APEGGA Summit Awards® Recognize Engineering and Geoscience Excellence

Calgary – Hundreds of individuals in the engineering and geoscience communities honoured their peers at the 2009 Summit Awards® Gala, Thursday, April 23 at the TELUS Convention Centre. The event, hosted by The Association of Professional Engineers, Geologists and Geophysicists of Alberta (APEGGA), acknowledges outstanding individuals for their accomplishments in engineering, geology and geophysics.

Now in its 19th year, the Summit Awards® recognize excellence across a broad range of engineering and geoscience endeavors and salute the efforts of these professionals as they work to ensure public safety and well-being. Summit Award® recipients are leaders who have a significant positive impact upon Alberta.

Twelve awards were presented this year celebrating superior leadership, early accomplishment, environmental sustainability, technical and educational achievement, mentorship, professional and community service, project innovation and distinguished service to the Association.

Established in 1920, APEGGA is responsible for regulating the practices of engineering, geology and geophysics in the province of Alberta. The Association’s more than 54,000 members play a significant role in every segment of the economy, and their technical and management expertise ensure Alberta remains at the forefront of technological innovation.

2009 APEGGA Summit Awards® Recipients

Honourary Life Membership
Dr. Gordon Williams, P.Geol. (Calgary)
for eminent service and leadership as president of the association

Active in the advancement of the geoscience profession and its future professionals, Dr. Gordon Williams, P.Geol., has worked as a geologist and an educator and is also a past-president of both the Canadian Society of Petroleum Geologists and the Canadian Council of Professional Geoscientists. Dr. Williams has been a professional member of APEGGA since 1969. Assuming numerous leadership roles with the association, he has been an active volunteer for more than 30 years and has served on several committees, tasks forces and council. As a member of council he served two terms (2007-present; 1989- 1995) and as president of the association in 2008-2009.

The L.C. Charlesworth Professional Service Award
Dr. Ian A. McIlreath, P.Geol. (Calgary)
for diligent service to the professions and the association

For more than 30 years, Dr. Ian McIlreath, P.Geol., has been an active participant in Canada’s leading earth science organizations and has made outstanding contribution to the field of geology on a national and international level. In addition to his work with APEGGA’s council, committees and task forces, he has held various technical and management positions over his career, and had the honour of being the youngest president of the Canadian Society of Petroleum Geologists (CSPG) when he held that office in 1983. He is the only person to have served as the president of both the CSPG and the Geological Association of Canada.

Honourary Membership
Wendy C. Cooper (Edmonton)
for service by a non-member in the development of new material, equipment, techniques, philosophy or management related to engineering, geology or geophysics

A recognized supporter of the consulting engineering industry, Wendy Cooper has worked to raise awareness of the contribution that professional engineers make in Alberta. As Consulting Engineers of Alberta’s chief executive officer, she has advocated for the advancement of consulting engineering in Alberta and has made a positive impact in the engineering community and with business, government and the public.

The Alberta Ingenuity Fund Research Excellence Award
Dr. Fadhel M. Ghannouchi, P.Eng. (Calgary)
for innovative research used to improve economic and social well-being

A researcher and professor, Dr. Fadhel Ghannouchi, P.Eng., is internationally known for his accomplishments in academia and technology development. He was involved in the creation of the iRadio Lab which has been instrumental in raising Alberta’s profile as a leading place for research and technology development. The lab has made a remarkable impact on the field of information and communications technology research. He is an iCORE professor and Canada research chair in intelligent radio frequency technology at the University of Calgary’s Schulich School of Engineering.

The Frank Spragins Technical Service Award
Dr. James W. Haslett, P.Eng. (Calgary)
for recognized integrity, expertise and outstanding accomplishments

Dr. James Haslett, P.Eng., has conducted leading-edge research for the past 37 years and has been an active consultant to industry since 1970. He recently held the TRLabs / iCORE / NSERC senior industrial research chair in radio frequency integrated circuit (RFIC) design, one of the larger RFIC research groups in Canada, and in 2008 was appointed as the principal investigator of the iCORE Advance Technology Information Processing Systems Research Initiative. Currently, his research includes the design of an ultra-low-power radio chip and sensor system for a patient vital sign monitoring platform, an ultra-low-noise amplifier for use in the world’s largest and most sensitive radio telescope, and analog-to-digital converters for next-generation software-defined wireless communications systems.

The Excellence in Education Award
Dr. Robert G. Driver, P.Eng. (Edmonton)
for exemplary contributions to teaching and learning

Widely recognized as an excellent and dedicated educator, Dr. Robert Driver, P.Eng., has been teaching since 1984 and has been a professor at the University of Alberta since 2000. He creates an enriched learning environment by combining industry background, practical examples, and field trips and supplementary seminars and has taught engineering courses in Canada, the US and South Africa. He has been recognized numerous times for excellence in education and proactively seeks to improve as a teacher by participating in faculty workshops.

The Early Accomplishment Award
Dr. Mark G. Petovello, P.Eng. (Calgary)
for exceptional achievement in the early years of a professional career

Since graduating with a B.Sc. in geomatics engineering, Dr. Mark Petovello, P.Eng., has begun an impressive and promising career. He made significant contributions to navigation research as a graduate student and was appointed a Senior Research Engineer in the Department of Geomatics Engineering at the University of Calgary after receiving his PhD. He became an Assistant Professor in January 2008. He developed several novel algorithms and methods to improve the accuracy, reliability and efficiency of navigation systems and his research continues to be instrumental in enhancing quality of life as he has contributed to allowing more accurate landings on aircraft carriers as well as working with an automobile manufacturer on inter-vehicular positioning which helps drivers to avoid collisions.

The Community Service Award
Dr. Peter C. Flynn, P.Eng. (Edmonton)
for outstanding contributions to society

Dr. Peter C. Flynn, P.Eng., has made notable contributions to the engineering community, to the community at large and to education. He spent 25 years in Canada’s energy industry and served as director of various organizations. During this time he served on both local and national boards for the Canadian Society of Chemical Engineering and the Chemical Institute of Canada. The Engineering Management program at the University of Alberta was revitalized under his supervision. In addition to his contributions to his profession, he has dedicated himself to serving the broader community through his appointments to the board of the Informatics Circle of Research Excellence and the Balancing Pool of Alberta, and his volunteer work with the Capital Region Housing Corporation, Fort Edmonton Foundation and other organizations.

The Outstanding Mentor
Robert D. Rose, P.Eng. (Edmonton)
for exceptional achievement as a mentor

As a dedicated mentor, coach and volunteer, Robert Rose, P.Eng., has shared his passion for his profession with numerous Engineers-in-Training (E.I.T.) and young students. He was a founding contributor of ATCO Electric’s E.I.T. program and employed a hands-on, practical educational approach that made him one of the strongest mentors and coaches in the program. He has been an active volunteer with the APEGGA Outreach Program since 1997 and has supported the engineering co-op program at the University of Alberta over the years.

The Environment and Sustainability Award
The Calgary Biocell Project (Calgary)
for excellence towards preserving the environment and sustainable development through the application of engineering and geoscience

The Calgary Biocell Project is a collaborative venture to create a biocell that is able to break down biodegradable materials in the City of Calgary’s garbage, reducing the amount of wasted that ends up in a conventional landfill to 30 per cent of the original mass.

The Project Achievement Award
Pine Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant (Calgary)
for projects demonstrating a substantial contribution to technical progress and the betterment of society.

The Pine Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant is designed to accommodate the City of Calgary’s immediate and long-term needs in an efficient, economic and environmentally responsible manner. This next-generation wastewater treatment facility incorporated advanced technology and provides the highest quality of treated effluent among all major cities in Western Canada, thus helping to protect the integrity of the Bow River as an important habitat for fish and wildlife and one of the Province’s vital water resources. It will help the City to achieve its long-term water efficiency goal to reduce potable water consumption for non-potable needs.

Centennial Leadership Award
Dr. Warren H. Finlay, P.Eng. (Edmonton)
for highest distinction as an executive or director of a continuing enterprise

With contributions to the advancement of inhaled aerosols and drug delivery to the lungs that promise to increase life quality and expectancy for millions of people, Dr. Warren Finlay, P.Eng., has built a reputation over his career that has earned him prestigious international awards and many research contracts with the international pharmaceutical industry. His lab has developed an idealized mouth-throat geometry, known as the Alberta geometry, that has been rapidly adopted worldwide and is progressively becoming an industry standard. Through interdisciplinary cooperation, his lab has published sophisticated correlations that may aid in the treatment of lung cancer and cystic fibrosis.