SME Chapter 77 Meeting – March 2016

Our Christmas event at the Tivoli with SME Chapter 354 was a great success, so in March we will join them again, this time for a tour of knife manufacturer Spyderco at 820 Spyderco Way, Golden, Colorado 80403. Join us at four p.m. on Tuesday, March 15 for a tour of this great Colorado company, followed by networking, libations (and dinner if you want) at Table Mountain Inn, 1310 Washington Avenue, Golden, Colorado 80401.

The agenda for the event is:

• 4:00-5:30 p.m.: Tour of Spyderco

• 5:30-7:00 p.m.: Networking and Dinner at Table Mountain Inn

There is no cost for the tour.

Spyderco’s knives are different, peculiar, even out there. They know that quality is critical to developing reliable, high performance cutting tools. That’s why they’ve invested in a one-million-dollar testing facility. Come visit them on March 15^th and learn why “those who know carry Spyderco.”

Please RSVP by email to davidwilliambarton@gmail.com by March 11.

Colorado Society of Manufacturing Engineers 2015 Holiday Party

Over twenty SME Chapter 77 and 354 members, students from SME Student Chapter 324, and guests celebrated the holidays Friday, December 11 at the Tivoli on the University of Denver. Good times were had by all!

The event began with a brewery tour. Did you know that the Tivoli Brewing Company was established in 1859 and is the second oldest brewery in the country? After being closed since a devastating flood in 1965, the company is coming back to life—brewing old pre-prohibition recipes that haven’t been tasted for years. Here are a couple photos of the tour.

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Our tour guide Holly Dorr talks about the amazing history of the Tivoli Brewing Company

 

 

 

 

At the end of the tour, we enjoyed a sample of Tivoli’s Helles Lager, a beer that was first brewed here over a hundred years ago.

 

 

 

 

At Chapter 77, we have started a tradition of informal networking at a local watering hole after most meetings. Well, this time we shifted things around and had a happy hour at the Tivoli Tap Room before the meeting. It was a great opportunity to mingle and share holiday cheer.

 

 

After dinner and comments by the Chairs of the respective chapters, we enjoyed an informative presentation by Peter Holtgrieve, formerly of Manufacturers Edge, now owner of Partners in Business Excellence. In many of the plant tours we’ve had over the years, we have seen what an impact Lean Manufacturing has had on the production floor. Well, great—but what about the front office? Peter explained how Lean principles can be applied there—with amazing results.

Thanks to everyone who attended the SME holiday event. See you at future SME meetings and tours in the New Year!

SME Student Chapter S323 Chair Jithin Vadakel with the SME Chapter 77 Trolley Bell

October 2015 Meeting Recap

We had a great tour and meeting at RK on Wednesday, October 21 with nineteen members and guests attending. Thanks to Dan Clark and Randy Renwald for hosting us and for showing us the RK Henderson facility.

After the tour and an engaging discussion about RK and issues facing manufacturers in Colorado, we turned to a lively discussion about the current state and future direction of Chapter 77.

Overview

SME Chapter 77 was one of the first chapters to be established, we have a plaque with a trolley bell that goes back to 1947. Around 2005 the chapter became inactive until 2010. We started with 30 members and have grown to 95. The chapter has over $5,000 on hand. We also have a scholarship in our name with a balance of almost $36,000. A scholarship is awarded in the chapter’s name annually; this year $1,800 went to a mechanical engineering student studying at the University of Denver.

SME Chapter 77 maintains close ties with Chapter 354 and with Student Chapter 323 at University of Colorado, Denver. We also have been involved with other organizations, especially ASQ.

Our philosophy the past five years has been to grow our membership by offering plant tours at interesting venues. This has included tours of Vestas, Synthes, Terumo and other organizations in a variety of industries: aerospace, medical device, and others. This approach has enabled us to grow our membership by over 200%.

Subjects for Future Discussion

1. Hold an Executive Committee Meeting before every membership meeting that will be open to members and guests.

2. Recruit new officers to bring different ideas and skills into the leadership of the chapter.

3. Continue to emphasize plant tours but also add technical presentations that feature topical speakers.

4. Coordinate more closely with other manufacturing societies and student groups, to include scheduling joint meetings and events.

5. Expand outreach beyond a manufacturing audience.

6. Encourage members and guests to bring friends, co-workers, and employers to meetings.

7. Expand marketing efforts with an emphasis on social media.

8. Target recruiting of companies by scheduling tours and technical presentations that address current problems companies are facing (example: a presentation by the Mountain State Employment Council).

What subjects have I missed? What ideas to you have that are not listed here. Email your thoughts and attend Executive Committee meetings to share your views. Let’s make Chapter 77 the best it can be.

SME Chapters 77 and 354 Joint Picnic

Reports from attendees of the SME Chapters 77 and 354 joint picnic were all laudatory. Thanks to Terry Gale for hosting the meeting and for a great tour of the Rambler Ranch.

The Rambler Ranch is a part of a 165-acre estate owned by Terry Gale and Greg Kissinger. You can easily believe you stepped back in time when visiting this facility. American Motors, Nash, DeSoto, Dodge, Chrysler, Edsel, Chevrolet, Ford, Renault, Rolls Royce, Porsche, Kaiser, Studebaker, Wolsley Packard, Fiat, Mercedes, BMW, Vauxhall, Lincoln, Mercury, Allstate, Opel, Jeep, Bricklin Funwagon, Citroen, Pontiac, Acura, GMC, Honda and more are represented in the museum.

Below are photos of Rambler Ranch and the picnic. Thanks to Dr. Sanchez of UC Denver and Bill Owens for sharing them.

 

Rambler Ranch entrance

 

Everyone enjoyed tasty BBQ Picnic fare.

A large number of antique cars are on display at the Rambler Ranch

 

Student members of SME Chapter S324 also enjoyed the picnic and tour.

 

Terry Gale, owner of the Rambler Ranch gave a great tour of the displays.

 

 

 

December 2013 Holiday Celebration

SME Chapter 77 members and guests joined SME Chapter 354 and the students of Chapter 324 for a holiday celebration. A total of 43 attendees dined on traditional holiday fare and conducted the essential chapter business of swearing in each chapters’ 2013 officers.

After the ceremony, Dr. L. Rafael Sanchez, Associate Professor of the Mechanical Engineering Department at CU Denver will gave an update on the status of the student chapter, and Deborah Robbins, Industry Relations Manager & Industrial Laser Community (ILC) Facilitator reviewed the programs that SME has initiated to support and enhance manufacturing education.

Other honored guests attending are Jim Whitehead, SME Membership Consultant and Kathy Looman, who covers the west coast territory for SME.

The evening was a great success. Thanks to Dr. Sanchez and the student members of S324 for their hospitality. They did a great job!

Here are photos of the event.

 

2013 officers of SME Chapters 77, 354, and S324 are sworn in by Deborah Robbins

 

Dr. Rafael Sanchez, adviser to Student SME Chapter S324 updates attendees about the status of the student chapter.

 

Deborah Robbins gave us a great update on the latest news from SME.