San Diego National Engineers Week 2012

National Engineers Week is the third week of February. It is observed by more than 70 engineering, education, and cultural societies, and more than 50 corporations and government agencies. The purpose of National Engineers Week is to call attention to the contributions to society that engineers make. It is also a time for engineers to emphasize the importance of learning math, science, and technical skills.

The celebration of National Engineers Week was started in 1951 by the National Society of Professional Engineers in conjunction with President George Washington's birthday. President Washington is considered as the nation's first engineer, notably for his survey work.

The National Engineers Week Foundation is a formal coalition of more than 100 professional societies, major corporations and government agencies dedicated to ensuring a diverse and well-educated future engineering workforce. This is done by increasing awareness and interest in engineering and technology careers among young students and by promoting pre-college literacy in math and science. National Engineers Week (NEW) also raises public understanding and appreciation of engineers' contributions to society. Although NEW is a nationwide event, each major county puts together their own E-Week and San Diego county does just that. The week in San Diego has many events with the culmination being the awards banquet which is sponsored by the San Diego County Engineering Council (SDCEC) and hosted on the beautiful campus of the University of San Diego (USD) at the Joan Kroc Institute for Peace and Justice (KIPJ).

The awards banquet will take place on Feb 24^th at the University of San Diego (USD). along with dinner, the night will include presenting awards to individual and organizations from the San Diego County region in the categories of:

The night will be capped by the Keynote Speaker: John Halchak. The history of Rocketdyne rocket engines is a fascinating view into the U.S. Space Race. What was to become Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne began as the Aerophysics Department of North American Aviation in 1947. In less than a decade, it became the dominant company in the field of liquid rocket engines.

Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne engines have boosted over 85% of all U.S. space launches: Rocketdyne engines powered the first American satellite; the first American in space; the first American in orbit; the first American intercontinental ballistic missile; all three stages of the Apollo-Saturn V Moon rocket; the highly reliable Atlas and Delta launch vehicles; RL-10 - the world’s first hydrogen fueled engine; and the Space Shuttle Main Engines, to name a few.

This dominance in the field did not happen by accident. It was the result of executive management with a long-term vision and the ability to attract top talent. This talk will present the history of Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne from its early beginnings to the present time, and discuss some of the challenges that were faced along the way.