time, but it took many more years to fully accept it. I finally stopped looking.

Proofread by: W. Tycer

Written by: E. Diep