ESF Open House

SUNY-ESF had its fall open house on Saturday, 25 October 2008.  Two information sessions were given to students, parents, and guests about the educational programs offered in the Department of Paper and Bioprocess Engineering.  These programs, all chemical engineering-based, include Paper Engineering, Paper Science, and our newest program, Bioprocess Engineering.

Paper Engineering is chemical engineering geared towards the paper and allied industries.  These industries not only include paper manufacture, but industries that supply chemical to the paper industry (such as starch, dyes, etc.) and equipment and supply manufacturers.  While it is often thought that the paper industry is declining due to the "paperless office" and the advent of computers, this is not true.  About 25% of all paper used is personal care products (still needed) and about 50% is packaging (think eBay).  While the industry is changing, it will be with us for a long time and the demand for engineers is expected to be high for at least the next 5 years.

The Paper Science program is more or less an industrial chemistry program involving the application of chemistry and some engineering to the paper industry.  In addition to taking specific paper-focused courses, students are able to minor in a variety of topics such as business management, computer and information technology, biology, construction management, etc. 

Our newest and fast growing program is Bioprocess Engineering, which is "chemical engineering without the petroleum."  In this program, students get a broad chemical engineering-based education with a focus on biological processes and products.  Examples of this technology include the creation of transportation fuels and biodegradable plastics from renewable resources such as wood or other non-fossil fuel based feedstocks.  This is expected to be a fast-growing area in terms of technology and job growth.

Please see the links about to the department and the college for more information regarding these exciting educational fields and the strong job prospects in the future.

Visitors exploring the making of paper on our 12-inch paper machine.

Prospective student and her family learning about the papermaking process.

Dr. Shijie Liu explaining the process of making ethanol from woo.

Joachim Award Winner: Keith Van Scotter

On Wednesday, 15 October 2008, the 2008 Joachim Award Winner, Mr. Keith van Scotter, spoke to students, faculty, and Syracuse Pulp and Paper Foundation Board of Directors members in the Varsity Room at the Carrier Dome.  Mr. Van Scotter is currently the President and CEO of Lincoln Paper and Tissue, a company in Maine that he bought out of bankruptcy and returned to operation.  It is currently a very successful company that provides specialized tissue and paper products world-wide.

Mr. Van Scotter presented how he and several others purchased and restarted the pulp and paper mill in Lincoln, ME after it went bankrupt and shut down.  He gave a compelling case for management training and understanding more than just the technical side of the industry.  Today, Lincoln paper is expanding its production capability through the addition of another paper machine.

The forum was attended by students of all grade levels from freshman (it was part of their PSE/BPE 132 course) through seniors and included graduate students.  The students benefit greatly from the interactions with the industry people that attend events such as these and the annual meeting of the pulp and paper foundation.

 Mr. Keith Van Scotter speaking at the Joachim Forum Dinner.

The dinner portion of the Joachim Forum.

Al Moore, Keith Van Scotter, Ellen Warner, Peter Jones, and Bob Kinstrey.

Two More Companies: Mohawk Paper and Hercules

Over the past week, two more companies have been on campus to interview.  The two companies represent two major facets of the industry with Mohawk Paper representing the paper producers and Hercules representing the suppliers.  Both of these companies have been long term supporters of the department, and we appreciate their continued interest in our students and programs. 

Nancy Blair and Bob Scammell visited ESF from Mohawk Papers.  Mohawk Papers produces a wide range of premium printing and writing papers that are used by a large number of companies and organizations including the Syracuse Pulp and Paper Foundation.  The company is an active member of the Foundation and provides many donations to the college, particularly the pulp needed for the senior paper machine runs. 

Nancy and Bob also visited with the freshman orientation class to discuss interviewing skills, the topic of the day for this class.  They both had very good advice on interviewing effectively and making the best impression possible.  In the evening session, they told the students about the career possibilities with Mohawk Paper, their expectations of interns and permanent hires, and Mohawk's employment philosophy.

Nancy Blair and Bob Scammell telling students about Mohawk paper.

From Hercules, Mike Kaban visited to tell students about the opportunities available in terms of both internships and permanent positions.   Hercules has a well-developed internship program that offers students opportunities to interact with students from other universities, company management, and company new hires.  These opportunities involve both professional and social events during the course of the internship.

Hercules is a producer and marketer of specialty chemicals used in a number of different industries, including the paper industry.

Mike Kaban speaking with students.

Paper Airplane Fly-In

The Papyrus Club (student organization at SUNY-ESF) held their first annual Paper Airplane Fly-In off the bridge at Walters Hall.  Students, faculty and, staff folded, cut, taped, (and multilated) student-made paper into various forms of flying (and not) creations.

 

After folding, the planes were launched in two competitions:  distance and accuracy.  For accuracy, the objective was to hit a target on the back of the statue of Lincoln in front of Walters Hall.  Additional awards were also given for the largest and smallest airplanes that flew at least 30 feet.  The largest plane, while it did fly 30 ft, did not land quite so smoothly.

Airplanes of all sizes and designs were launched.  The "official" record for distance is 101 ft in the over 100 sq in category and 96 ft in the under 100 sq in category. 

 

The day's events concluded with a meeting of the Papyrus club, a discussion of upcoming club events, and a determination to build better planes for next year.

SCA Tissue

  The interview schedule continues this week with SCA Tissue giving an evening program on 25 September and interviewing for summer and permanent jobs on Thursday.  The evening program gave students an introduction to SCA tissue, which produces various tissue products from 100% recycled material.  In addition to their location in South Glens Fall, NY, they have locations in Wisconsin, Illinois, Alabama, Arizona, and worldwide including Mexico and Russia.  The company headquarters is in Sweden.

Charlie Pound ('00) is the Fiber Prep Superintendent at their South Glens Falls location.  In addition to telling the students about SCA, he told the students about his career and how he ended up at SCA.  he also gave some very good and direct advice on interviewing skills and resume preparation.  Joan Lang is a Human Resource Generalist at the same location.  She discussed the history of the SCA mill in South Glens Falls and some general information about the company.  She also had some very good advice about interviewing and doing a job search.

The opportunities for both summer internships and permanent positions continue to come into the SPPF office.  We are anticipating a very good year for placement of students.  The jobs seem to be there for those students participating in the interviewing process.

Joan Lang discussing the opportunities at SCA Tissue.

Charlie Pound ('oo) discussing his career at SCA Tissue

Albany International on Campus

This week, Albany International was visiting and interviewing students on campus.  Albany International makes paper machine "clothing", which includes screens ("wires") and felts used to continuously make paper and to transport it through the machine.  They have locations in Homer, NY, Albany, NY, Wisconsin, Tennessee, South Carolina, and in 14 countries around the world including Hangzhou, China.

Chris Haverlock was visiting from the Menasha, WI plant, having graduated from our Paper Engineering program in May 2008.  He has been on the job for only four months and is enjoying his job that includes both engineering and research.  Chris originally worked for Albany International during one of his summer internships, which subsequently led to him being hired permanently after graduation.  Jeffrey Eggert, also a graduate of the Paper Science and Engineering program at SUNY-ESF, is the Manufacturing Manager at the Homer plant, which makes the monofilament strands that the wires are made of. 

As with last week, the students learned about the company first hand from our graduates, so that they could go into the interview process prepared.   We are finding that the job market this year is very strong, both for internships and permanent positions.

Chris Haverlock describing Albany International.

Jeffrey Eggert and Chris Haverlock answering questions about both summer and permanent positions.

Company Evening Session: Procter and Gamble

On Wednesday, 10 September, we kicked off our 2008-09 employment recruiting season with an evening program given by Procter and Gamble.  P&G is one of the largest consumer products companies producing such well known products as Bounty, Charmin, Tide, Crest, and many others.  Their manufacturing facility in Mahoopany, PA is the largest facility within P&G where they produce Bounty, Charmin, Bounty Napkins, Pampers, and Luvs.  Please see their website at http://www.pg.com for more information about the company.

P&G has been recruiting at SUNY-ESF for the past four years, and are returning this year on 2 October for interviews for summer interns.  Jess Herrington ('06, Paper Engineering), Nicole Garrisi ('07, Paper Engineering), John Ford ('08, Paper Engineering), Phani Mogalapu, and John Spencer introduced our students to the company over a dinner of Dinosaur B-B-Q.  In their presentation, they provided information about the company's philosophy of hiring from within, using summer internships as extended interviews for permanent job offers, and the variety of opportunities within the company.  Casie Goodwin ('09, Paper Engineering), currently a senior our department, spoke about her summer internship at P&G.  The evening also included a P&G trivia game that included valuable P&G products as prizes.

P&G represents the first of many companies that will be coming to campus throughout the academic year to hire students for both internships and permanent positions.

John Ford, Nicole Garrisi, and Phani Mogalapu speaking to students.

 John Spencer explaining the application and interview process.

Casie Goodwin (middle) describing her summer internship experience.  With her are Nicole Garrisi and Jess Herrington.

John Ford passing out prize to a student for correctly answering a question.